Cash for Clunkers: Now the United States Wants to Buy Your Car

Congress is considering a new program called Cash for Clunkers. NPR reports what the program is all about:

The government has given billions of dollars to automakers who need to sell more cars. Now, Congress may soon offer motorists money to buy new vehicles. The idea behind the proposed program, called “Cash for Clunkers,” is to get millions of aging gas guzzlers off the road and replace them with fuel-efficient cars. If approved, the program would provide vouchers up to $4,500.

Fine and well, but what new car could you buy with $4,500? The cheapest new car I found was the $9,970 Hyundai Accent. Congress might just be thinking that people will take that cash and automatically seek out more fuel-efficient vehicles. That may be partially true, but the catch is that they either won’t be new, or buyers will have to go into debt to get them.

I’d rather see more incentives to make cheaper hybrids, then visible job-creation or small-business stimulus incentives. People will get rid of their gas guzzlers without government help when gas prices go back up.