[MBenz]

For what i have been told, GM got screwed was their own dealerships.

GM has about 10 times as many dealerships as toyota and honda. The owners of these dealers thought they were smart and all got legislation passed that made their contracts with GM locked. Basically GM would have to meet the demands of the Dealership or face the government. GM hit some tuff times and could not afford to supply x number of required cars to the dealerships and so they had to lay off workers in an effort to avoid chapter 9. Meanwhile, the dealerships are able to maintain enough sales to stay afloat while the hand that feeds starts to sink.
Poor Management, Quality control, and rising popularity of imports were also big factors.