America’s Road To Wealth

  Chapter 435 This is life

   In early March, a big event happened in the American auto industry.

  The Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, or OFAC for short, announced that Volkswagen Group and BMW Group were involved in unfair competition with American companies, saying that they would investigate the two auto groups.

   Soon after, the U.S. Economic Sanctions Policy and Implementation Office (SPI) and the U.S. Department of Commerce Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) also announced their intention to investigate BMW Group and Volkswagen Group.

  At the same time, the U.S. Department of Justice also stood up, claiming that the two auto groups may have violated the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and the Helms-Burton Act.

  As soon as these news and news came out, BMW and Volkswagen were petrified.

   There is no doubt that this is the so-called "long-arm jurisdiction" played by the United States very slipperily.

  Enterprises or countries that have been affected by the "long-arm jurisdiction" of the United States include both the United States' own allies and countries that are hostile or have tense relations with it.

  The world's police. That's how lenient it is.

   What's more, it is still 2002, the era when America draws its sword and looks around at a loss, fighting invincible players all over the world.

  The Americans said they wanted to play long-arm jurisdiction, so they really did.

  No one can do anything about it.

   This time it is the turn of BMW and Volkswagen.

   After hearing the news, BMW and Volkswagen were stunned.

   At the beginning, it was associated with GM and Ford.

   After all, these two American auto groups are the two biggest competitors in the global auto industry.

  These two companies are also capable of doing things for them in the United States.

   Fortunately, BMW and Volkswagen have been cultivating the global market for a long time, and they attach great importance to the largest auto market in the United States.

  It has very strong contacts and energy in the United States.

  Among their shareholders, many are even Americans.

  The senior management of the two companies, Baired and John Wieland, who had met Abel, also set off for the United States at high speed.

   Before the planes of these two people arrived in the United States, their company headquarters had already figured out why the White House would target the two of them this time through their contacts and channels in the United States.

  John Wieland and Baired, who had just got off the plane, soon received the news.

   "It's that shameless Smith! Sure enough, Americans are so shameless."

  While leaving the terminal of Dulles International Airport in DC District, Bai Ruide of the BMW Group couldn't help but whispered to John Wieland.

   "Speak carefully."

  John Wieland immediately reminded: "Don't forget where this is."

   Scolding Americans in an American place, no matter how you say it, is always an irrational behavior.

  Berred came to his senses. He nodded and said, "Then follow the arrangement at the headquarters and go find those vampires first."

   "At present, this is the only way to go. We must be clear about the strength of the enemy we are facing this time." John Wieland said.

  Two Germans got out of the airport, got into the vehicle sent by the branch of the two major groups here, and set off directly to "K Street".

  K Street, it is located between Capitol Hill and White House, from west to east, across the north of Washington.

   This is the famous "lobbying street" in the United States.

  It has gathered a large number of think tanks, lobby groups, public relations companies, non-governmental organizations, international headquarters, and the World Bank.

  The International Monetary Fund is also located here.

  If Wall Street is an international financial center.

   Then the "K Street" in Washington is the center of international politics that is ever-changing.

  The lobbying companies here are the same as other American companies.

   They are all guys who have women but are mothers.

  As long as they are willing to give money, even foreigners, they will still help out.

  BMW Group and Volkswagen Group both have huge markets in the United States.

  The two of them, of course, have regular and strong collaborators on K Street.

   Only in this way can we ensure that they will not be swallowed by rude and rude Americans on the American market side.

  The channels of the two companies were originally separate.

  But this time, the two families faced the British and Abel together.

  They had to stand together and hug each other to keep warm, in order to resist the pressure from the richest man in the world.

   Even when they came to K Street to find someone, the two major automobile groups contributed their money together, and found a well-known figure in the American lobbying industry, Jack Abramoff, who is known as the "Godfather" of the American lobbying industry.

  Jack Abramoff is a veteran of the Elephant Party. In his early college years, he once served as the chairman of the College Republican Alliance.

   is little Laura's big cousin, the position he currently holds.

  Because of this reason, Jack Abramoff established a very good personal relationship with many American conservative rookies at the time.

  Relying on this relationship, he entered the industry in the 1990s, and it was a success.

  John Wieland and Bai Ruide came to him, so they came here because of the name.

   "Hey, two friends from Germany. I have to say that the difficulty of this job is not high."

  As soon as they met, Jack Abramoff gave the two Germans an opening remark in the style of Mawei.

   "We all know who is going to target you this time. We also know what the last name of this future wife is."

   "So, two gentlemen, maybe you should be prepared."

   Facing Jack Abramoff's unceremonious opening remarks.

  Baryd didn't speak, but John Wieland said with a smile:

   "This time the fee is 5 times, Mr. Abramoff, this time we are willing to pay you 5 times the price."

  Jack Abramoff was startled, and the expression on his face became warmer.

"ha-"

  He smiled and said: "Although the difficulty is very high, you have found the right person. Believe me, if even I can't handle it, no one in the entire K Street can handle it."

