GM's Barra in Tight Spot Among Executives on President's Advisory Panels
August 15 2017 - 8:21PM
Dow Jones News
By Mike Colias
Among the executives under pressure to step down from President
Donald Trump's business-advisory councils, General Motors Co. Chief
Executive Mary Barra may have more to lose than most.
The controversy comes as the Trump administration considers
rolling back fuel-economy standards, a pet policy goal of the auto
industry and a move that could eventually boost sales of GM's
highly profitable pickup trucks and large sport-utility vehicles.
Ms. Barra is the lone high-profile auto executive serving on the
president's business panels.
There is "no change" to Ms. Barra's status as a member of Mr.
Trump's Strategic and Policy Forum, a company spokesman said
Tuesday evening. Earlier in the day, three more members of the
president's manufacturing advisory council said they would resign
in the wake of Mr. Trump's response to violent weekend clashes in
Charlottesville, Va. between white supremacists and
counterprotesters.
Ms. Barra has said she believes it is important to be at the
table to offer context and input as the Trump administration weighs
fuel-efficiency standards and other decisions that could affect the
auto industry, including tax reform and trade policy.
Mr. Trump visited Michigan in March to announce a formal review
of tougher fuel-economy standards put in place by the Obama
administration. Analysts believe the move was a prelude to
eventually relaxing regulations set to tighten starting in
2021.
"The assault on the American auto industry is over," Mr. Trump
told a crowd of auto factory workers during the visit.
GM and other auto makers have urged the Trump administration to
ease the Obama-era regulations, which call for auto makers to sell
vehicles that average 54.5 miles per gallon, or about 40 mpg in
real-world driving, by 2025. The industry has warned that meeting
the target would cost $200 billion and threaten jobs.
"For her, in particular, it's a tough spot," said Dan Hill, CEO
of Hill Impact, a crisis communications firm. Ms. Barra must weigh
the risk of drawing Mr. Trump's ire by leaving the council against
potential fallout on GM or its brands from a consumer backlash
against CEOs who won't speak out, he said.
Stephen Wade, a Utah car dealer and former chairman of the
National Automobile Dealers Association, said Ms. Barra must
consider more than her own views in weighing whether to stay
on.
"It could be that she believes it's far more effective for GM
and its shareholders if she hangs in there," he said.
Two other big-name auto executives have exited Mr. Trump's
advisory councils in recent months. Elon Musk, chief executive of
electric-vehicle maker Tesla Inc., quit two panels in June
following the president's withdrawal from the Paris climate accord.
Former Ford Motor Co. chief executive Mark Fields stepped down from
Mr. Trump's manufacturing council after his ouster from the auto
maker in May.
Write to Mike Colias at Mike.Colias@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
August 15, 2017 20:06 ET (00:06 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
General Motors (NYSE:GM)
Historical Stock Chart
From Aug 2024 to Sep 2024
General Motors (NYSE:GM)
Historical Stock Chart
From Sep 2023 to Sep 2024