By David BlackmonGermany’s once-mighty auto industry is trembling under pressure that strikes at the heart of that country’s national psyche. Chinese rivals churn out new models in 18 months or less while Western firms lumber along on multi-year cycles. Here, it is key to point out that the U.S. auto industry is not immune to the same forces. The same dynamics that hollowed out German market share in China — state-directed investment, aggressive pricing and rapid iteration — are aimed at every major global market. Its central conceit was that Western firms could out-innovate China while regulators layered on mandates, content rules and green requirements that raised costs, i.e., the Gavin Newsom plan.