Ford, GM to cover car payments if buyer loses job

Ford, GM to cover car payments if buyer loses job:

"Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Corp. are offering payment protection plans to help reassure consumers who may be putting off buying a new car because of worries about losing their job."

GM's new CEO says bankruptcy is 'more probable'

GM's new CEO says bankruptcy is 'more probable':

"General Motors Corp.'s new chief executive said Tuesday that more of the automaker's plants could close and bankruptcy is 'more probable' as GM works to meet new, tougher requirements for government aid.
In his first news conference as CEO, Fritz Henderson said he expects the company would 'need to take further measures' beyond the five plants the company said it would shutter when it submitted a restructuring plan to the government last month."

ABC7 eNews

>>> Having trouble viewing this newsletter? View as a webpage. Top Stories Tuesday, March 31, 2009 Sun-Times parent co. files Chapter 11 | VIDEO The Sun Times Media Group-- which owns the Chicago Sun-Times and other suburban papers-- filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Tuesday. Daley takes stand against Quinn tax hike Chicago Mayor Richard Daley said if income taxes go up under Governor Pat Quinn's proposal, property taxes should go down. Cop may testify in own defense in bar beating The Chicago police sergeant accused of beating two people at a West Loop bar may take the stand in his own defense Tuesday. South Shore adds double-decker cars The first of 14 new double-decker cars have gone into service on the South Shore commuter rail line. Big Boy statue stolen from sign shop Northern Indiana police are on the lookout for a missing Big Boy. MORE STORIES Strange Man charged with DUI on bar stool Airline worker flies NY to Boston in baggage hold Madoff gets trading card in set featuring scammers Unusual Southeastern night sky prompts calls Father-son coroner team face DWI charges Consumer Pistachios recalled amid salmonella scare | VIDEO Microsoft to shutter Encarta this year Yamaha offers free repair for Rhino vehicles Walgreen giving free care to jobless and uninsured Tips on avoiding the Conficker worm April 1 | VIDEO Healthbeat Test tells mole from melanoma Walgreen giving free care to jobless and uninsured Once-a-day heart combo pill shows promise Born just weeks early may delay development Video games may help adults' eyesight MOST POPULAR Family, friends mourn dead brothers Tips on avoiding the Conficker worm April 1 Mom's starvation plea pegged to resurrection Pistachios recalled amid salmonella scare Search continues for Ill. boys Advertisement TODAY'S WEATHER OUTLOOK 55°F 34°F Increasingly windy with rain and a thunderstorm Hour-by-Hour | 7 Day Forecast | Radar & Satellite TONIGHT ON ABC 7:00 PM Better Off Ted 8:00 PM Dancing With the Stars 9:02 PM Cupid 10:00 PM ABC 7 News at 10PM 10:35 PM Nightline Lottery Results Your Daily Horoscope Pistachios recalled amid salmonella scare In another food scare sure to rattle consumers who watched the national salmonella outbreak in peanuts unfold, federal food officials are now warning people not to eat any food containing pistachios, which could carry contamination from the same bacteria. Full list of FDA-recalled pistachios Man charged with DUI on bar stool Authorities in Ohio say a man has been charged with drunken driving after crashing his motorized bar stool. More Strange News SUBSCRIPTION OPTIONS I'd like to receive the following newsletters from abc7chicago.com Daily Weather | Daily News | 190 North Sign up for news alerts

Justice Center

Justice Center:

"Provide practical, nonpartisan advice and consensus-driven strategies, informed by available evidence, to increase public safety and strengthen communities. Provide practical, nonpartisan advice and consensus-driven strategies, informed by available evidence, to increase public safety and strengthen communities."

