The main thing that is proved by the Cash for Clunkers program is that congress and the president of the United States lied through their collective teeth, when they claimed that the stimulus bill they passed was targeted and timely recession relief. Note that the economic activity engendered by the Cash for Clunkers program was immediate. There was no delay whatsoever.
Compare this to any honest assessment of the effects of the stimulus package. Government officials have already admitted that the bulk of the money won't begin to be spent until 2010. What did that stimulus money go for? Paying off political favors, buying new votes, making government bigger and stronger, and funding far left community organization groups.
In other words, anything but getting people to spend money. Imagine if there had been say a $100 billion cash for clunkers program for houses. That alone would probably have gotten the housing market out of its recession.
Another lesson that can be learned from the cash for clunkers program is the ineptitude with which the government carried it out. At first it was on again and off again and then on again. Even now, many car dealers are complaining that they have yet to be reimbursed. It was interesting how many of the cars that people bought were not American cars even though American Automobile manufacturers could use the business.
One of the odder things about the program was the insistence in grinding up the old cars and selling the metal to China. Oh well, surely we can use the money we have borrowed from China to buy whatever it is they make out of our old ground up cars.
It is interesting to look at the way Cash for Clunkers was mismanaged and to imagine how wonderful it will be when the federal government mismanages one seventh of the economy, namely the health care system in the same way. By the way, the reason they are stopping the Cash for Clunkers program is they have run out of cash.
Imagine how thrilled you will be when that same logic gets applied to your cancer surgery or your heart transplants. Well look on the bright side. You are virtually guaranteed that the government grief counselors they send to your hospital room to announce your impeding death, will be really good. They will have lots of practice by the time they get to you.