GM BOD Defies TTAC: CEO Wagoner Stays

Robert Farago
by Robert Farago

So, what does GM CEO Rick Wagoner have on the 13 other members of the automaker's Bored of Directors? Whatever it is, it must be both criminal AND depraved. How else can you explain the fact that George Fisher (the lead independent BOD member) and his cronies have thrown their support behind The General's top general? Under Wagoner's watch, GM's shed over 10 percent of its U.S. market share, sold everything that wasn't nailed down, flushed its share price down the proverbial toilet, slid into negative market capitalization (if you think about it) and screwed-up its branding beyond repair. That should be enough to get a dictator fired, never mind an executive of a publicly held company. And that doesn't include the fact that Wagoner has banked over $100m personally and NEVER announced hard targets for his "turnaround" plan. His equally nebulous plan from here on out is also grounds for dismissal. Oh well. It looks like GM will file for much-needed and now inevitable Chapter 11 protections over Wagoner's dead body. Perhaps it will go straight to Chapter 7, as and when. Meanwhile, the chances of a GM shareholder revolt grow by the day. And the lawsuit won't be far behind. This is going to get ugly. And if you really want to get your blood boiling, check the caption this photo or click on over to The Detroit News, whose wishy-washy, pom-pom threatening report could well be The Mother of All Apologias.

Robert Farago
Robert Farago

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  • Ryan Ryan on Aug 07, 2008

    What else can be said? Ricky has a proven history of failure. Even with epic quarterly and yearly losses under his belt he still runs the ship. I would say it is a 16 million dollar a year mistake. Call me old fashioned...

  • Morea Morea on Aug 07, 2008

    Conspiracy Theory Alert: Wagoner works for Toyota!

  • Redbarchetta Redbarchetta on Aug 07, 2008
    As I write this, there’s a program on CNBC called “Saving GM.” More of an infomercial for GM really… I forgot all about that, got rid of our cable so I couldn't see it anyway. Does anyone know if there is a copy floating on the web so I can see it?
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