Oversight Committee Republicans Question Politicization of Delphi Bankruptcy Deal
WASHINGTON. D.C. – Twelve Members of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform today sent a document request letter to General Motors (GM) CEO Ed Whitacre Jr. today regarding concerns that GM had been making “business decisions based on inappropriate political interference….” This letter is a follow-up to one sent by Ranking Member Darrell Issa (R-CA) on July 22, 2009 that GM failed to provide the documents necessary to advance the Committee’s investigation.
“The politicization of GM’s operations will almost certainly hurt the American taxpayers by reducing the likelihood that the company will ever become profitable and have any chance of repaying the taxpayers’ $51 billion bailout of GM,” the Committee Members wrote. “The American people have a right to know that their money is being spent wisely and is not being used to satisfy the narrow interests of individual politicians or special interests groups.”
Following Issa’s July 22nd letter, a number of news reports implied that the U.S. Department of Treasury politicized the Delphi bankruptcy, securing supplemental payments for Delphi’s unionized employees while Delphi’s salaried employees were forced to accept payments set by the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation.
The letter was signed by Reps. Issa, Cao, Duncan, Burton, Mica, Bilbray, Chaffetz, Flake, Jordan, Schock, Westmoreland and Turner.
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