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Luxury Carmaker Fisker Looking for More Taxpayer Money
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NLPC Staff
on Wed, 02/08/2012 - 13:09
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Watch the latest video at <a href="http://video.foxbusiness.com" mce_href="http://video.foxbusiness.com">video.foxbusiness.com</a>
Last night on Fox Business Network, NLPC Associate Fellow discussed automaker Fisker's efforts to secure more taxpayer money for its pricey electric vehicles.<br />
<p><b>David Asman</b>: Well, another green company that got millions from the government is in trouble, and still the president wants to double down on clean energy investments. We're adding it all up next.</p> <p><b>President Barack Obama:</b> We've subsidized oil companies for a century. That's long enough! It's time to end the taxpayer giveaways to an industry that rarely has been more profitable and double down on a clean energy industry that never has been more promising.</p> <p><b>David Asman</b>: Wow. Well, in our Crony Capitalism segment, was President Obama referring to clean energy companies perhaps like Fisker? The electric car making announcing it is stopping work at a former GM plant in Delaware, laying off twenty six workers, because it's run out of government loan money. They don't have any more. So far, the company is in hock to taxpayers already for one hundred ninety three million dollars. And yet amazingly, it is negotiating for three hundred and thirty six million more. Is this what the administration means by doubling down on good, solid, well-paying green energy? <a name="HIT_8"></a><a name="ORIGHIT_8"></a>Paul Chesser is with the <b>National Legal and Policy Center</b>. You know, I think of that old phrase from the nineteen fifties. Have you no shame? I mean, have they no shame asking for more money, asking to double down bets that are going bad? It seems insane. Does the president really think he can run on this?</p> <p><a name="HIT_10"></a><a name="ORIGHIT_10"></a>Paul Chesser: Well, the, they were actually awarded the full five hundred and twenty nine million dollar loan, and the first hundred and ninety three million that they've already received was to produce the Karma, which is a sports car...</p> <p><b>David Asman:</b> Right.</p> <p><a name="HIT_12"></a><a name="ORIGHIT_12"></a>Paul Chesser: ... which retails for over a hundred thousand dollars. And it's being produced in Finland. There, they didn't. What happened was the company missed their heir mark and didn't get those Karmas out in time, so now they're a little scared. This plant in Delaware where they're laying off twenty six people, they are refurbishing a former GM plant. And now they're saying, Whoa, stop refurbishing the plant because we're not sure we're going to be able to go through with the all the American jobs...</p> <p><b>David Asman</b>: Right.</p> <p><a name="HIT_13"></a><a name="ORIGHIT_13"></a>Paul Chesser: ... we thought we were going to produce.</p> <p><b>David Asman</b>: It's amazing.</p> <p><a name="HIT_14"></a><a name="ORIGHIT_14"></a>Paul Chesser: So that's really the scary part.</p> <p><b>David Asman</b>: Well, by the way, the place in Finland is a subsidiary. It's not exactly Fisker, but again, it's people that they have hired a subcontractor to do that. But the project in Delaware is the one that I want to talk about because the Nina project was supposed to be great. It was supposed to be a middle-class car, not one for just the rich people, because that was nuts, using taxpayer money to fund something that was for rich, but this was supposed to be middle class. But the Nina is a fifty thousand, the Volt, the Chevy Volt doesn't sell. It's supposed to sell ten thousand cars. They can't even sell that. They sold seven thousand. And that's just that costs forty thousand dollars. This costs ten thousand dollars more. And they say they're going to sell a hundred thousand cars. I mean, they are, these figures are in the fantasyland.