by Annie Scott
December 16, 2008

Even in the laid-back, perma-vacation bubble of Southern California, I’m not safe from political crossfire.

As the auto bailout proceedings have unfolded in all their depressing glory, I’ve been hit by angry outbursts from all sides. As a native Michigander, former DC resident and relatively recent San Diego transplant, I’m a natural target for friends, colleagues, former colleagues, neighbors and everyone else with an opinion in this raging national debate.

Not surprisingly, here in the land of Lexus, BMW, Mercedes Benz and, certainly, Toyota Prius enthusiasts, sympathy for the Big Three is in short supply. It’s a major issue, but many Californians seem to lack a practical understanding of the industry and the complex challenges it faces. There are a handful of Buy American loyalists who believe GM, Ford and Chrysler suffer partly from disadvantaged circumstances. Unfortunately, their sympathy reserve is overwhelmed by pent-up frustration over the automakers’ failure to anticipate and adapt to changing demand and tightening standards, as well as the companies’ active resistance to striving for greater fuel efficiency and cleaner emissions.

I hear rants about this on a near-daily basis. Friends and acquaintances here who know I’m from Michigan (anyone I’ve ever met) see me as an ideal sounding board. A neighbor summed up the west coast conventional wisdom bleakly: “This is the automakers’ own fault. We’ve held their hands for too long, while they kept trying to sell Suburbans and Tahoes. It’s time for them to learn their lesson. The hard way. And if 2.5 million jobs are lost, well, then put them to work building good cars that are fuel efficient!”

I can’t help but take the issue personally. I detect subtle condescension toward the Mitten — that we of the Fly-Over States aren’t progressive, enlightened or talented enough to build the Cool Car of Tomorrow (that we actually need Today). I am constantly being asked such questions as, “Don’t the automakers understand we need to address fuel efficiency and climate change now?” and “Why do those union workers get paid so much?”

The shrapnel flying at me from Michigan and DC is no less caustic. They’re just as frustrated and angry, but, as one friend put it, at the “power-grabbing hippies” in California.

The DC clamor reached fever pitch upon the news that Henry Waxman — of California! — had dethroned Dean of the House John Dingell by taking over the Energy and Commerce chairmanship. The move marked the end of an era and served as an omen for GM, Ford and Chrysler.

Most of my old Michigan/DC crowd saw it as something more sinister: a point-of-no-return defeat in the ongoing battle to keep California from usurping too much of Michigan’s power on Capitol Hill. As an “expat” now living in Evil Land, I received a number of rather scathing, venting emails, texts and Facebook messages to the tune of “Waxman=Rat,” “Pelosi’s engineering Michigan’s demise” “California blows,” “Your state sucks” and “Thanks, California, for screwing over Michigan yet again.”

Perhaps the most amusing aspect of this auto rescue face-off is its two giant ironic twists. For all the serves-you-right indignation being spewed at Detroit from the west coast (and elsewhere), California has two big bites of its own humble pie to swallow.

The first, and my personal favorite, is the fact that California itself is in desperate need of a “bailout” for mismanaging and precariously patching its own budget for years. It’s hilarious, considering the pervasive disdain toward the automakers’ hat-in-hand pleas. Apparently, a legislature that is notoriously forward-looking and progressive can incur financial consequences every bit as disastrous as a company clinging to the business model of the past. The state needs major help, soon, to avoid having to face disastrous reality. Sounds familiar.

The second irony is that Californians are just as enamored with and tied to automobiles as Michiganders, though perhaps in different ways. In the ultra-image-conscious world of Southern California, your car defines you to a degree I’ve never seen anywhere else. It makes sense, I suppose. Due to the drive-everywhere lifestyle caused by sprawled design, which leads to perpetual gridlock, most people around here spend what feels like most of their lives trapped in the car. So, you might as well pick a nice cage for yourself. Unfortunately for Detroit, foreign cars long ago picked up a certain cachet of cool that the Big Three have lost.

Status and pride seem to be conferred in one of two ways around here, depending on whom you wish to impress: 1) having the greenest, most eco-friendly-yet-impossibly-chic-and-futuristic-looking vehicle, or 2) having the fastest, sleekest, sportiest and most powerful and chock-full-of-luxury-features car that money can buy. Both should be as expensive as you can (barely) afford. And don’t forget the classic collectors’ cars sitting in all of the three- and four-car garages.

For better or worse, Californians do possess an undeniable knack for trendsetting. Once things settle down, Detroit would be wise to court the tastemakers in the west. And with California’s and Michigan’s shared love of all things automobile, and their mutual need for vital aid, I have hope that a natural partnership can one day emerge to help restore solvency and prestige to both.

In the meantime, in the words of an infamous Californian, can’t we all just get along?

Annie Scott lives and works in San Diego, where she tries to make a difference every day.