TOLEDO (WTOL) - Mayor Finkbeiner dominated the Chrysler town hall meeting Wednesday morning with an impassioned speech taking shots at Wall Street. The anger came out while the mayor is asking for a lot from Congress.
In part, he said, "Those Wall street guys don't get that! Those Congressmen that voted for that white collar $700 billion bailout don't get that either. This is what America is about, and the day we lose it is the day we lose our strength and our vigor."
The mayor spoke for about 13 minutes on everything from Mexico, Wall Street, and Congress to Indians.
With jobs on the line, hundreds of workers turned out for that town hall meeting.
If only through lunch, the assembly line stopped. About 200 workers that fill four plants in the Toledo supplier mall were invited guests to Chrysler's town hall meeting.
"We've been writing letters. We've been calling Congress. Like I said, we've been sending e-mails. We've done everything in our power to let these guys know exactly where we're coming from," says Richard Crayon.
What they're not asking for is a tax-payer funded handout. "Call it what it is," says Crayon, "It's not a bailout. It's just a loan -- a low-interest loan."
These employees believe the collateral will be built right here in Toledo when Chrysler cranks out the Jeep EV. That's the first electric-powered Wrangler.
If that loan gets denied, these employees worry the line may stop for good.
"They're cutting back on their spending. A lot of people I talked to are concerned about making their house payments, making their car payments. Almost on a daily basis, I've got calls asking me what to expect," says John Martinez.
