There is another thing to consider other than throwing cash directly at the manufacturers, and our trading partners will not be pleased - Buy a new car with over __% content US-made and receive a tax deduction for the next 3 years at __% of the car's purchase price!

If you want the economy to move forward, give the consumer a darned good reason to buy the product, rather than subsidize manufacture of a product people avoid for mainly cost and value reasons.

That's as good as giving a tax cut for any income bracket, keeps the money out of politicians' hands to spread according to their favorite lobbyists, and makes everyone actually feel pretty good at the same time.

Capitalism hasn't failed, and Socialism only leads a country into deep mediocrity and eventual socio-cannibalism. The USSR showed the world that having a two-class system (as Socialism creates) leads nowhere.

Capitalism always worked when people worked, and did not always try to get-rich-quick and buy things with no money through schemes and eco-magic. The growth of the "financial advisor" industry which exists to get people to "invest" (a.k.a. GAMBLE) with the notion of getting rich without sweat occurred due to greed. Capitalism provides those who work better and harder than the next guy will do better than the next guy. Capitalism and gambling provide the same as ANYTHING and gambling - probable failure as the odds are aways in the house's favor.

Socialism - wealth redistribution - economic balancing -- they are all the same and all are lead a nation and a society to live via the lowest common denominator.

There is only one way out of all of this - give the consumer what s/he wants (half-decent product at a better price than the foreign competition) and the economy rockets to the sky. How we get that price to be better than the competition is where industry and government can work together. Lower the individual's tax consequence, that's other money to spend elsewhere, and more of the economy grows in parallel. There is no mystery here.