The president, as we noted, is in town to tout the auto industry's rebound, following the federal government's bailout in 2008-2009. The stop, part of a three-city tour, is meant to serve as a precursor to Obama's Jan. 20 State of the Union address.
The timing of his visit is, well, a bit unfortunate: The Ford Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne will be shuttered this week. As the Detroit News noted:
[T]he Wayne factory that employs about 5,100 and makes the Focus gas-powered car and C-Max hybrid gasoline-electric car is shuttered this week because of falling demand caused in part by plummeting fuel prices. Autoworkers on temporary layoff get most of their pay.
The rather poor optics of the visit generated a humorous response from Detroit Free Press cartoonist Mike Thompson
