WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Herb Kohl today questioned top government officials at a hearing of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs about the closing of the Kenosha and Janesville automobile plants and the government’s involvement in the automobile industry. Panelists include Ron Bloom, Senior Advisor on the Auto Industry at the Treasury Department, and Edward Montgomery, White House Director of Recovery for Auto Communities and Workers.

“With the closings of Janesville and Kenosha auto plants and of many dealerships statewide, it is important to ensure that jobs are staying in the United States and that we fight for the auto workers of Wisconsin,” Kohl said.

Last week it was announced that the GM plant in Janesville, Wisconsin was one of three plants in the running to make small cars.  If selected, 1,400 workers would be back to work. When asked about the decision making process, Bloom indicated that he will ensure GM makes their decisions with transparency, but that he will not take sides and recommend one auto plant over another.

Kohl also questioned Bloom on the abrupt closing of so many dealerships, noting that several of the dealerships told to close have a ‘history of profitability.’  His point was emphasized by Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), who echoed the sentiment that no economic argument for the closures has been put forward by the two major companies.

Kohl is working to keep both the Kenosha and Janesville plants operating, and opposed the decision to outsource Chrysler jobs to Mexico after the company accepted a taxpayer-funded bailout. When asked about the Kenosha plant and the decision to outsource many of these jobs instead of retooling the Wisconsin plant, Bloom explained that Chrysler has invested hundreds of millions of dollars into the plant in Mexico and that the alternative would have been a liquidation of Chrysler.  

Kohl met with top GM officials Troy Clarke, Head of GM’s North American Division and Tim Lee, Vice President of Manufacturing in a separate meeting today to discuss the future of the GM auto plant in Janesville.

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