Media Matters Daily Summary

Here are today's news items from Media Matters for America, click on the title or 'read more' to read the entirety of each story. Fox News' Henneberg falsely claimed "[r]econciliation was last used in 2001" Molly Henneberg falsely claimed, "Reconciliation was last used in 2001 by Republicans to pass the first Bush tax cuts." In fact, Republicans used the budget reconciliation process to pass several Bush initiatives after 2001, and it was used as recently as 2007. Read More Question for Bill Shine: Is Fox News "the voice of opposition" or "not ideological"? According to The Washington Post's Howard Kurtz, "Fox executives maintain that the channel's reporting is ... not ideological," and "Senior Vice President Bill Shine says that 'our reporters, people like Major Garrett, have been asking tougher questions' than their rivals." But Fox News has said that it is going further with the Obama administration than merely "asking tougher questions" than their rivals; Shine has recently characterized the network as "the voice of opposition on some issues." Read More Fox Business' Varney mischaracterizes Wagoner's departure On America's Newsroom, Stuart Varney asserted that Rick Wagoner's departure is "the first time in modern history that the government has fired the chief executive of a private corporation." In fact, the government did not "fire[]" Wagoner, but made his departure a condition of further government aid for the company. Read More USA Today uncritically reported GOP charge that stimulus advocates supported "provision that allowed the [AIG] bonuses to be paid" Reporting on a New York special congressional election, USA Today uncritically cited a claim by Republican candidate James Tedisco that Democratic candidate Scott Murphy, by supporting the stimulus bill, supported "a provision that allowed the [AIG] bonuses to be paid." In fact, the AIG bonuses would have been paid even without the stimulus bill, which restricts the bonuses AIG and other companies receiving aid can award in the future. Read More Hannity falsely claimed NI director plans to "release ... enemy combatants on American soil" Sean Hannity falsely claimed DNI Dennis Blair plans to "release ... enemy combatants on American soil." In fact, Blair has outlined a "process" to determine whether and how to release detainees who are not "too dangerous to let out" and have not "committed offenses that merit punishment." Read More Fox News invokes Canadian health care bogeyman in talking about Richardson's death In talking about Natasha Richardson's death, Betsy McCaughey and Martha MacCallum misrepresented a health-care provision in the recovery act and baselessly suggested the United States might be headed "down the same path" as Canada with regard to health care. Read More Media promote claims of global cooling despite overwhelming consensus to the contrary Despite the scientific consensus that human-caused global warming is real and is negatively affecting the planet, the media have repeatedly provided a platform for critics who argue that the Earth is in a period of "cooling" or that the issue of global warming does not need to be addressed. Read More Special Report allowed Fiorina to attack Obama without noting her role with McCain campaign Wendell Goler aired a clip of Carly Fiorina criticizing President Obama, but identified her only as a "[f]ormer Hewlett-Packard CEO." Goler did not note that she was a senior economic adviser for John McCain's presidential campaign. Read More You can help support our work; become a volunteer media monitor, or donate to Media Matters for America.

