At a Commerce Subcommittee hearing, Klobuchar questioned GM’s CEO and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHSTA) officials about why they waited so long to take action in the face of mounting evidence of defective ignition switches 

Klobuchar also highlighted the tragic death of Natasha Weigel, a Minnesota woman who was killed in a 2006 accident involving a Chevy Cobalt with a faulty ignition switch 

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) today pressed General Motors (GM) for answers on their long-delayed recall linked to crashes and deaths in Minnesota and across the country. At a Senate Commerce Subcommittee hearing, Klobuchar questioned GM’s CEO and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) officials about why they failed to act more aggressively in the face of mounting evidence of defective ignition switches. Klobuchar also highlighted the tragic death of Natasha Weigel, a Minnesota woman who was killed in a 2006 car crash involving a Chevy Cobalt that had a faulty ignition switch. Klobuchar met with Natasha’s father earlier this week.

“Natasha’s family always had her back – now her family and all of the families that have been impacted need to know that someone has their backs,” Klobuchar said. “They deserve answers – they deserve to know why their concerns and the concerns of so many others went unanswered year after year, even as it became clear that these ignition switches were defective and that the cars were dangerous. This is a basic matter of public safety and public trust, and we need full investigations into both GM and NHTSA’s handling of this incident to figure out what went wrong and how to help prevent it from happening again.”

Witnesses at today’s hearing included: Ms. Mary T. Barra, Chief Executive Officer, General Motors Company; Mr. David J. Friedman, Acting Administrator, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; Mr. Calvin L. Scovel III, Inspector General, U.S. Department of Transportation.

In 2006, Natasha Weigel from Albert Lea, MN was a riding in a 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt with two friends driving on a Wisconsin road when without warning the electrical power on the vehicle shut off. The car barreled ahead at 71 miles per hour veering off the road, clipping a utility box, slamming into a group of trees, and finally coming to a stop nearly 60 feet from the road. The airbags never deployed and Natasha and another passenger didn’t survive.

For broadcast-quality video of Klobuchar’s opening remarks, click here. 

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