It is now clear that the administration is groping in semi-darkness for answers to the nation's cascading economic woes. The $700 billion bailout plan that once was supposed to buy up troubled assets held by Wall Street has instead become a rescue plan for banks and credit markets. With so much government money being doled out, it should come as no surprise that many troubled businesses, including the Big Three U.S. automakers, are lining up to get their share. Who can blame them?

Now is the time, though, for America to take a deep breath, exhale gently and just say No. Instead of a bailout, Detroit needs some tough love. Sure, the U.S. auto industry could use some help — but so, too, could the rest of America.

A few weeks ago, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson predicted an economic meltdown if Congress refused to approve a bailout plan. Lawmakers responded with $700 billion. Now, in hindsight, we know that even with billions flowing to banks and credit markets, the economy has continued to deteriorate. So the administration's pitch now is to ask for patience. Without the cash infusion, the situation would be much worse, Paulson says. And, yes, he says, the money has brought some stability to troubled credit markets. Really?

What is obvious is that the administration is making up the answers as events unfold. Also obvious is that the U.S. economy is in deeper trouble than anyone could have predicted. Companies everywhere are declaring bankruptcy, eliminating jobs, going into survival mode. Consumers, too, are hunkering down.

In this economic free-fall, the U.S. auto industry is asking the president and Congress to pick favorites. Yet the economic forces at play are beyond the federal government's ability to control. This is where the administration and Congress must draw a line. GM, Ford and Chrysler already have gotten a $25 billion loan to convert to the production of "green" vehicles. They should not be given another $25 billion. U.S. automakers must find ways to rescue themselves.

The bill that Congress will consider this week to help the industry has some impressively stringent requirements in return for giving the industry money. These include a thorough restructuring, placing limits on executive pay and banning "golden parachutes" for top executives.

But why should the taxpayer be left on the hook when the Big Three ignored years — actually, decades — of warnings that they were headed for ruin? Bankruptcy laws are made for cases like these. Congress must tell the automakers to look elsewhere for answers. The federal government can't print enough money to save every troubled company — nor should it try.