War Room - Salon.com

Thursday, Jun 24, 2004 17:40 PDT

Iacocca ditches Bush for Kerry

By Jeff Horwitz

Lee Iacocca, the executive and pitchman credited with saving Chrysler, has a new project: saving America from another Bush presidency. The retired businessman endorsed Senator Kerry today at a campaign event in San Jose, California.

Iacocca's endorsement is noteworthy not only because he's a venerable elder of Michigan's auto industry. In 2000 he publicly supported Bush, even standing next to Bush in a campaign commercial and saying that "Gore's extreme ideas about cars could cost a lot of Michigan families their jobs."

Jobs were again the central motive behind Iacocca's endorsement, except this time, he says, the Democrat is the one that's got it right:

"The fact is, we can't compete unless our technology is world-class and cutting-edge. We cannot create new high-paying jobs unless America is the world's leader in the industries of the future. And John Kerry understands that.

"John Kerry would make a great commander-in-chief, I have no doubt about that. He would also make one hell of a CEO. That's what a president is.

"So today I'm joining the Kerry team -- as a front-line worker, I guess -- I think in their jobs division or department or wherever I land. I will try to offer advice and consult with the senator and do whatever I can to make him the next president."