GM’s Wagoner won’t fly to Washington via company plane

Under withering criticism from Congress, General Motors Corp. chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner will not fly to Washington for a new round of congressional hearings next month on a proposed $25 billion auto bailout, the company said Monday.

"As for our mode of transport, it can be safely assumed it will not be by company plane. We don't normally comment on transportation of our senior executives for security reasons," GM spokesman Greg Martin said Monday.

Martin said it wasn't clear if Wagoner would join a caravan of supporters from Michigan.

"There has been a genuine outreach of support from various places, and we deeply appreciate it. If a grassroots effort forms to support the loans, it will because people on their own want to support the American companies, and this idea seems to have a life of its own," Martin said. "We're not involved in organizing the effort."