After months of breathtaking declines, this is what Wall Street has come to: Blue-chip companies, once considered safe investments and cornerstones of the economy, are akin to penny stocks. (New York Times)

The truisms have been familiar to generations of Americans: As General Motors goes, so goes the nation; Citigroup is too big to fail; General Electric, one of the 12 original companies in the Dow Jones industrial average in 1896, brings good things to life. But the giants that only recently seemed like the unshakable foundations of the economy are faltering one after another. (Washington Post)

General Motors was pushed a little closer to the brink on Thursday, getting a vote of no confidence from its auditors, who officially stated they don't believe the automaker can continue as a going concern. (USA Today)

GM's auditor, Deloitte & Touche, became the latest player to beat the bankruptcy drum, revealing in the automaker's annual report that there was "substantial doubt" about the company's ability to continue operations. (Los Angeles Times)

While the company still wants to avoid bankruptcy, the new view represents a reversal from GM's position late last year, when it sought a federal bailout. (Wall Street Journal)

In February, car sales dropped the fastest yet since this recession began last fall: down more than 40 percent overall, more than 50 percent at General Motors, and almost 50 percent at Ford. (CR Cars Blog)

For five weeks, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has battled the worst economic crisis in generations with no key deputies in place. That's made for a rocky debut for the man President Barack Obama put in charge of addressing the financial crisis. (Associated Press)

A leading contender to serve as the top deputy to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is no longer under consideration for the post, as 17 top jobs at the department remain unfilled in the middle of the financial crisis. (CNN)

President Obama kicked off the first serious effort to overhaul the nation's health care system in 15 years Thursday with a pledge to include Republicans and consider opposing views--and a vow to get it done this year. (USA Today)

The largely symbolic event also showcased the political maneuvering--and potential conflicts--that is intensifying as the president moves forward on his reform initiative. (Los Angeles Times)

More than half of the nation's foreclosures last year took place in 35 counties, a sign that the financial crisis devastating the national economy may have begun with collapsing home loans in only a few corners of the country. (USA Today)

In an attempt to ease the foreclosure crisis, the House on Thursday approved a major change to bankruptcy law that would give judges new powers to modify home mortgages. (Los Angeles Times)

At the end of 2008, a greater percentage of Americans were late on their mortgage payments or in foreclosure than at any time since 1972, according to a new industry study. (CR Money Blog)

Banks and lenders are shoring up risks—closing a record number of credit card accounts and reducing millions of dollars in credit lines. As they clamp down, even some consumers with excellent credit and spotless payment records are seeing their credit scores reduced because of the diminished credit lines. (USA Today)

With government inspectors overwhelmed by the task of guarding the nation’s food supply, the job of monitoring food plants has in large part fallen to an army of private auditors. And the problems go well beyond peanuts. An examination of the largest food poisoning outbreaks in recent years show that auditors failed to detect problems at plants whose contaminated products later sickened consumers. (New York Times)

Senate Republicans blocked a $410 billion omnibus spending measure on Thursday night, forcing Congressional Democrats to prepare a stopgap budget resolution to keep the federal government from shutting down. (New York Times)

The bill stalled amid resistance over the legislation's huge price tag and more than 8,500 pet projects. (Washington Post)