Hank Johnson: “My amendment would remove the scope and economic loss language from the bill. Think of yourself as driving down a…”

“My amendment would remove the scope and economic loss language from the bill. Think of yourself as driving down a two-lane road, doing 55 miles an hour. It is nighttime or it could be daytime. Suddenly, you lose control of your car because your ignition switch cuts off the car and you lose control of your power steering and your brakes. There is an 18-wheeler coming at you and you have no time to react. There is a crash and you, as the driver, are killed in the unfortunate accident. Let's assume that that has happened in numerous other cases. Perhaps the injuries were not as bad as a death. Perhaps someone just suffered a closed-head injury, a concussion, or perhaps a broken arm in the accident. Let's assume that both of those cars were made by the same manufacturer, had the same ignition switch, and a defect in that ignition switch caused the crashes. Now there are numbers of claimants who are wanting to get together and file a class action lawsuit because they know that the large company has an army of lawyers, all of whom will go to court against a single plaintiff to defeat the claim.…”