Rick Wagoner of GM to step down...

[msny]

I say good riddance, he should go, he ran the company
into the ground. Long long overdue.

DETROIT -- General Motors Corp. Chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner will step down immediately at the request of the White House, administration officials said Sunday. The news comes as President Obama prepares to unveil additional restructuring efforts designed to save the domestic auto industry.

The officials asked not to be identified because details of the restructuring plan have not yet been made public. On Monday, Obama is to announce plans to restructure GM and Chrysler LLC in exchange for additional government loans. The companies have been living on $17.4 billion in government aid and have requested $21.6 billion more.

Wagoner's departure indicates that more management changes may be part of the deal. Wagoner, 56, has repeatedly said he felt it was better for the company if he led it through the crisis, but he has faced sharp criticism on Capitol Hill for what many lawmakers regard as years of missteps, mistakes and arrogance by the Big Three automakers.

Wagoner joined GM in 1977, serving in several capacities in the U.S., Brazil and Europe. He became president and chief executive in 2000 and has served as chairman and CEO since May 2003.

Obama said Sunday that GM and Chrysler and all those with a stake in their survival need to take more hard steps to help the struggling automakers restructure for the future. In an interview with CBS' "Face the Nation" broadcast Sunday, Obama said the companies must do more to receive additional financial aid from the government.

"They're not there yet," he said.

A person familiar with Obama's plans said last week they would go deeper than what the Bush administration demanded when it approved the initial loans last year.

Wagoner, in an interview with The Associated Press in December, had declined to speculate on suggestions from some members of Congress that GM's leadership team should step down as part of any rescue package.

"I'm doing what I do because it adds a lot of value to the company," Wagoner said in a Dec. 4 interview as GM sought federal aid from the Bush administration. "It's not clear to me that experience in this industry should be viewed as a negative but I'm going to do what's right for the company and I'll do it in consultation with the (GM) board (of directors)."

Wagoner has been credited by auto industry analysts with doing more to restructure the giant, bureaucratic automaker than any other executive. But given that he has been at GM's helm for so long, many of his critics say he moved far too slowly to take on the United Auto Workers and shrink the company as its market share tumbled.

While GM has improved its cars in the last two years, critics say the company relied for too long on sales of pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles for its profits and was unprepared for a drastic market shift when gasoline prices hit $4 per gallon last year.

During the Congressional debate over whether to give GM and Chrysler loans last year, many lawmakers criticized Wagoner, including Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., chairman of the Banking Committee.

He accused automakers' top management of having a "head-in-the-sand" approach to problems and said Wagoner "has to move on" as part of a government-run restructuring that should be a condition of financial life support for the auto industry.


http://www.foxnews.com/politics/first100days/2009/03/29/gm-ceo-wagoner-step-white-house-request/

What do you say?

[teekay]

I say its a pretty sad day when the POTUS is telling CEOs to step down.

I don't care how bad of a job you think Wagoner was doing. We should never be in a position in this country where the President tells the head of a corporation to step down, and CEO listens.

I can't believe what's happening in this country.

[msny]

I say its a pretty sad day when the POTUS is telling CEOs to step down.

I don't care how bad of a job you think Wagoner was doing. We should never be in a position in this country where the President tells the head of a corporation to step down, and CEO listens.

I can't believe what's happening in this country.


Did Obama point a gun at his head and force him out?

Nope, he was an incompetant piece of dead wood,
good riddance.

His days were numbered anyways.

[Debbie Shafer]

Did Obama point a gun at his head and force him out?

Nope, he was an incompetant piece of dead wood,
good riddance.

His days were numbered anyways.
Obama and Capital Hill: Stay the heck out of corporate businesse's lives! Quit telling the executives to step down and siding with the unions who have priced themselves right out of the market! They should take bankruptcy and restructure, and get out from under the unreasonable union contracts. $71.00 an hour is not competitive with foreign companies!!!!! This administration has outstepped its bounds of power!!!!

[Lee Kington]

General Motors Corp. Chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner will step down immediately at the request of the White House, administration officials said Sunday. That is the point of alarm bells. The government should NOT be bailing the industry out and the government should NOT be dictating the structure / positions of the corporation. That is for the stock holders to deal with.


He accused automakers' top management of having a "head-in-the-sand" approach to problems and said Wagoner "has to move on" as part of a government-run restructuring that should be a condition of financial life support for the auto industry. Again... alarm bells !!!! "GOVERNMENT RUN"

Personally, I will not purchase any automobile from a company bailed out with tax dollars. I will not purchase any vehicle from a company whose operations and staff are dictated by the federal government.

