Clunker of a Bill

The one thing the federal government ought to be able to do well is give away money. But Washington initially has bungled the Cash for Clunkers program for struggling automakers and dealers by not processing certificates in a timely manner.

We agreed with Michigan's congressional delegation when the bill was passed that it was too anemic to do much real good. Congress set aside $1 billion, enough to move roughly 250,000 vehicles. Rep. Candice Miller, R-Mich., had asked for at least $4 billion to incentivize up to 1 million new vehicle sales.

Little wonder that the program ran out of money almost as soon as it was launched.

The House rushed Friday to put an extra $2 billion into the program, and we applaud the quick action.

Dealers who had launched costly promotional campaigns to take advantage of the Cash for Clunkers trade-in rebates now aren't certain whether the deals they make this weekend will be honored. Both dealers and car buyers have had trouble navigating the cumbersome eligibility rules.

The government's website for explaining the program couldn't handle the load.

And so far, dealers who have taken trade-ins of gas guzzlers in exchange for the government's $3,500 to $4,500 rebates have not received their promised electronic payments and aren't certain they will.

The White House assured dealers that sales made through this weekend will be honored, but no one can say with any certainty whether there will be any money left.

This was a good idea poorly executed.

The program should have been more generously funded from the start, and the government should have anticipated that a financially ailing public would rush to dealers to take advantage of the free cash.

Now, debate is renewing in Congress over whether the mileage threshold for the new cars purchased should be raised, and whether it should cover vehicles not made in America.

Congress has raised expectations of consumers who saw Cash for Clunkers as a rare opportunity to get some of their tax money back. It should put enough cash in the program to satisfy this initial demand, clarify the rules, make sure dealers get their checks and then shut it down.

Perhaps there's some good in this confusion. An American public that has been lulled into believing Big Government is the answer to everything needed a reminder of just how inefficient the federal bureaucracy really is.

REPRINTED FROM THE DETROIT NEWS.

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