Crain's Daily News Alert prepared for Top Executives

CHICAGOBUSINESS — POWERED BY CRAIN'S — Daily Business Briefing CRAIN'S LISTS SEND LETTERS TO THE EDITOR MULTIMEDIA WEEKLY JOB CHANGES TOP HEADLINES Monday, March 30, 2009 · O'Hare lands $12M stimulus · Sara Lee considers selling overseas unit · Dow closes down 254 points · Window co. violated labor laws: NLRB Chicago · McD's worker claims job loss for questioning executive pay · Former CNA head got $13.4M parachute · Deloitte to sponsor U.S. Olympic team · Tribune merges Conn. paper, stations · General Growth continues debt negotiation · Sears names new division heads · Grocer Caputo's moving Elmwood Park store to ex-Circuit City site · North Bridge owner gets $205M refinancing loan  · Sports reporters doing more, less: Biz of Sports blog · City pension funds missed out on fat times: Hinz blog · Obama friends big draw at charities: Taking Names blog  Final Markets Dow Jones 7,522.02 -254.16 -3.27% NASDAQ 1,501.80 -43.40 -2.81% Crain's Index 58.68 -2.1 -3.45% » View Other Top Headlines ADVERTISEMENT Crain's Blogs. Now You're Talking. Introducing three blogs sure to pique your interest each business day: government and business, after-hours with Chicago's elite, and the business of sports.Click here to read what Greg Hinz, Shia Kapos and Ed Sherman are saying today. And talk back, we'd love to hear from you. OTHER HEADLINES · Ford Temporarily Shuts Down Chicago Plant CBS 2 · Obama issues ultimatum to car makers New York Times · Airlines to sell even fewer seats this spring: group Reuters Crain's Chicago Business | 360 N. Michigan Ave. | Chicago, IL 60601 ADVERTISEMENT TODAY'S FEATURES Social Whirl: Common Threads Co-chairs Candace Jordan and Katherine Chez flank event organizer Linda Novick O'Keefe. They welcomed several dozen chefs and 650 guests into one lively World Festival party. See our photos.Read More · Chicago Business Today - March 30 · Best hotels for business 2009 · Check, Please! visits Otom · Homemade Pizza Co.: Grabbing a slice SIGN UP FOR CUSTOM ALERTS Industries Companies Executives » Account Settings LISTEN LIVE: Traffic, weather and news from our news partner WBBM-AM.

Media Matters Daily Summary

Here are today's news items from Media Matters for America, click on the title or 'read more' to read the entirety of each story. Limbaugh challenged: In LA Times op-ed, Klavan claimed he's "never heard" Limbaugh "utter a single racist, hateful or stupid word" In a Los Angeles Times op-ed, Andrew Klavan claimed he's "never heard" Rush Limbaugh "utter a single racist, hateful or stupid word," and offered a "[c]hallenge" to "liberals" to "[l]isten to the show ... and keep an open mind." However, Media Matters listens to Limbaugh everyday and has documented numerous examples of him spewing offensive commentary and basic misstatements of fact. Read More Gregory falsely equated Obama remark with McCain's "fundamentals of our economy are strong" comment NBC's David Gregory falsely equated March 13 comments by President Obama with Sen. John McCain's September 2008 comment that the "fundamentals of our economy are strong." In fact, Obama did not comment on the broad "fundamentals" of the economy in his March 13 remarks. Read More You can help support our work; become a volunteer media monitor, or donate to Media Matters for America.

Crain's Chicago Business Early Alert E-mail

CHICAGOBUSINESS — POWERED BY CRAIN'S — Weekly Business Briefing CRAIN'S LISTS MARKETS GO TO MY ACCOUNT GO TO CHICAGOBUSINESS.COM TOP HEADLINES Monday, March 30, 2009 · ROAD TO RECOVERY: No return to risk for financial firms · Big boys take small banks' TARP bucks · Ace payout change angers store owners · State keeps spending as red ink rises · Feds hot on Falor's trail · Blago fundraiser wins big at McPier FOCUS Let's all be friends Green Grocer Chicago created a Facebook page for itself last year. Within three months, hundreds of shoppers had declared themselves "fans" of the store. It has yet to spend a penny on advertising. THE BUSINESS OF LIFE Here come the regulars While even the hippest restaurant may not last, stalwarts keep old reliables in business. EDITORIAL INDEX for March 30, 2009 (Significant References only) Ace Hardware Argonne National Lab Bank of America CareerBuilder.com Chicago 2016 ChicagoBusiness.com Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce Citadel Investment Group City of Chicago Civic Federation CME Group Common Threads Crain's Chicago Business Falor Field Museum FreightCar America Golder Rauner Lookingglass Madison Dearborn Partners McCormick Place McPier / Navy Pier Midwest Banc Holdings Museum of Contemporary Art Newell Rubbermaid OptionsXpress Performics Playboy Princeton National Bancorp Rosenthal Collins Sieben Energy Associates State of Illinois WhittmanHart SIGN UP FOR CUSTOM ALERTS Industries Companies Executives » Account Settings ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENTCrain's Blogs. Now You're Talking. Introducing three blogs sure to peek your interest each business day: government and business, after-hours with Chicago's elite, and the business of sports.Click here to read what Greg Hinz, Shia Kapos and Ed Sherman are saying today. And talk back, we'd love to hear from you. THIS WEEK'S NEWS The legend isn't true: Super-CEO a costly myth It's time to retire the super-CEO, a mythical character that has enthralled Corporate America for the better part of ... Help wanted: Innovation czar to transform Illinois Now that President Barack Obama has turned a national spotlight on the need for innovation, Illinois should be the ... Letters to the editor New nuclear plants won't juice Illinois' economy Why should the Illinois Legislature look to expand new nuclear ... Crain's Chicago Business 360 N. Michigan Ave. | Chicago, IL 60601

