Cash for Clunkers Canceled

Pretty astounding, all ramped up and nowhere to go, the Detroit Free Press is reporting Government Suspending Cash for Clunkers Plan:

The U.S. government will suspend the popular cash-for-clunkers program after less than four days in business, telling Congress that the plan would burn through its $950-million budget by midnight, several sources told the Free Press.

The Michigan delegation was holding an emergency meeting convened by Rep. John Dingell, D-Dearborn, to discuss their next steps. The U.S. Department of Transportation did not immediately comment on its plans for the program, or what would happen to deals in progress.

The decision to suspend the plan came after auto dealers warned the government today that it was in danger of losing track of how many trades had actually been made.

Big hat tip to Calculated Risk (who got this tidbit from Basel Too).

New York Times has more.

manfrommiddletown was all for this program, as a stimulus.

So, considering the government whipped out $800 billion plus for stimulus, when one of course works and ya know, why would it not when one can get a deal on a new fuel efficient car and get rid of their beater....they cancel it.

Is it anything that actually works is a problem?

Update: It appears Congress isn't going to let consumers and dealing hanging on a broken promise and are digging around for the cash ($2B approved by this posting, by the House of Representatives). Beyond everyone scrambling to crush that beater car, I wonder what kind of Stimulative effect this will be? That's $3 billion now in crushing used cars & trucks.

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It's too successful. They

It's too successful. They were hoping that it was going to become of the other programs that get no where, suddenly people want to use it and BAM! They set up a wall around the 950 million