Obama: America invented the automobile

Obama Joint Session of Congress speech - 02.24.2009

Obama said US auto industry must modernize but hinted that there would be no endless bailouts for the Big 3

By Alex Ricciuti
February 25, 2009 3:47 PM
Filed Under: American, Corporate/Financial, Industry, Production

US President Barack Obama has stated his administration's desire to rescue the US automotive industry while strongly hinting that there would be no commitments to endlessly bailing out the Big 3 Detroit automakers.

In his first address to the Congress as President, Obama said, "As for our auto industry, everyone recognizes that years of bad decision-making and a global recession have pushed our automakers to the brink. We should not, and will not, protect them from their own bad practices. But we are committed to the goal of a re-tooled, re-imagined auto industry that can compete and win. Millions of jobs depend on it. Scores of communities depend on it."

Obama said that the US auto industry must modernize and make cars that run on batteries instead of fossil fuels to meet the challenges of the future and also stated that the nation's electricity grid would need upgrading in order to deal with increasing demand for power from electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles.

Another thing Obama said might create a little offense within the fastidious German auto industry.

Obama stated that, "the nation that invented the automobile cannot walk away from it."

Daimler AG and the German people, ever proud of their industrial prowess, may have something to say about that. Afterall, it was Gottlieb Daimler who, along with his partner Wilhelm Maybach, created the first car that ran on an internal combustion engine, the same basic framework used for an automobile today.

Source: leftlanenews.com and jalopnik.com

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Tags: Bailout, Obama, US auto industry

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Comments

Renegade

February 25, 2009 4:03 PM

Hahahahaha, what a twip, he has all the time in the world to equal George Bush in public mistakes.

afterace2

February 25, 2009 4:04 PM

If America invented an automobile, then why can't they actually build a proper one?

djcocum

March 5, 2009 9:34 PM

Well said!! hahahahaha

JackJack

February 25, 2009 4:16 PM

Actually, it was Karl Benz that first patented the three wheeled automobile on 29 January 1886. Daimler patented the first bike in 1885, but his patent for his four wheel car was only awarded several months after Benz, but yes it definitely was invented by the founders of Daimler AG. And they are GERMAN !!!!!! Not a Yank !!! Henry Ford was the first person to mass produce vehicles using the flow line method. I.O.W one person assembles the chassis, one the suspension, another the tyres etc. All in a line. Similar to modern factories. But that was nearly 15 years after the modern car was invented. Dear President Bush.....oops sorry Obama, please do a little research before making a stupid speech like that

Samuel_spektor

February 25, 2009 4:33 PM

Silly americans, always thinking that the world revolves around them. Jackjack is absolutley right, we have Mr. Karl Benz or germany to thank for the automobile. American ignorance always gets me so peeved.

KaiserM715

February 25, 2009 5:40 PM

Please do not lump all Americans in with this twit. I am more than willing to give credit where it is due.

Beetle

February 25, 2009 4:34 PM

Here we go...

Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot (1725-1804) 1769 STEAM / Built the first self propelled road vehicle (military tractor) for the French army: three wheeled, 2.5 mph.

Wikipedia isnt always correct

catchmyshadow

February 25, 2009 4:36 PM

Of course it was Karl Benz, but that doesn´t really matter as long as millions of americans think that BENZ is a traditional american brand. unfortunately no joke here.

afterace2

February 25, 2009 4:42 PM

hahahah, You are serious? Onion should make an episode about that!

Targa_Florio

February 25, 2009 4:37 PM

One can also argue that French invented the first automobile: Cugnot created a "self-propelled automobile" (steam-powered) in 1770...

It's also a French, Trouvé, who did invent the first electric vehicle in 1880.

One thing is sure, Automobile is a French word, which is why we pronounce "automobeel"!

nici01

February 26, 2009 10:55 PM

Automobile comes from auto and mobilis - which is greek and latin (mobilis)not french at all!

February 25, 2009 4:45 PM

that's a good one AFTERACE2! 1:0

catchmyshadow

February 25, 2009 4:45 PM

we are talking about combustion engines here. manufactured cars for the public were never run on steam or something, therefore the godfather of our cars today was Mr Benz.

obama mixed things up, The first MASS PRODUCED AUTOMOBILE was made by Henry Ford.

Targa_Florio

February 25, 2009 4:52 PM

No, we are talking about automobiles. Combustion engines have been created apart from automobiles (some of them used gunpowder, hydrogen...

catchmyshadow

February 25, 2009 5:05 PM

it is the same with the telephone and BELL. Reis, a german engineer, who claimed to have invented telephone with creating a receiver for telephone transmitting. The common wisdom is that Reis' telephone was only marginal, while BELL's phone really worked.

it´s the same with Benz and the other before, the idea and patent of BENZ was the only one that really worked properly.

Edited by user on February 25, 2009 at 6:36 PM

danat86

February 25, 2009 5:11 PM

It was not his fault, blame the person who wrote that speech. Presidents never write speeches, they just memorize them.

