I look at this way: If Honda, Toyota, and Nissan needed a bailout, would there be any discussion at all in Congress? The answer is a flat "NO", they would be chastised for making poor business decisions and allowed to fail. Why impose a different standard on the Big 3, 3 companies that have been operating with inept management for over 30 years??
It is precisely this double standard that has caused them to be in such poor state. Lee Iacoca would have been told to pound sand if he was looking for a handout for Toyota and not Chrysler.
Part of me thinks Big 3 management hasn't been inept. They have been operating rationally in their mind, factoring in their big advantage of U.S. govt assitance if needed all this time.