Photo of Ford Truck Lot, From Getty Images

What is clear in all the mess we are going to have to clean up over the coming years-- is that ALL of it started from the top down. Banking failures, Risky mortgage packages, bad corporate policy and vision-- these are the failures of CEO's and Political Leaders.

It seems obvious to me that the first step is admitting you have a problem.

The next step, when the pruning starts, is not to get rid of the workers who have done their jobs over the years- BUT to change the leadership.

I am FOR saving the auto industry but ONLY if it includes getting rid of the problems.

The Motley Fool and I agree that Lee Iaccoca is dead wrong.

On Tuesday, former Chrysler CEO Lee Iaccoca issued a statement that the sitting auto CEOs "are the only ones with the experience and the in-depth knowledge and understanding of how the car business really works. They're by far the best shot we have for success.

Look, the problems are not new, we all know what they are... and smart people have been pushing and begging the industry to move in the right direction for at least a decade, if not more. If these "best-shot" big shots are so smart then why were they leading the industry down the same failing path as their predecessors?

Motley fool is calling for at least 2 of the big 3 CEO's to be gone. I especially like the metaphor they use;

Special Forces soldier, or G.I.?
I don't have a vendetta against Rick Wagoner or Alan Mulally; I'm certain both are nice fellows and capable managers under ordinary circumstances. However, they should step down from their positions running General Motors (NYSE: GM) and Ford (NYSE: F), respectively. Quite simply, neither of them has a proven track record in turnaround management.

Auto manufacturers are engaged in nothing less than a life-or-death struggle. That requires the skills and experience of a legitimate turnaround artist, not a "business-as-usual" CEO. The difference in attitude and resolve is the same as that which exists between an elite Special Forces soldier and a G.I.

They go on to make recommendations of who should lead, these two suggestions I found particularly intriguing. Both are from outside of the auto industry.

# Ed Breen, CEO, Tyco (NYSE: TYC). One month after joining Tyco, Breen fired its board and most of its senior managers. As COO of Motorola, he suggested cutting headcount by half shortly before being headhunted to join Tyco in 2002. Before that, he was CEO of General Instruments, which he sold to Motorola for $11 billion.

# Mark Hurd, CEO, Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HP), and former CEO, NCR. Hurd is a skilled operator with a laser focus on profitability. Since joining HP as CEO in 2005, he's wrung costs out of a bloated corporate structure, turned HP's PC division around, and developed the firm's software business. In three years, Hurd wiped away the Fiorina-era malaise and brought HP to the pinnacle of the industry once more.

We can't afford more of the same which has been the hallmark of the 2nd Bush term. And repeating the same actions over and over expecting a different result as we all know, is the definition of insanity.

Start at the top. Kick these guys to the curb, and bring in new fresh ideas and I am all for the auto bailout. It is time for real change.

Read the whole piece here.