ABC7 eNews

>>> Having trouble viewing this newsletter? View as a webpage. Top Stories Monday, March 30, 2009 Father, two boys found dead | VIDEO McLean County authorities say Michael Connolly and his two young sons have been found dead in rural Putnam County. Chicago Ford plant shuts down for 3 weeks | VIDEO Slow sales lead Chicago Ford plant to temporarily lay off 1,400 workers. O'Hare gets stimulus cash for runway project O'Hare International Airport is landing federal stimulus money for its modernization project. Huge banner touts Chicago 2016 The International Olympic Committee will be in town later this week. U2's Chicago show on sale Tickets to see the band U2 perform at Soldier Field went on sale to the public Monday morning. MORE STORIES Strange Father-son coroner team face DWI charges School fears 'fellows' in fight song sexist Malfunction turns tap water pink Man locked inside bar after falling asleep 'Dumbest criminal in Pennsylvania' arrested Consumer Skype coming to iPhone iTunes song prices going up Delta to fly nonstop to Salt Lake City Sara Lee recalls hot dogs Hidden Deals: Thrift shops, garage sales, online sites | VIDEO Healthbeat Once-a-day heart combo pill shows promise Born just weeks early may delay development Panel advises depression screening for US teens Cholesterol drugs could also cut blood clot risk Stroke-blocking device shows promise, doctors say MOST POPULAR Mob hit man gets 12 years, 4 months Father, two boys found dead Elderly man killed in crash, driver charged Fire destroys Chicago restaurant Classes canceled at central Illinois schools Advertisement TODAY'S WEATHER OUTLOOK 51°F 39°F Partly sunny and warmer Hour-by-Hour | 7 Day Forecast | Radar & Satellite TONIGHT ON ABC 7:00 PM Dancing With the Stars 9:02 PM Castle 10:00 PM ABC 7 News at 10PM 10:35 PM Nightline Lottery Results Your Daily Horoscope Smoke break costs more with tax boost However they satisfy their nicotine cravings, tobacco users are facing a big hit as the single largest federal tobacco tax increase ever takes effect Wednesday. White House questions GM, Chrysler viability President Barack Obama refused further long-term federal bailouts for General Motors and Chrysler, saying more concessions were needed from unions, creditors and others before they could be approved. He raised the possibility Monday of controlled bankruptcy for one or both of the beleaguered auto giants. Chicago Ford plant shuts down for 3 weeks SUBSCRIPTION OPTIONS I'd like to receive the following newsletters from abc7chicago.com Daily Weather | Daily News | 190 North Sign up for news alerts

Obama Says GM, Chrysler Have Last Chance to Survive (Correct)

Obama Says GM, Chrysler Have Last Chance to Survive (Correct):

"President Barack Obama said General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC must survive without becoming “wards of the state” and the companies have one last, limited chance to “fundamentally restructure.”

After his administration forced GM Chief Executive Officer Rick Wagoner to resign and pressed Chrysler to form a partnership with Italy’s Fiat SpA to get more taxpayer aid, Obama today said that company creditors, shareholders, workers, dealers and suppliers will be expected to make more sacrifices.

