[Chapter 716: The Big Three American Automakers]
Somebody might have said, "Has William White lost his mind? Giving up something like this is simply unforgivable."
But really, it wasn't as simple as that. Even if you stayed in the U.S., the company shares would still be diluted. That was just the way the game was played. For companies valued over ten billion, having just 5% of shares was considered good for the founder. How could anyone expect more?
Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, after all, held no more than 5% of their companies. But did that mean they lost control? Not at all!
When Steve Jobs was brought back to Apple, he only had a single share left. The shares he held afterward were granted to him by the board.
As for game companies and comic book entities, they had reached a bottleneck. If they didn't seek some breakthroughs soon, they would eventually be outpaced by others. Would other foreign companies dabble in video game consoles? William White didn't know for sure, but Sony definitely would. There was no doubt about that.
Wasn't it a little like a strategic move in chess?
Since Sony wants to be an American company, why not let's swap places? The Japanese environment isn't so bad outside the higher earthquake risk. Most importantly, the U.S. gaming and comic markets have clearly shown signs of decline.
After all, he still had Marvel and DC on his side. The Japanese didn't care much for those comics, but America still loved them.
...
"European design center? Tsk tsk, are they planning to move the entire automaker group as well?"
"Sir, this so-called third-largest automaker in the U.S. is a bit of a stretch, considering Chrysler doesn't even acknowledge it."
"And what do you say, Andy?"
"Sir, no matter how you slice it, Tesla is definitely an American automaker, there's no question about that. And who says you need factories? No one has made that a rule."
"Come on, do any of our divisions even produce stuff? Haven't we made investments in Europe and Asia? These boring fools should manage their Detroit better."
"Sir, moving left and right like this is getting a little excessive. I heard William White refused to take Bill's call."
"Ha, that's just nonsense. William White? He's a guy who can stab you in the back with a smile. Why would he care what the president says?"
Alright, so Tesla planned to relocate, and that meant Chrysler seemed to reclaim their title as the third-largest U.S. automaker. Chrysler certainly wasn't thrilled about this title they'd reclaimed. Man, bullying was one thing, but that was a whole new level of it.
"Sir, Ford also has plans for a European design center. The timing of this eruption is really inconvenient."
"Sigh, a nation on wheels, huh? Since the first oil crisis, the foreign markets have been crushing us. If it weren't for all those subsidies every year, it would be a miracle if even one of the three major automakers survived."
Though, could his energy mining operation move as well? What about NBC?
...
Needless to say, the old sharp mind at Morgan Stanley seemed to be deluding himself. William White was merely seizing the chance to readjust his industrial layout. Even if the Justice Department didn't trouble him, he would still find a way back.
Give up on the U.S.?
That was just a funny joke. For a long time to come, the U.S. economy wouldn't have any real recovery.
Just think about it: after the subprime mortgage crisis, America had pretty much given up. Once the bubble of the dollar and real estate burst together, everyone would sit down and renegotiate.
Who knew when that scene from Bretton Woods would play out again?
Never doubt America's resolve; it would surely happen. You just didn't know the timing.
Being president in the U.S. was easy enough; if the economy was good, the unemployment rate was low. As long as you didn't act like a complete jerk, you typically wouldn't face issues.
The state of the economy wasn't even the main concern. When Roosevelt took over, wasn't the economy in ruins?
Why was he able to succeed in getting reelected?
Simply put, he employed some extreme measures to boost employment. When employment improved, the economy's problems really became trivial.
By the time it reached Clinton, the reasoning was much the same. You might argue the economy was good, but sorry, that was the previous administration's credit; your contribution was negative.
As for employment rates, when twenty thousand people were about to lose their jobs, that was on you. So, were you here to help us or were you a double agent from Russia?
The auto workers' union was equally frustrated; their plans hadn't even launched yet when Tesla announced its move. Well, they had never really considered themselves an American company; it was just you who insisted on that.
It didn't matter; you could continue to boycott. But this time, all European automakers needed to be involved. Oh, and also the foreign ones; you could try taxing all imported cars.
...
"Damn it, Al, we've been played. William White was always planning to shift these industries."
"Bill, calm down. The game and comic companies may have that intent, but the car companies definitely are not on that list."
"You're wrong; him leaving the U.S. wouldn't change anything. He wouldn't even enjoy tax relief here. Cars shipped into the U.S. still had to pay taxes."
"Perhaps, Bill. But that's not what's important now. You should be thinking about how to recover from the fallout."
Clinton could just laugh bitterly, having no other choice. In America, you couldn't attack any individual or group with your words; doing so would lead to disaster.
There was, however, one person you could freely insult: the president himself.
When the president insulted you, the court would issue him a subpoena. You insult him? He could only swallow it and would never take you to court. Not because he couldn't, but because that would be humiliating.
The two men tossing the "jerk" around were also not having it easy. There weren't that many people who really needed to be laid off, but even so, the pressure from above was immense. If it hadn't been for the buffer period, the HR manager would likely be in tears.
...
"Sir, Mr. Stan Lee is here."
"Let him in. And could you grab us a cup of coffee?" The old man came in, looking visibly uneasy. He didn't want to head into any trouble.
"Old friend, Marvel won't be impacted at all. In fact, I'm planning to increase investment."
"Are you sure? Sorry, I mean, are you serious?"
"I love Marvel; I won't be injecting any Japanese elements to lure them in. But the U.S. comic market is indeed declining; you need to step it up on your end. And by the way, you have to resolve the situation with 150 employees, primarily in sales."
Though the old man was stubborn, he wasn't unreasonable. That William White was thinking of supporting employee employment showed he was genuinely trying his best.
How often did you see that happening in America? There was no need to even mention it. Let alone, how could the corporate headquarters overseas take a year or two still?
"Alright, alright, you wouldn't give me a couple of project plans?"
"Pfft, I wouldn't want the poorly conceived ones. As for the good ideas, they're working from home, and I'll pay them just the same."
No matter how many layoffs happened, the capable always managed to survive till the end. In fact, changing up the workforce every so often could be beneficial for the company's growth. It wouldn't do to adopt the Japanese practice of lifetime employment; that just wasn't appropriate.
*****
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