Congress reaches a deal on a car maker bailout. Working with President George Bush over the weekend, Congressional leaders worked out a plan that would provide the failing Big Three automakers some relief, according to press reports. The deal would provide car makers with an infusion of $15 billion in low-interest loans, which is far short of the $34 billion they told the Senate last week they need to stay afloat, but enough to tide them over until March, when the Obama administration will have a chance to mull over any future funding measures. President-elect Barack Obama is backing a car industry funding compromise, but says the auto industry must come up with a top to bottom restructuring if it’s going to survive, even calling for some of the heads of the companies to resign if they don’t produce. “I don’t think it’s an option to allow them to collapse,” he said during a press conference on Sunday to announce his Veterans Affairs pick. But he added, “I think Congress is doing exactly the right thing by asking for a conditions-based assistance package that holds the auto industry’s feet to the fire.” But don’t expect smooth sailing for the plan, which is expected to be introduced in the Senate on Tuesday. Calling the bailout a “bridge loan to nowhere” on Sunday, Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), a ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee, is threatening to filibuster any automaker bailout plan. “This is a down payment on many billions to come,” he told Fox News on Sunday. Congressional leaders say the congressional bailout measure most likely will be introduced on Tuesday.