if trump succeeds in forcing the car industry on this continent into a crisis, it may never really recover, given that it may find itself unable to compete with electric vehicles and other imports. the last time this happened, during bush II, chrysler got bought by an italian company and the united states and canada both briefly owned a portion of the other big detroit companies. 

the obama administration missed an opportunity to direct these companies to decarbonize. a second opportunity may be coming.

if the auto industry blows up again, it should not be bailed out unless it agrees to shift direction. if it refuses, the companies should be allowed to fail, so they can be replaced.

destruction is not inherently negative. sometimes, what exists must be destroyed in order to rebuild.