Those companies and the Filthy Marxist Pig Obama will meet resistance by me at every turn.

[msny]

That is the point of alarm bells. The government should NOT be bailing the industry out and the government should NOT be dictating the structure / positions of the corporation. That is for the stock holders to deal with.


Again... alarm bells !!!! "GOVERNMENT RUN"

Personally, I will not purchase any automobile from a company bailed out with tax dollars. I will not purchase any vehicle from a company whose operations and staff are dictated by the federal government.

Those companies and the Filthy Marxist Pig Obama will meet resistance by me at every turn.

Again, I will point out that I dont give a rats butt how he
left, hes gone and I'm very happy over it.

Hes was a poor CEO and his days were numbered anyways.
The industry I work in may now have a decent chance of
surviving with his incompetance gone from the scene.

Good riddance to the scumbag.

The Messiah and his socialist goons are dirtbags also.
But if a dirtbag kills off another dirtbag, I'm not gonna cry
over it.

And did he make money for the shareholders, I think NOT...

[EpicFail]

All I have to say about this is:

1. How much stock in America do I have to buy to get that Kenyan Idiot to step down. Does buying bonds count? Can we buy enough bonds (or what ever) to force a margin call on the government and make Obama step down?

I am sick of this facist. He used the stimulus money to enslave the automakers, now let's see how the UAW likes having Obama as a boss. Do they picket or bow down to their new "Cracker".

Remember Hitler, Stalin, and Mussolini let things get so bad people begged for a dictator, how much longer do you think our Manchurian Canidate will keep us "in crisis", and Pelosi will beg him to RULE...


SELL EVERYTHING YOU CAN OF GM STOCK!!!

[Lee Kington]

Again, I will point out that I dont give a rats butt how he
left, hes gone and I'm very happy over it.

Hes was a poor CEO and his days were numbered anyways.
The industry I work in may now have a decent chance of
surviving with his incompetance gone from the scene.

Good riddance to the scumbag.

The Messiah and his socialist goons are dirtbags also.
But if a dirtbag kills off another dirtbag, I'm not gonna cry
over it.

And did he make money for the shareholders, I think NOT...

You should care how and why.

It is up to the corporation, the stock holders, and their clients (consumers) to address the issue of management. ... NOT the fed.

When the government starts controlling your industry you are done. No longer do you participate in a capitalistic free enterprise system. You have surrendered.

[BigBagel]

You should care how and why.

It is up to the corporation, the stock holders, and their clients (consumers) to address the issue of management. ... NOT the fed.

When the government starts controlling your industry you are done. No longer do you participate in a capitalistic free enterprise system. You have surrendered.
If this was truly a capitalistic society then the CEO's of GM and AIG would be unemployed because their companies would not exist anymore. They're not CEO's of publicly traded corporations, they're welfare recipients.

[Dadda]

Obama is not on the board of directors, he has no business telling GM who should be at the helm. The bailout money they have received did not carry the stipulation that he resign, and it was a loan not a stock purchase so Obama has no say in the matter.

As for future bailout money, Mr. Wagoner could stay at GM and say, "We are not going to take the money and GM will go bankrupt." At which point Obama would have to say, "You are too big to fail; here is the money anyway." His resignation is unnecessary unless the board of directors was pushing him.

[CaptainCrunch]

The Czech President is right, we are on the "Highway to Hell"!

Since when does the President tell private citizens to step down from their jobs?

Obama is outta control abusing his powers and has been violating the Constitution on a daily basis!

[Ryver]

Odumbass should step down.

[nobamayomama]

Obama is not on the board of directors, he has no business telling GM who should be at the helm. The bailout money they have received did not carry the stipulation that he resign, and it was a loan not a stock purchase so Obama has no say in the matter.

As for future bailout money, Mr. Wagoner could stay at GM and say, "We are not going to take the money and GM will go bankrupt." At which point Obama would have to say, "You are too big to fail; here is the money anyway." His resignation is unnecessary unless the board of directors was pushing him.

Obama's simply doing what Obama knows best. He hates America and has promised to "fundamentally change it" - that he is.

Part of his Alinsky training for radicals was taking over Corporations, Utilities, Banks, etc for "Power" and once you had control of that, you distribute the wealth as you see fit.

I wonder how much the new "government appointed CEO" of GM will make? $2 a year? Gov't appointed CEO of AIG only got $1. Maybe Obama will take pity on his new CEO.

Funny, that Chris Dodd points his finger at ANYONE.

I'm still waiting to find out when he's giving back his "bonuses" he earned from Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac.

NEVER would I have ever thought our government would ever do this to the private sector. It's frightening, but the whole presidential campaign & MoveOn.org movement led up to the anti-corporate America and Obama the Savior mentality.

