US Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd said yesterday that the General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner should step down if the company receives emergency government loans.

"I think he has to move on," Dodd said on CBS's "Face the Nation."

In an interview broadcast yesterday on NBC's "Meet The Press," President-elect Barak Obama also hinted that some executives of the auto industry should lose their jobs.

"What we haven't seen is a sense of urgency and the willingness to make tough decisions. And what we still see are executive compensation packages for the auto industry that are out of line compared to their competitors, their Japanese competitors, who are doing a lot better," Obama said in the interview.

Asked whether the top executives should remain in the jobs, he said: "Here's what I'll say, that it may not be the same for all the companies. But what I think we have to put an end to is the head-in-the-sand approach to the auto industry that has been prevalent for decades now."

The White House and Congress will work out a US$15 billion to US$17 billion emergency loan to save the auto industry from bankruptcy, according to the US media.

However, General Motors Corp, Chrysler LLC and Ford Motor Co said they should have US$34 billion from Congress to forestall possible collapse.