“We cannot and must not, and we will not let our auto industry simply vanish,” the president said at the White House, announcing new and final deadlines for the No. 1 and No. 3 U.S. automakers to remake themselves. “We cannot continue to excuse poor decisions. We cannot make the survival of our auto industry dependent on an unending flow of taxpayer dollars.”"

Jobs That Will Never Go Away

Jobs That Will Never Go Away: "Choosing a career path can be challenging. Half of all college students change their majors at least once as they travel the sometimes bumpy road that will lead right degree. If you want to follow your dreams as well as provide for a certain future, take heart. As long as human beings continue to inhabit the planet, there are many worthwhile and fulfilling jobs that will never go away."

GM CEO Wagoner to step down at White House request

GM CEO Wagoner to step down at White House request:

"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."

Media Matters Daily Summary

Here are today's news items from Media Matters for America, click on the title or 'read more' to read the entirety of each story. LA Times touts McCain as a "key Republican" in immigration debate, but ignores campaign flip-flop The Los Angeles Times dubbed Sen. John McCain a "key Republican[]" in the immigration debate, but ignored his flip-flop on immigration during the 2008 presidential campaign. Read More Hannity falsely claimed Obama has proposed UK-style nationalized health care Sean Hannity claimed that President Obama has proposed "nationalized health care," similar to programs in Great Britain and Canada. In fact, earlier that day, Obama explicitly rejected scrapping the U.S. health-care system in favor of the British or Canadian model. Read More AP ignores GOP contradiction in criticizing Dem plan similar to its own The AP reported on Republican opposition to Tim Geithner's proposal to allow the government to take over failing nonbank financial institutions, without noting that House Republicans themselves proposed giving the federal government authority to take over financial institutions. Read More Michael Reagan falsely claimed Dems' law told AIG to "pay the bonuses" Michael Reagan falsely claimed that in paying retention bonuses, AIG was following a law "that was written by the Democrats" that said "pay the bonuses." In fact, the stimulus bill did not create the right for AIG -- or any company -- to pay bonuses, much less require them to do so. Read More CNN ignores GOP contradiction in criticizing Geithner's proposal as "power grab" In reports on the budget blueprint offered by House Republicans, CNN did not note that the plan includes a proposal to give the federal government authority to take over failing nonbank financial institutions -- a proposal similar to one presented by Tim Geithner, for which he was sharply criticized by those same House Republicans. Read More Media use announcement of new Afghanistan strategy to revive "Obama's war" label Since President Obama's announcement of a new strategy in Afghanistan, the media have revived the label "Obama's war," despite Obama's having inherited the 7-year-old conflict. Read More Wash. Post, LA Times reported Boehner criticism of Geithner plan, but not his support for similar GOP plan The Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times both reported House Minority Leader John Boehner's criticism of Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner's proposal for Congress to pass legislation allowing the federal government to take over failing non-bank financial institutions while failing to report that House Republicans -- including Boehner -- have proposed a similar plan. Read More Ignoring ATF data, Fox's Bream advanced "gun advocates" claim that "vast majority" of Mexican cartel weapons not from US Fox News' Trace Gallagher and Shannon Bream advanced the claim, touted by "gun advocates," that the "vast majority" of weapons used in Mexican drug cartels "are not coming from the United States." In fact, according to ATF's National Tracing Center, 90 percent of these weapons that could be traced originated from within the U.S. Read More Hill piece, touted by Drudge, advanced Gregg's false comparison between "debt levels" of U.S., EU members A blog post at The Hill -- linked to by the Drudge Report -- reported that Sen. Judd Gregg argued President Obama's budget would lead to a higher national debt and annual deficits than the EU allows its member states. But The Hill did not mention that the U.S. national debt had already exceeded the EU threshold before Obama even took office, that some EU member states currently have deficits or national debts that exceed EU threshold levels, or that EU rules governing deficits include exemptions for circumstances such as "a severe economic downturn." Read More CNN's Keilar, caption falsely claimed Geithner's financial takeover request was "unprecedented" CNN correspondent Brianna Keilar, along with several other CNN correspondents and hosts and instances of CNN on-screen text, described Timothy Geithner's proposal for Congress to pass legislation allowing the federal government to take over failing nonbank financial institutions as "unprecedented." In fact, former Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson and FDIC chairman Sheila Bair -- both Bush appointees -- stated in 2008 that the federal government needed and should have such power. Read More You can help support our work; become a volunteer media monitor, or donate to Media Matters for America.

