Democrats in the US Congress proposing an additional 25-billion-dollar bailout for ailing automakers have been stalled by Republican lawmakers who have maintained that the sector should use funds from a previous bill.

The debate over new legislation proposed by the majority Democrats began with the two parties clashing over how to fund the troubled industry, which threatens to go bankrupt in the coming months.

Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said in a statement at the outset that the automakers should make use of funds "already appropriated by this Congress to fund a 25-billion-dollar loan program for automakers to build advanced technology vehicles, coupled with new taxpayer protections and federal oversight of how the money is spent."

Harry Reid, the Democratic Senate Majority Leader, however, reiterated his call for President George W. Bush's administration to unlock funds for the industry.

"The Treasury already has the authority and resources to protect thousands of Americans who work in our nation's struggling auto industry," he said in a statement.

"If the Bush administration has any interest in saving Detroit, it has the power to do so."

Executives from General Motors, Ford and Chrysler had begged Congress for the multibillion dollar loans and warned the industry faces a "catastrophic collapse" if the lawmakers didn't fund them.

A day earlier the Bush administration and skeptical lawmakers questioned whether the automakers would be able to pay back the loans or if the money would simply be used to "perpetuate failure."

As the clash heated up Senator Barbara Mikulski of Delaware, one of the lawmakers spearheading a rescue plan for the automakers, defended the measure of offering tax break for people buying a new vehicle before the end of year.

Bankruptcy for the automakers would cost the companies 126 billion dollars in three years, and prompt three million people to lose their jobs, Mikulski said.

Even if Detroit's "Big Three" automakers -- GM, Ford and Chrysler -- could escape bankruptcy, they could not evade closing dozens of factories and slashing tens of thousands of jobs to adapt to a new market place, in which they would be forced by consumer demand and their competition to produce more environmentally friendly models.

As many Republicans believe the Big Three have remained too passive as they approach a financial crunch point, they argue any additional aid would be money lost.

The initial 25-billion-dollar loans in September, designed for the revamp of the company's production line, have yet to be distributed, they note.

Even if funding efforts for automakers breaks down, Democrats still hope to pass unemployment benefits for jobless Americans fighting to stay affloat in the volatile economy.

Lawmakers want to extend an additional seven weeks of benefits in all states, and for an additional 13 weeks in the states with the highest unemployment rates.