Targa_Florio

February 25, 2009 5:20 PM

That's true. Nowadays presidents are theatrical actors. Looking forward to have them being cinema actors, they would be able to reenact the scenes :-P

Michael-Heinrich

February 26, 2009 11:23 AM

Not really, they don't memorize speeches, you can see the teleprompters in the photo above. And he's reading from the screen to his left.

najdier

February 25, 2009 5:43 PM

He's right. America did invent the mediocre automobile. No other developed country can claim to build so many rolling mediocrities.

porsche08

February 25, 2009 6:00 PM

Trust me, I did not vote for this idiot!!!! I am proud to be an American, but I am scared what the next 4 years hold for us.... by the way, I agree Germans build the best cars by far, I sell them for a living...

Bremen_Koenigsegg

February 25, 2009 11:45 PM

Wow, if Obama is an idiot, I would love to learn about the person you voted for... because clearly said individual wasn't involved in any of the presidential election coverage I watched.

Michael-Heinrich

February 26, 2009 11:29 AM

Hillary R. Clinton would be a better president. Germans have the lead not only in the auto industry, but a female head-of-government as well.

out4ride

February 25, 2009 6:14 PM

I thought he said "we invented the automobile industry" not an automobile itself. Can some one veryfi it.

Iconic

February 25, 2009 6:27 PM

So which idiot.. did you vote for? Because I think he was the least idiotic of the choices we were given.

catchmyshadow

February 25, 2009 6:30 PM

as stated above, he precisely said: "the nation that invented the automobile cannot walk away from it."

edit: and yes, obama is probably the least idiotic, egomanic and dangerous of the choices

Edited by user on February 25, 2009 at 6:37 PM

danat86

February 25, 2009 7:03 PM

Initiating Chris Crocker mode...: LEAVE OBAMA ALONE...please. Leave Obama alone..right now! I mean it.

/Chris Crocker mode off.

500lbman

February 25, 2009 7:31 PM

I am sick of elitist Europeans making remarks as if no one in Europe or Britain ever says or does anything wrong. Obama made a mistake. Guess what, he's gonna make a bunch more.

You are not perfect. I am not perfect. Let's discuss things in a way that is productive not destructive.

dezibel

February 25, 2009 9:19 PM

Well, noone is perfect. This mistake just suits the ignorance and extreme patriotism of some US people. American people think America has invented the whole world. That is something the rest of the world doesnt like.

You will never find a European president who says that his nation is the best country in the world in everything...

Iconic

February 25, 2009 9:35 PM

Hey dezibel, didn't Gordon Brown recently say that he 'saved the world'? I agree a lot of americans here have delusions of grandeur, but I think it's just becoming apparent to them that it's all a sham.

Sedaer

February 25, 2009 8:30 PM

how about not

February 25, 2009 11:24 PM

ha ha ha ha, yes, I stick my nose up at you stupid americans. Now go drink that dirty dishwater from California that you call wine.

Bremen_Koenigsegg

February 25, 2009 11:43 PM

And where does your wine come from? If you are going to act like a pretentious Frenchman, why not (a) actually be French (assuming you're not); and (b) Not make such irrelevant comments on an automotive website?

mortz

February 25, 2009 11:33 PM

I think president Obama will make a world of difference to this planet given enough time and support, as i'm not American i can see things at a different point of view, Just remember Actions speak louder than words, give the man some backing and you will be surprised what a difference he will make, well that's my opinion.

Moko

February 26, 2009 12:11 AM

i think we need to grow up a bit eh , im sure he meant the mass producing of car is what started the whole industry then yes,that little mistage was just a snippet of what he said,instead of focusing on the pillars and forms of his address we are bashing him for that little error and the USa come on, Jobs are at stake here ane ultimately the world's economy so come on let's be a little bit mature

Ray

February 26, 2009 12:39 AM

Just further proof that Obama knows nothing about Americans or our history. Obama: One Big Ass Mistake America!

WildMaverick1200

February 26, 2009 3:33 AM

Bloody shame. The whole world thought Obama would make a difference. But at least in public speeches, there really is no difference....

genie

February 26, 2009 7:47 AM

Whilst, yes, the first cars were produced in Germany, Henry Ford was still responsible for turning what had previously been a horseless cart toy for the ultra-rich into a tool for the people.

Michael-Heinrich

February 26, 2009 11:41 AM

Henry Ford did a great job, I appreciate. But how many Ford T have been sold outside the United States, not to mention being produced somewhere else in the developing world and creating more jobs there. Ferdinand Porsche made people's cars a reality: Volkswagen, Das Auto. By the way, getting cars produced in Mexico may contribute to less illegal immigrants to the United States :P

James2911

February 26, 2009 9:16 AM

And even WCF got it wrong - so you can't blame Obama. Karl Benz made the first ICE car, not Gottleib Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach.

TheKing

February 26, 2009 4:33 PM

What a JOKE! China was the first to invent the first kind of automobile....although it is not the form that it is today.

Ray

February 26, 2009 6:33 PM

Now don't jealous people, we here in America invented the car! Our President told us so and he doesn't lie. I'm so glad we elected Obama, I was afraid America was going to get stuck with "Bailout McCain." I couldn't handle another Bailout. Oh wait, Obama has already supported two bailouts working on another three? This has the makings for a good Family Guy episode. If England allowed firearms, I would jump ship today LOL

nici01

February 26, 2009 10:22 PM

To Targa_Florio Automobile comes from auto and mobilis - which is greek (????)and latin (mobilis)not french at all!

Edited by user on February 26, 2009 at 10:25 PM

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