I'm sure if Obama ever spewed the words "liberty" and "freedom" from his mouth, he'd catch fire.

[nobamayomama]

The Czech President is right, we are on the "Highway to Hell"!

Since when does the President tell private citizens to step down from their jobs?

Obama is outta control abusing his powers and has been violating the Constitution on a daily basis!

Now there's a thought. Is there impeachment for a president who abuses his power? I wish someone would rise up to get this guy out.

[Storm Horse]

This move better wake people up! I'm going handgun shopping this week.

[mbu]

I think most CEO's are trying to find a way to take their money and run - Obama just gave Wagoner a good excuse and he took it! Wagoner knows what is going to happen to our economy under Obama!

So now GM stands for "Government Motors"

.

[ModerateVoice]

The Czech President is right, we are on the "Highway to Hell"!

Well, the Czech President is a lifelong AC/DC fan, so he tends to make references to his favorite songs when discussing policy. In fact, when asked how he accomplished his latest deficit cuts, he said he did so via "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap." :D Now the deficit is "Back in Black."

[spinach]

he ought to have his cake and eat it too:

step down, and then sue the government for abuse of power.

[opsyscw]

When I heard this, I though "Oh no, this is really not the way we want to go".

What's to stop the White House from firing the next guy who's company received bail-out money?

I'm willing to bet this was part of the bail-out plan from the insiders all along.

[CaptainPike]

Did Obama point a gun at his head and force him out?

Nope, he was an incompetant piece of dead wood,
good riddance.

His days were numbered anyways.

When Obama is asked to get out, will he do it?

[msny]

When Obama is asked to get out, will he do it?

If democracy survives in this country he MUST leave the
office if the voters dont reelect him.

Why would that change just for him?

The question is moot.

[CaptainPike]

If democracy survives in this country he MUST leave the
office if the voters dont reelect him.

Why would that change just for him?

The question is moot.

Who voted Wagoner out of his job?

[BigBagel]

Who voted Wagoner out of his job?
Without his government handouts Wagoner would have been on the unemployment line anyway. He's a high end welfare recipient. The lesson is go bankrupt before you go to the government.

[CaptainPike]

Without his government handouts Wagoner would have been on the unemployment line anyway. He's a high end welfare recipient. The lesson is go bankrupt before you go to the government.

Has Ford gone bankrupt?

[tjvh]

Did Obama point a gun at his head and force him out?

Nope, he was an incompetant piece of dead wood,
good riddance.

His days were numbered anyways.

Maybe Rick Wagoner did not want to end up like Vince Foster.:think:

[Remus Lupin]

It's not just the higher ups that are killing the auto industry. It's these stupid unions that are one of the big reasons why this is happening.
Sorry but why should a factory worker make $25.00 an hour doing factory work in the plants. The higher ups wanted to for the time being cut the workerrs pay $1.00-$2.00 an hour and the United Auto Workers Union yelled "unfair" never mind the fact these workers are about ready to lose their jobs.
This is exactly why I loathe unions.
They are nothing but a parasite to the average worker.
The sooner unions are kicked to the curb, the better.

[teamsarahgroupie]

It's not just the higher ups that are killing the auto industry. It's these stupid unions that are one of the big reasons why this is happening.
Sorry but why should a factory worker make $25.00 an hour doing factory work in the plants. The higher ups wanted to for the time being cut the workerrs pay $1.00-$2.00 an hour and the United Auto Workers Union yelled "unfair" never mind the fact these workers are about ready to lose their jobs.
This is exactly why I loathe unions.
They are nothing but a parasite to the average worker.
The sooner unions are kicked to the curb, the better.


Riiiight... The unions drove the price of gas up last summer and the unions are responsible for the credit bubble bursting.

Legacy costs that were hurting the automakers companies have been continuously addressed in all of the recent contract negotiations, but the changes made to those legacy costs for the companies hadn't had time to take affect before the market crashed.

Oh and that same union you are berating for NOT taking the cuts you wanted... Ford UAW took those cuts a month ago when they reopened, renegotiated and passed their new contract which was done specifically to help keep Ford afloat. And they took more than that $1 to 2 an hr cut in wages and benefits. Bondholders also took a hit and renegotiated their debt to Ford. The executives from the CEO down took paycuts and benefit cuts. So maybe, instead of lumping all of them together, you could look at each company and their separate union contracts before lynching them all.

If you want to bash the auto companies and the unions thats fine, just bash them with recent facts, not made up stories and talking points.

[msny]

Who voted Wagoner out of his job?

I was unaware that CEO's receive votes.

Your being obtuse.