The White House on Sunday pushed out the chairman of General Motors and instructed Chrysler to form a partnership with the Italian automaker Fiat within 30 days as conditions for receiving another much-needed round of government aid.<\/p>\n
The decision to ask G.M.\u2019s chairman and chief executive, Rick Wagoner, to resign caught Detroit and Washington by surprise, and it underscored the Obama administration\u2019s determination to keep a tight rein on the companies it is bailing out \u201d\u201d a level of government involvement in business perhaps not seen since the Great Depression.<\/p>\n
President Obama is scheduled to announce details of the auto package at the White House on Monday, but two senior officials, offering a preview on condition of anonymity, made clear that some form of bankruptcy \u201d\u201d a quick, court-supervised restructuring, as they described it \u201d\u201d could still be an option for one or both companies.<\/p>\n