Pelosi Touts Notion of 'Car Czar'

Updated from 7:29 a.m. EST By Julie Hirschfeld Davis and Ken Thomas

WASHINGTON -- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi touted the notion of a "car czar" to supervise an auto industry bailout, saying Tuesday that Big Three executives haven't adapted well to changing conditions.

As United Auto Workers President Ron Gettelfinger voiced fresh confidence that an accommodation will be reached on a $15 billion bailout bill, Pelosi told interviewers it's more critical than ever that change in Detroit be forced.

"I think it's very important," Pelosi told NBC's "Today" show, because little would be accomplished if company executives are "left to their own devices."

Pelosi appeared on morning television after a night of intense Capitol Hill discussions aimed at narrowing differences on legislation to rush short-term loans to struggling carmakers, General Motors(GM), Ford(F) and Chrysler. The plan would require that the industry reinvent itself to survive -- and that it pay back the government if it doesn't. The package could come to a vote as early as Wednesday.

Pelosi said she thought taxpayers should consider it "a second chance" for the industry, rather than a bailout.

Robert Lutz, GM's vice president of global product development, also said he could accept a federally appointed czar to supervise implementation of a restructuring plan.

"Well, whether we need it or not, I think it's reasonable that when the federal government steps in with taxpayer money, they're not going to -- they're not going to lend us the money and just say, 'Do the best you can with it and tell us when you need more.' Obviously, there's going to be some kind of oversight and I think that's a reasonable thing to expect," he said on CBS's "The Early Show."

He said the industry's chief problem involves "short-term liquidity" and said it is crucial that the government revitalize the economy as well as steadying his industry.

The measure being discussed in Congress would put a government overseer named by President George W. Bush in charge of setting guidelines for an industrywide overhaul, with the power to revoke the loans if the automakers fail to do what's necessary to become viable. The White House was seeking tougher consequences, including allowing the overseer --- being called a car czar -- to force the companies into bankruptcy if they weren't doing enough to cut labor costs, restructure their debt and downsize to stay afloat.

Pelosi, D-Calif., said she had no candidates for the job, but said that Paul Volcker, a former Federal Reserve chairman and now an economic adviser to President-elect Barack Obama, would be a good choice. She said he enjoys the public's confidence.

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