Unfortunately, I'm becoming numb to things like this lately, but
today's Washington Post front page headline is still
rather alarming:
GM Chief to Resign at White House's Behest
This is, of course, the same issue we're confronted with whether
it comes to the banks, AIG, or any other entities that are coming
to Washington, hat in hand. Once taxpayer money is put on the
line to save these companies, it gives the government the ability
to make unprecedented interventions into the way private
businesses are run. It's rather disturbing that the President of
the United States is the one pressuring an executive to step
down. In this case, it's hard to argue that General Motors
chairman and CEO Richard Wagoner Jr. has performed well, but at
the same time, Obama's reasons for dismissal seem more cosmetic
than anything else. An anonymous administration official told the
Post that, "We felt that having a change of leadership
would be consistent with the clean-sheet approach." Whatever
Wagoner's faults, it doesn't make sense to change management just
for the sake of it, unless you have a replacement in mind who you
think will be able to do better.
