Chapters 18-19 Summary and Analysis

There was a lot of public opposition to government loan guarantees for Chrysler, including that of the Business Roundtable of the National Association of Manufacturers. Chrysler withdrew its Business Roundtable membership.

Saving Chrysler was a way to preserve competition and to save jobs. The fate of six hundred thousand jobs was at stake. They looked at the effects of Chrysler filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, which would protect them from creditors while they re-organized. Buyers, worried about warranties and service, would stop buying cars. Dealers wouldn't be able to obtain financing and would be forced into bankruptcy themselves.

In chapter nineteen, Iacocca had to appear before Congressional committees to try to get Congress to approve the loan guarantees. The hearings began on October 18. During the hearings, the sale of Chrysler cars fell dramatically and the company began a public relations...