Gambling on Fiat

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The Chrysler bankruptcy is now official:

Once Chrysler restructures, the company would receive $4.5 billion in financing to restart its operations….That is $2 billion more than Mr. Obama initially said the company would receive if it successfully reached a deal with Fiat.

Chrysler has already received $4.5 billion from the government, under a bailout plan put into effect by the Bush administration in late December….The Canadian government also is expected to provide $1 for every $3 in American support, the official said, meaning Chrysler could receive another $2.6 billion.

So that’s nearly $12 billion in total assistance. All to prop up a company that, I’ll bet, won’t last two years. Compared to the vast sums of taxpayer cash we’re handing over to the banking industry practically for free, I suppose this isn’t really all that much, but it’s still pretty hard to swallow since it seems almost vanishingly unlikely that Chrysler will survive in the end. I mean, does anyone really think that the management genius of Fiat is going to save them? Fiat?