Momentum is building in Washington to aid wounded U.S. automakers with cash to help their finance arms and possibly even money to help seal a deal for General Motors Corp. to acquire Chrysler LLC, the Associated Press reported.
The Wall Street Journal is reporting on its Web site that the U.S. Department of Energy is trying to free up $5 billion of a $25 billion federal loan package to help make the GM-Chrysler deal work.
And the White House said Monday that the financing arms of the automakers might be eligible for federal help under the bank stock-purchasing portion of the $700 billion financial rescue package.
Meanwhile, presidential spokeswoman Dana Perino says officials "at the highest levels" of the Treasury, Energy and Commerce departments have talked to top automaker executives on the topic.