  Bayred is not as easy to talk to as John Wieland.

  Watch Jack Abramoff, because of the money, the tone starts to soften.

  Berry immediately said: "Mr. Abramoff, it seems that you are willing to take this job. Then I would like to ask, what should I do next? BMW and Volkswagen will fully cooperate with your work."

  Jack Abramoff pondered for a moment, then said softly:

   "The best way now, of course, is to satisfy him. We all know that when a lion starts hunting, it means that the lion is hungry. As long as the lion is full, then there is no need to face the fangs and claws from the lion."

   Bai Ruide and John Wieland looked at each other.

   Both Germans know why good-looking Americans will come to target them.

   It's all because of the Rolls-Royce Motor Group!

  The question is, are the two of them willing to give up Rolls-Royce and Bentley, which are already on their lips?

   Not at all!

  The BMW Group and the Volkswagen Group have spent a full five years in order to obtain the Rolls-Royce Motor Group.

   After spending so much real money, how could it be possible to give up so easily now?

  Jack Abramoff's so-called simplest solution is impossible for BMW and Volkswagen to do.

  Bryd said angrily: "Mr. Abramoff, we are willing to pay you five times the price to hire you. We hope you can help us solve our problems, not solve us."

"Ha ha-"

  Jack Abramoff laughed again.

"Okay, okay, I know. Then, next, my work is about to start. Believe me, gentlemen, even if I face the white house and that person, I will definitely satisfy you. I Let you know what value for money is!"

  Jack Abramoff is confident.

  The reason why he has this confidence is because he has a very good relationship with conservative political leaders such as Tom Delay and Newt Gingrich.

   It is also because even on the side of the donkey party, today's lobbying giants have some powerful cooperators.

  These factors make Jack Abramoff one of the out-and-out K Street bigwigs.

  Including BMW and Volkswagen this time, they gave too much.

  Jack Abramoff was willing to give it a try even though he knew it was extremely difficult.

   What's more, now facing two customers, for the sake of delicious dollar bills.

   With his professionalism, Jack Abramoff had to pretend that everything was very simple even if he pretended.

   Look at Jack Abramoff being so confident.

  The two Germans, who have no intuitive sense of someone's influence and connections in the United States, are also exaggerated by Jack Abramoff's self-confidence.

  The uneasy and tense mood when I rushed over from Germany, I couldn't help but gradually relax.

   Then, before Bai Ruide and John Wieland, visited those DC bosses who had relations with BMW Group and Volkswagen Group in Washington.

  On March 15th, they received a message that caught them off guard.

  The lobbyist hired by BMW and Volkswagen, the confident Jack Abramoff a few days ago, was exposed by multiple media that may be involved in the three felonies of conspiracy, fraud and tax evasion.

   When the two went to contact Jack Abramoff, they were scolded by the latter and announced the severance of cooperation.

  John Wieland and Bai Ruide had an intuitive understanding of someone's influence in the United States.

  And when the two Germans passed on their experiences in the United States and the situation they faced back to Berlin.

  Abel is still in San Diego, California.

  San Diego is a good place, known for its warm climate, beautiful coastline and numerous sandy beaches. The world's top university, the University of California, San Diego, is also located here.

  It is also the third city with the strongest economy in California, second only to Los Angeles and San Francisco.

  Abel is here, originally there were two companies.

  One is the founder of CDMA, communication giant Qualcomm.

  The other is the original Sempra Energy, and later Pacific Energy.

   But now, in San Diego, he has a third company.

   That is the energy group whose headquarters is also here, one of the largest utility companies in the United States, California Pacific Gas and Electric Company.

   Abbreviated as PG&E.

  Abel originally only held 50.9% of PG&E shares and was the chairman of the company.

  But because of some tyrants, he, the chairman, has many powers that are very limited.

   Fortunately, not long ago, because of the substation explosion and his own attack.

  The local shareholders of PG&E had no choice but to shrink back in the face of Abel, who stood on the high ground of public opinion.

  Thus turning him, the chairman, into a real chairman with real power.

   It also allowed him to increase his stake in PG&E to about 70% after spending billions of dollars.

  Since then, California Pacific Electric has been announced to be in his pocket.

   A few days ago, California Pacific Electric announced that it would merge with Texas Pacific Energy to form a new American Pacific Energy Group.

   On March 15th, Abel came to San Diego to inspect the headquarters of the two companies that are about to merge.

  At the same time, do some preparatory work for the merger of the two energy giants.

  Mainly do the preparatory work for PG&E. After all, Pacific Energy has already completely become his shape.

   And Cal Pacific Electric, for a long time, has always been a stickler for Abel.

  Since he is a rebellious boy, if necessary, of course he should give him a good beating.

  In the office of the chairman of PG&E.

   "BOSS, the current layoffs, will it appear that you are a little impatient?"

  The chief consultant of the Smith Intelligence Group, considering his tone, spoke softly to his boss.

