Well it appears that my hopes for viable restructuring plans from the Big Three were vain because the government has rejected the initial attempts by Chrysler and GM as of today. The heads have already started to roll in Washington as the CEO of one large automobile company has already stepped down as per the request of the White House. Hit the jump to read more.

My initial thoughts on this issue leaned more in favor of Chrysler and GM however after learning that their new restructuring plans were rejected today makes me quite upset. In my eyes they had more than enough time to get their acts together and only to have these “carefully crafted” plans be shot down makes me wonder if the two companies have been jerking us around the entire time. As I have followed the saga of the auto bailout I was optimistic many times as Chrysler showed some strength by joining with Fiat and GM showed progress by cutting out unprofitable brands such as Saturn. Hell, even Chrysler’s original viability plan made some sense to me when I read it however those atop Capitol Hill think more needs to be done. President Barack Obama was very critical of the two companies and called for more concessions with the UAW and creditors before the government was willing to lend tax dollars to the flailing companies.

In a surprising move, the Obama administration requested that GM CEO Rick Wagoner step down as the head of the company so as to make room for new leadership to take the company into the future. I for one did not anticipate the CEO of the largest automobile manufacturer in the world to resign in the midst of all this, however I hope that it was the right move. In a statement issued by Wagoner today, he is quoted as saying: “I want to express my deepest appreciation to the extraordinary team of GM employees around the world.  You have been a tremendous source of inspiration and pride to me, and I will be forever grateful for the courage and commitment you have shown as we have confronted the unprecedented challenges of the past few years.  GM is a great company with a storied history.  Ignore the doubters because I know it is also a company with a great future”.

Hopefully he knows something that I do not because as it stands today these troubled companies still have a long and painful road ahead before any sort of profitability can be reached. Stay tuned as more details come to light regarding the auto bailout.