File Under: "Not Likely"

So now the US auto industry is trying to claim that their continued existence is vital to national defense:

In an increasingly anxious campaign for a $25 billion government rescue, Detroit's Big Three car makers and their allies in Washington are warning the demise of the auto industry will damage U.S. national security.
That argument is a hard sell.
General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC long ago exited the defense business. While many of their suppliers also make the parts used on military vehicles and would be hit by the wave if one of the Big Three collapsed, defense experts see little immediate risk to the armed forces beyond paying higher prices.
'It's a stretch, quite frankly,' said retired Army Lt. Gen. John Caldwell, chairman of the National Defense Industrial Association's combat vehicles division. 'I think they're grasping at straws.'

Uh-huh...

By: Brant