What's the Rush?

" After Jennifer just about a month the judges approve the sale of General Motors strongest assets to a newly formed company. A major step toward leaving chapter eleven bankruptcy here's celebrate stand the US government you with a tax Payer. Well on about 61% of General Motors the unions will -- seventeen point 5%. The Canadian government blown eleven point 7%. And the old General Motors will own the remaining 10%. The company will be made Napa Chevrolet Cadillac Buick and GMC and a minority stake in General Motors Europe. But aren't there -- serious problems and handling such a giant bankruptcy. And such a short time. Here's Tom woods the author of meltdown. A free market look at why the stock market collapsed the economy tanks. And government bailouts will only make things worse he joins me by phone. And Steve Jack about -- an attorney with the Coleman law firm. He's appealing thank god someone is the General Motors ruling Tom to you first. The General Motors bankruptcy is one of the largest in American history it took four weeks there was no testimony whatsoever in court. And yet that taxpayers on the hook for fifty billion dollars without a vote by the congress but because the president. And a single federal judge had said so. What is going on here."

" Well this is one piece in a huge puzzle. That involved a whole lot of things the government has been doing that are unprecedented and have been done essentially without any meaningful debate. That we had this idiotic stimulus package we've had cap and trade were nationalized the the banks are bailing everybody out were taken over Fannie and Freddie and how much debate was there -- any of this stuff. How much debated there about what the Federal Reserve is doing creating trillions of dollars out of thin air. We get creditor rights being overturned the desirability of investing in America being reduced. And that the that they all being done as a huge state judge with basically no debate that Japan did pretty much all these sorts of things that happen doing these things. We're close to twenty years now. And their economy just contracted. At an annualized rate of about 15%. Which is pretty much banana republic territory right so what we're seeing is not so much. You know just that a good will attempt to fix the economy I think what we're seeing. It's what happens when bugs and the ray davis' try to grab whatever problems they can't from an economy that they and their friends of the Federal Reserve --"

" Steve you are you are a lawyer. You represent a good number of people who have been injured or who say they have been injured. By General Motors products and they still have lawsuits. Against the new General Motors as a result of this bankruptcy or have their own -- wiped out."

" Well judge the client that I represented only five I think that they represented a number of other people are similarly situated and and these are basically people who have existing lawsuits. Not a number of them have been severely injured ones a quadriplegic one lost his side and an -- in the accident and lost limbs of his own. And so you know these are people have real serious injuries on the basis of the facts that are known to have existed. On court."

" where many that are rose Steve of their many other people out there. May be in in the thousands. Who have causes of action from their own bodily injury against General Motors. Who will not see a judge or jury. As a result of this bankruptcy."

" But not of my appeal is successful but otherwise the answer to that is yes and there are about a thousand cases out there right now and -- number of others that are injured. Who could bring cases you're talking about probably about half a billion dollars worth of liabilities."

" Tom that the president and his folks. They automobiles are the cars are have the following months for a people ahead of profits. Do they understand the first thing. About the government operating. A for profit business."

" Well a lot of people. Have this this crazy slogan of people before profit you see it on the air bumper stickers and so on but it -- they had no idea what profit me. It if -- bit higher profit in the industry. It means that industry that -- producing something the general public wants if there are losses it means the opposite. The profit to entice more capital to go with an expanded and that Arenas look at the profit of Los mechanism. The -- are productive structure at the service of the people there's no distinction between profit and people it's what the people want. That fueled the profit encourages businesses to expand their that the alternative to this system. It's not some utopia in which were all skipping through meadows all day. But the alternative at this system that puts bureaucrats before people would make business decisions not -- to what people want but according to what -- like Barney Frank wants."

" let me stop you for a minute Tom. I think you have said in print and elsewhere. That General Motors loses a couple of thousand dollars per car. That Monday shut down and don't operate at all they stop losing money out if they lose a few thousand dollars per car. How can the government possibly expect that somehow some way Sunday. They will earn enough profit to pay back the fifty billion dollars. Of taxpayer dollars that are about to be given to them."

" Well that they'll never be able to pay it back is the answer. And on top of that we've got this this little proletarian mobile that it looked like the administration want them to build. I mean this really is like living in a George Orwell novel but now they'll never be able to pay it back and the result is going to be. You know this was just gonna become a fixture of American life and in fact I think a lot of Americans have already moved on is that you know well of the too bad but I guess there's nothing we can do about it that's the feeling I think they want all of us they have the dreary inevitability of the whole thing and the total helplessness of the voting public."

" Steve your clients as I understand it come from all walks of life these are. Innocent injured people they were injured because what you say are eager manufacturing or design defects in General Motors automobiles. Did you raise these claims before a bankruptcy judge and if you did. Power of those claims treated."

" Well the claims are treated like every other claimant a bankruptcy case really feel that I'm facing. Is whether or not under state law and are especially under -- under bankruptcy law. Whether congress intended. For the bankruptcy -- provisions. To wipe out the claims of my clients against successors. Under theories of successor liability."

" All right so if you can't normally what happened can't go after the new General Motors in behalf of all of these innocent injured people. And you're forced to go after work remains of the old General Motors you'll just be going after shell with no assets from which a jury could order a verdict against in favor of your clients."

" If that's effectively right the the claims are expected to receive about ten cents on the dollar. Tom I suppose though that I had seen. Well the key I think is that. You know you've got basically the same company producing the same products with the same management the same employees the same brand the same slogans the same advertising. And it's basically a successor and about half the states about a half of the population in this country the state law gives these people the right to go against the successor. Under those state laws have been -- operated the business just the way the old business. Operated."

" But under the rule all of I had this federal bankruptcy judge your clients. Would be left out in the cold. Thomas this is this doesn't have a balance the Chrysler bankruptcy was in your opinion."

" What looks that way and at that they. It did it's extremely troubling to me that the general public unfortunately I think it's just so demoralized even people who wanna fight against this. They feel like apparently aren't put doesn't count for anything. This regime it's gonna do -- wants F. -- we have to do what ever we possibly can't fight them. Ever we've got everybody's got a role to play in the great. Division of labor of fighting against this whether it's educating yourself educating other people organizing right you know reading Lew Rockwell dot com."

" Joining Laura Ornest and our religious liberty. Or discussing his word as we're doing now Tom reds and ski jacket -- thanks very much for joining us."