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Toyoda gave his opening statement in heavily accented English. He fielded questions through a translator, but clearly had command of the situation
-- and used the extra time to consider his answers. Early on, the company president reached across the table to pull a microphone closer to his translator, and when asked a question, he nodded to her and said, "Will translate." And so it went, this lively blend of business and political cultures played out before the cameras
-- globalization in a box, the 21st century condensed into a single Capitol Hill committee room. But it wasn't pretty. Not with so many lives at risk or already wasted by mechanical defects. Not with so many lawmakers and Obama administration officials hoping the accountability stops with Toyoda and Toyota, sparing them. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration received more than 2,500 consumer complaints about Toyota before aggressively dogging the company in late 2009. Congress, which has oversight authority on NHTSA, is only now asking tough questions. "NHTSA failed the taxpayers," Towns, the committee chairman, said before swearing in Toyoda. "Toyota failed their customers." Still, after two days of hearings, there is too much we don't know. Why did some cars accelerate out of control? Why did others not stop? What else might go wrong? Is my car safe? At the end of the day, Congress and Toyota delivered more theater than answers. Cultures collide. Globalization enters the so-what phase. Political and business leaders struggle to lead. All true. But whether in Japan or on Capitol Hill, in a car accident you're just as dead.
[Associated
Press;
Ron Fournier is Washington bureau chief for The Associated Press.
Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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