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Gerber's ruling came just days after a three-day hearing concluded. During the hearing, both GM and government officials highlighted the need for a quick approval of the sale, as it could keep GM from selling itself off "piece by piece." Earlier this morning, General Motors' new President and CEO, Fritz Henderson, talked about the challenges and difficult decisions the company had to make to address the industry's issues.

Some of GM's unions and bondholders, along with consumer groups wanted this measure rejected. These groups claimed that their needs were being ignored because this move was in the best interest of GM and the government. The deadline to appeal this ruling is Thursday, so we have a few days to see if anyone will indeed challenge the ruling. One of the biggest sticking points for consumer groups is the fact that the new company would be free of any liability for consumer claims stemming from incidents dating back to before the company's bankruptcy protection.

This is a tough position: Do you want GM to emerge from bankruptcy quickly or do you believe a quick emergence from bankruptcy only benefits the government? The article notes that GM's plan for a quick exit from bankruptcy hinges on the sale and that the Treasury Department will not fund GM if the sale isn't completed by July 10. Do we need a quick emergence from bankruptcy for GM? I'm not sure that it is worth pushing through this ruling and ignoring the interests of the consumer groups, unions, and customers.