Two major automakers, General Motors (GM) and Chrysler, went bankrupt during the Great Recession. The Government had to make a choice; commit to helping them, which would help the economy, or let them fight for themselves. Either choice would leave some American citizens angry at the government. The government decided to help them by establishing the auto bailout along with other programs like TARP. While some think the auto bailout didn't help small supplier companies, it was the right move by the government because it helped keep our economy from going further into depression. The auto bailout began in 2008 after the Great Recession that occurred in 2007. Its purpose was to lend money to GM and Chrysler to prevent them from going out of business. If car manufacturers went bankrupt, supplier companies would also go bankrupt and many citizens would lose their jobs. Lending to them would increase economic activity and help pull the United States out of the Great Recession. Initially, the government would only lend $17.4 billion for the bailout. GM wanted $13.4 billion and Chrysler wanted $4 billion. The total cost was approximately $80 billion. This amount of extra money came from the government when it bought all the shares from GM and forced it to find a new CEO for the shares. Chrysler was forced to let the foreign automaker, Fiat, run Chrysler for the time being. The government did this to try to help both automakers make decisions that would have a negative impact on the economy. All of the shares GM purchased were sold, which helped recoup the money owed to the government. With this “final sale of GM stock, [this] important chapter in our nation's history is now closed” (Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew). The Car......middle of paper......t. 2010: n. page Problems and controversies. Network. 21 May 2014.Bump, Filippo. “The auto bailout saved 1.5 million jobs and probably brought in $50,000 each.” The Wire 9 December 2013: n. page Print.Franchi, Rod. “Guided Notes on the Care of the Great Recession Conference.” Novice High School. Lesson. Front line: inside the meltdown. Director Michael Kirk. PBS, 2009. Film.Hassett, Kevin A. “The Obama Auto Rescue Fiction.” National Magazine 3 April 2012: n. page Print.Rattner, Steven. “Disappointments over the Detroit Rescue.” The New York Times February 23, 2012: n. page Print.Roth, Carol. “The US auto bailouts were not a success.” CNBC December 10, 2013: n. page Print.Shao, Maria. The American rescue of the car was necessary, Rattner argues. Np: Stanford Business, 2011. Print.Vlasic, Bill. “US ends GM bailout, selling last of shares.” The New York Times [New York City] December 9, 2013: n. page Press.