  "There will be no large-scale layoffs. Just use the substation explosion and use the company's loss of billions of dollars in market value as an excuse to kick some stumbling blocks. Otherwise, how can we insert our people?"

"I have always insisted that only the middle management is the cornerstone of an enterprise. If we want to master a company, we must master this cornerstone. Well, let's go, don't make others wait too long, Alan, believe Me, it's not a big problem."

   Abel said confidently.

  Because he knows that his power in California Pacific Electric has been limited, the most important reason is those local snakes.

  It is a Northern California school mainly featuring Jerry Brown and others.

   Now this group of people has retreated and chose to become one of the new shareholders of the American Pacific Energy Group.

  Then PG&E naturally has no confidence to face Abel.

   It is already the point where he can make a round shape if he wants to, and flatten it if he wants to.

   Soon, in the conference room of Pacific Electric headquarters in California.

  After the normal opening remarks.

  Sitting on the boss chair, Abel, as the chairman and largest shareholder, announced the layoffs.

   "...I checked the personnel information of the group company, and the number of people in each department team is a bit too much."

   "At present, the energy industry in the United States is affected by the war and economic downturn, and the market is sluggish. In order to increase revenue and reduce expenditure, reduce losses, and before the integration and merger of the two major groups, each department will undergo a layoff..."

  Abel had a warm smile on his face, but what he said made everyone present feel shuddering and cold.

  Everyone started to discuss in low voices. Although the dozen or so people present were all important managers, there was a high probability that the fire of layoffs would not reach them.

   But after all, they are all following their subordinates. It is a difficult decision to lay off who or not to lay off.

"Let me start by saying what I mean. Layoffs are inevitable. The entire energy industry is downsizing. There is no way around it. Also, the frontline energy workers and low-level technicians will not move this time. 32 global offices , except for the technicians and the local person in charge, everyone else is on the list of cuts!"

  As Abel's voice fell, the entire conference room was in an uproar.

   We will not lay off low-level workers and technicians. Now that the two groups are merging, for the sake of stability, there is a high probability that they will not lay off these high-level workers.

  The big knife for layoffs this time must be aimed at middle-level managers.

  Hearing this news, Hupus, the company's CEO, who was originally a local boss and lackey, looked relaxed.

  The faces of several vice presidents became very gloomy.

  CEO Hupps was originally Jerry Brown's "protégé". He served as Jerry Brown's secretary for a year when Jerry Brown was governor of California.

   Logically speaking, after Abel took over, the first person who should be kicked out was Shupus.

   But Abel did not.

   This is because earlier, shortly after the substation incident.

  Smart Hupus chose to jump ship...

  So now Shupes can be very relaxed, but the vice presidents can't be as easy as him.

  But the vice presidents also know that Oatsuki cannot be twisted with an arm.

  Even Jerry Brown and other top snakes chose to hand over PG&E.

  The life and death of these wage earners has naturally been tightly held in the hands of Abel Smith.

"The layoffs this time are not random. Business ability assessment and screening will be carried out, and a special team will be established soon. You are the cornerstone of the larger Pacific Energy Group and the future. I hope you can cooperate with the work of the special team when the time comes! "

   "I very much hope to see you all again at future Pacific Energy Group meetings."

  Abel changed his warm and smiling expression, his eyes were sharp, and he looked around the group of executives with a cold expression, saying words that were both comforting and warning.

  The meeting ended quickly, and everyone left the meeting room with solemn expressions except for the CEO Hupps.

  Shupus was still left behind and had a few words with Alberto.

   Then happily accepted the task of being in charge of the entire assessment task and reviewing the list of layoffs.

  Abel looked at the back of the happy CEO Shupus, leaving.

  He just smiled faintly, knowing that the news of the layoffs would be received by Jerry Brown and others soon.

   However, to disappoint many people, the old guys will most likely remain indifferent.

   Maybe not even happy with the results.

  In China, this is called one emperor and one courtier.

  Just after taking control of California Pacific Electric, a series of personnel changes were carried out in the company, which naturally aroused some contradictions among the company's top management.

   It is conceivable that the local media and people in California will not give a good evaluation.

   But this is a game of thrones in the business world.

  Layoffs, cleansing, eliminating dissidents, killing chickens to scare monkeys, breaking inherent alliances, creating conflicts between old employees and old bosses, making the relationship between all parties worse, and so on.

  All will be realized one by one in Abel's movement, which is to reduce the company's financial losses on the surface, but in fact it is a big purge.

   After the cleansing, join the new man, the man who belonged to him Abel Smith.

  After the integration, California Taiping Electric can be cleanly merged with Pacific Energy, and will become the energy carriage in Abel Smith's commercial troika.

  As for some people losing their jobs, it will lead to a series of difficulties in life.

   Or ex-employees who were laid off resent and curse, that's not what Abel cares about.

   Well, he's sorry.

  However, I understand, it’s tricky JPG:

   "This is reality, this is life."

  (end of this chapter)