Media Matters Daily Summary

Here are today's news items from Media Matters for America, click on the title or 'read more' to read the entirety of each story. Hannity, Gingrich spread falsehoods to bolster Gingrich's claim that Dems are moving U.S. toward "dictatorship" Sean Hannity and Newt Gingrich spewed falsehoods concerning Democratic economic proposals and policies to bolster Gingrich's claim that Democrats are moving the country "towards a political dictatorship." Read More Fox & Friends hosts former mobster to compare Dems to crime family Fox & Friends hosts featured a segment in which they asked a former member of the Colombo crime family to compare Tim Geithner, Nancy Pelosi, Barney Frank, and George Soros to members of the mob. Read More Denouncing death threats to AIG execs, Fox's Kelly ignored colleagues' violent rhetoric In criticizing death threats to AIG executives, Fox News' Megyn Kelly did not address Charles Krauthammer's recent comments advocating for the "hanging" of AIG executives who received bonuses or Mort Kondracke's recommendation that they be "boil[ed] in oil." Read More CNBC allows Gregg to forward small-business tax falsehood CNBC's Joe Kernen allowed Sen. Judd Gregg to advance the false Republican talking point that President Obama's income tax proposals would increase taxes on a large percentage of small businesses. Read More Return to (poor) form: MSNBC again drops the ball on disclosing McCaffrey's DynCorp ties On MSNBC Live, Barry R. McCaffrey discussed "build[ing] Afghan security forces," but at no point during the discussion did either McCaffrey or anchor Andrea Mitchell disclose McCaffrey's ties to DynCorp International -- a company under contract to train part of the Afghan National Security Force. Read More After devoting extensive coverage to Geithner hearing on AIG, cable networks all but ignore live testimony on Treasury powers CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News aired virtually no live coverage of Timothy Geithner's testimony before a House Financial Services Committee hearing on regulatory reform in the financial industry. By contrast, CNN and MSNBC each aired live more than an hour, and Fox News approximately 14 minutes, of Geithner and Ben Bernanke's testimony at a committee hearing on AIG two days earlier. Read More NY Times mag profile of global warming skeptic uncritically repeats false comparison with '70s global cooling theory A New York Times Magazine profile of global warming skeptic Freeman Dyson quotes without challenge his false suggestion that there was a scientific consensus in the 1970s that the earth was cooling. Unlike the current consensus that global warming exists, there was no consensus in the 1970s that the earth was cooling. Read More Will media note House GOP has proposed a plan that its own leader called a power grab? Rep. John Boehner has called Timothy Geithner's proposal to allow the government to take over nonbank financial institutions "an unprecedented grab of power," but a budget blueprint by House Republicans proposes steps similar to Geithner's plan, raising the question of whether the media, which have reported extensively on the conservative charge of a "power grab," will note the similarities. Read More NY Times mag sends a sports and music writer to do a science writer's job The New York Times Magazine is slated to publish a story on March 29 -- promoting the controversial global warming views of physicist Freeman Dyson -- that was written, not by a scientist or science writer, but by Nicholas Dawidoff, whose previous work for the Times has focused largely on sports and music. Read More You can help support our work; become a volunteer media monitor, or donate to Media Matters for America.