</p> <p><a name="HIT_15"></a><a name="ORIGHIT_15"></a>Paul Chesser: Well, exactly. And the Karma was the hundred and ninety three million was supposed to produce the Karma, to get the Karma out into the market here in the United States. They have something like six hundred employees in California working on R&D for that. And so that is a sports car that is getting U.S. money for, you know, top subsidize...</p> <p><b>David Asman</b>: All right. Now...</p> <p><a name="HIT_16"></a><a name="ORIGHIT_16"></a>Paul Chesser: And like you said, the Nina is getting is fifty thousand dollars a vehicle. The Volt, the average customer of the Volt earned a hundred and seventy thousand dollars on average. So this is a subsidy for wealthy...</p> <p><b>David Asman</b>: That's true.</p> <p><a name="HIT_17"></a><a name="ORIGHIT_17"></a>Paul Chesser: ... purchasers of vehicles, who want a third or fourth toy car to play with on the side.</p> <p><b>David Asman</b>: Right. Right. Either, whether it's the Nina or the more expensive one. Obviously, by the way, Leonardo DiCaprio and a lot of a lot of people -- a lot of fancy, wealthy...</p> <p><a name="HIT_18"></a><a name="ORIGHIT_18"></a>Paul Chesser: He got the first Karma.</p> <p><b>David Asman</b>: That's right. He had the first Karma, and other wealthy people. And again, your tax dollars, folks, are going to subsidize rich people buying hundred thousand dollar cars. But I do happen to know one of the private investors because there is still six hundred million dollars in private money that is going to Fisker. Toby Smith, who's been on this program many times. He's a good guy. He's a savvy investor. He saw something in Fisker. And here's what he said earlier. I guess it was back in October about why he still believed in the Fisker model. Let's play the tape and I'll get your response.</p> <p><b>Tobin Smith</b>: Fisker's a company that has three thousand of their cars pre-sold. They have deposits. They're going to be a company that's going to go a billion dollars in sales in two thousand and twelve, the fastest-growth company in the history of commerce in the United States, selling at a profit every one of those cars. They have forty seven dealerships. They have seven hundred new jobs that that D.O.E. loan started.</p> <p><b>David Asman</b>: All right. Now, obviously, Toby was selling his book there. But he's a good salesman. I was listening. I was skeptical, but I was listening. Are these private investors going to pull out now, or are they going to stick with it?</p> <p><a name="HIT_19"></a><a name="ORIGHIT_19"></a>Paul Chesser: Well, who knows. That's not my end of the game. I'm more focused on the government subsidies. But if it's such a good deal, sure, let the private investors invest in it. Let them put their finances at risk. The number I saw was eight hundred and fifty million, and one of the biggest venture capitalist firm in Fisker is Kleiner Perkins which has a couple of major supporters of President Obama and a lot of Democrats as senior partners.</p> <p><b>David Asman</b>: That's true. Surprise, surprise.</p> <p><a name="HIT_20"></a><a name="ORIGHIT_20"></a>Paul Chesser: So there's another aspect of the crony capitalism there.</p> <p><b>David Asman</b>: Absolutely.</p> <p><a name="HIT_21"></a><a name="ORIGHIT_21"></a>Paul Chesser: One other thing, David.</p> <p><b>David Asman</b>: Quickly.</p> <p><a name="HIT_22"></a><a name="ORIGHIT_22"></a>Paul Chesser: There's another company called A, one, two, three Systems that produces the batteries for Fisker. Fisker had to recall the Karma because the batteries had leaks and could potentially cause fires like the Volt similar to the Volt's problems. And A, one, two, three because of their relationship with Fisker, had to lay off a hundred and twenty five people in December.</p> <p><b>David Asman</b>: All right.</p> <p><a name="HIT_23"></a><a name="ORIGHIT_23"></a>Paul Chesser: What will now have to happen with those folks, with that company?</p> <p><b>David Asman</b>: Well, the jobs are going in the wrong direction, that's for sure. <a name="HIT_24"></a><a name="ORIGHIT_24"></a>Paul Chesser, good to see you, <a name="HIT_26"></a><a name="ORIGHIT_26"></a>Paul. Thanks for coming in. Appreciate it.</p> <p> </p> <span id="__caret">_</span><br />
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