The government knew about GM ignition problems and did nothing.

From Road & Track via Instapundit:

When all else fails, we ultimately rely on government regulators to ensure our safety on the road. Unfortunately, the still-unfolding GM scandal reveals that motorists can hardly rely on this last line of defense. That's because, like so many aspects of the US regulatory system, auto safety officials have more incentive to serve the interests of the automakers they are charged with watchdogging than to fulfill their public duty. Though the GM scandal is grabbing attention, it's clear that the NHTSA's problems run deeper than its failure to catch an ignition scandal it knew about as early as 2004 and only considered formally investigating in 2007.

A recent New York Times article reveals the depth of revolving-door problem among auto regulators, pointing out that the last administrator of the National Highway Transit Safety Administration, David Strickland, left the agency for a lobbying firm employed by Chrysler the day after approving a controversial "fix" for rear-impact fire risk in Jeep Grand Cherokees. The fact that Strickland was apparently negotiating a job with a Chrysler lobbyist while making the decision to drop a recall of Grand Cherokees adds to a drumbeat of concern about this issue that dates back to at least the Toyota recall firestorm of 2010.

This is the Government shouldn't own a car company, inherit conflict of interest.