It looks like the auto industry will be saved – from themselves.

The House of Representatives stepped up to the plate last night and decided to throw $14 billion out there to save the wallowing industry from a sea of red ink.

Locally, Rep. Joe Sestak, D-7, backed the measure, saying the move was needed to prevent the imminent collapse of the domestic auto industry, while also demanding strict accountability measures be put into place.

But it’s not a done deal yet. While the House voted 237-170 in favor, the measure now goes to the Senate, where it likely faces a much rockier road. Critics in the Senate say the bailout fails to fix the problem, giving the money without demanding the kind of restructuring the industry needs to survive.

For his part, Sestak said the move was necessary to prevent an even more protracted recession, one that would be felt locally with still more job losses.

Look for the Senate to blast the program up and down – then pass it or a similar version.

There really isn’t any alternative, unless you happen to subscribe to the belief that we should simply let the automakers declare bankruptcy.

Here’s one way to look at the problem: The auto industry is asking Congress (read taxpayers) to do something that the banks have already deemed to be too risky.

First it was housing, then it was banks and other financial firms. Now it’s the auto industry. All of them limping into Washington, D.C., with their hand out.

Where do you draw the line?