Iacocca in Washington

Lee A. Iacocca ‘45 is perhaps Lehigh’s most recognizable alumnus of the 20th century. From his time at the Ford Motor Company working on the Mustang and as President, to his shift to Chrysler Corporation, Iacocca was the rare corporate executive to be known and respected by the American public. By 1978, Chrysler was struggling commercially and financially and in desperate need of outside support. In 1979, Iacocca appealed to the U.S. government in search of a loan to avoid bankruptcy and the thousands of lost jobs that would entail. Iacocca’s lobbying and direct appeal to Congress resulted in the Chrysler Corporation Loan Guarantee Act of 1979, which provided a $1.5 billion federal loan in exchange for cost cuts and increased government oversight. With the loan secured, Iacocca was able to lead Chrysler back to profitability and repay the entire loan by 1982. On display is Iacocca’s personal copy of the speech he delivered before the United States House of Representatives Subcommittee on Economic Stabilization, Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs on October 18, 1979.

Lee A. Iacocca, Chairman of the Board, Chrysler Corporation, before the Subcommittee on Economic Stabilization, Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs, United States House of Representatives, Washington, D.C., October 18, 1979. Binder 022.

Lehigh University Archival Record: https://archivesspace.lib.lehigh.edu/repositories/3/resources/443

A version of this text has been digitized and is available through the Lehigh Preserve.