That’s the assertion from Director Blue, whose research is showing up all over the internet, including Hot Air, where I found this link showing targeted dealerships donated millions to GOP candidates while giving a whopping $200 to the Obama campaign, according to one sample of contributions made by targeted dealerships. The price you pay when you let the President play God/CEO-in-Chief, or just paranoia?
To quickly review the situation, I took all dealer owners whose names appeared more than once in the list. And, of those who contributed to political campaigns, every single one had donated almost exclusively to GOP candidates. While this isn’t an exhaustive review, it does have some ominous implications if it can be verified.
However, I also found additional research online at Scribd (author unknown), which also appears to point to a highly partisan decision-making process.
Some noted material at the Director Blue link – a comment from an effected employee at a Cars.com blog:
This isn’t about business it’s about politics and control. My dealership is in the top 125 out of the 3500 plus dealerships nationwide…yet we are on the list. We are not small nor are we rural. We are in a large major metropolitan area. Our new vehicle inventory alone is well over $4.0 million. Is that small? Secondly, Chrysler is already “shopping” for dealers to take over the open “points” (another name for franchise) left by the closed dealerships. Again, you think this is just business. Lastly, and more importantly, every state has franchise law in affect that protect companies from this very thing – being forced out of business under the cloak of bankruptcy with out the benefit of due process.
Another comment from another site, linked at my previous link:
I have looked at all the dealers in the Little Rock, Las Vegas, and Joplin, Missouri areas. It appears that the dealers that are closing in these areas have not donated money to Democrats while the ones that remain open have donated to Democrats in the past.
This doesn’t look good either. From Reuters:
A lawyer for Chrysler dealers facing closure as part of the automaker’s bankruptcy reorganization said on Tuesday he believes Chrysler executives do not support a plan to eliminate a quarter of its retail outlets.
Lawyer Leonard Bellavia, of Bellavia Gentile & Associates, who represents some of the terminated dealers, said he deposed Chrysler President Jim Press on Tuesday and came away with the impression that Press did not support the plan.
“It became clear to us that Chrysler does not see the wisdom of terminating 25 percent of its dealers,” Bellavia said. “It really wasn’t Chrysler’s decision. They are under enormous pressure from the President’s automotive task force.”
I’m a partisan politically, I admit. I want my guys to win, but I never wished Obama harm, nor do I hope the country suffers during his time in office. Almost all my professional friends are Democrats, as were many friends I had in school. If the allegations are true, it’s obvious those feelings aren’t shared in the administration, even for the “little people.”
Car dealers have decent money, but aren’t rich, not by Washington’s standards. They employ small towns, advertise , sponsor Little Leagues – they are intricate parts of the community. If these cuts were government mandated and with a political bent, our leadership is extremely sick minded and deranged. Keep in mind, all of this evidence is anecdotal, but it raises big questions given reports that Chrysler itself was against terminating dealerships.
Maybe more of our judicially and legally-minded cohorts could fill me in, but why couldn’t Chrysler dealers en masse have their day in court? Especially given how the President is so woefully neglecting bankruptcy law.
UPDATE: As I’ll say again, this is all anecdotal, but a comparison study of donations by supposed “safe” dealerships would be nice to back up some of these assertions. As for the closed dealers, at this point, I guess we should be happy they weren’t handed to the UAW. Personally, I hope Ford takes them all in.
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JohnFN, I looked on this site and was able to find out that, as a whole, auto dealers give/gave the Republican Party anywhere from twice to nearly 5 times as much as they did to the Dems. I tried to find specifics on any local (Las Vegas) Chrysler Dealers and found no stats at all. Here’s the link:
http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/indus.php?ind=T2300
It seems to me that if BHO and the “Boys from Brazil” have an axe to grind, the auto industry would be it.
JohnFN I made a comment, but it’s awaiting mod. This has been happening quite a bit lately.
JohnFN, Also take a look at the contributions by the Abortion-pro choice industry. No shock there, but the numbers are amazing.
This could be nothing … this will be something. But it will be up to conservative bloggers to do the digging on this.
Meant to type … this “could” be something … sorry.
Not for nothin’, Christian, I like your “will be” better.
I think its a correct assumption that Obama and his flying monkeys do have an ax to grind with the auto industry. What Chrysler should have done was file chapter 11 and let the courts do what they do and given the Fed the middle finger salute. Now they know. Of course both GM and Chrysler are pounding their mitts together like trained seals for whatever Obama wants because he has their manhoods on the chopping block. Good job guys. Its like these people walked out of a party in Atlas Shrugged. Dang.
I really hope this isn’t true. If so, it is deeply disturbing and frightening.
Stefanie,
That is the thing that makes me laugh for I have no other idea how to react. The whole point of the government swooping in to save GM was to prevent bankruptcy filing. We were told ad nauseam that bankruptcy would be terrible for the industry, it would be the end of any auto maker to file, volcanoes would erupt from the earth and bath us in molten lead if an auto maker filed etc… etc…
So you are absolutely right. As the situation is now, GM would have been much better off filing for bankruptcy and it was GM who all along begged for the bailout.
GM would have been much better off, but management thought bailouts meant they would be handed wads of cash while still sitting in the driver’s seat, not the unions and not the government. Personally, I don’t know how long Obama intends to hold government control of GM, I don’t think it will be forever, but that he handed the company to the union is stupid. Yes, it’s all politics, but it will be a massive failure.
Every major auto company is having a hard time right now. The American companies are hit worse because of the unions and legacy costs. GM is losing money on every car it sells because it has a small country of retirees on pension, something around two or three million. Add on top of that a union that wants maximum compensation for minimum quality and effort, it’s impossible to make money. You can’t make money when you have guys with 30 years in who get mandatory double-time on weekends while sitting around and playing cards.
I wouldn’t be surprised if it were true. The next best thing to raising campaign funds is to decrease funds for the opposition. The campaigning has never really stopped. Nor will it.
So much for hope and change. Can’t wait for the administrative hand-wringing, if these allegations are true, when Republicans respond in kind in the future.
Cincinnati has seven dealers targeted and I will assume most of those are heavily Republican since they’ve been making use of local conservative talk radio to plea their case.
One of the Chrysler dealers in Vegas is a decorated Air Force Veteran who gave to the party “what brung him.” Very staunch supporter of the Republican Party. I don’t know whether he’s going under or not at this point. Just about all auto dealers in Vegas do well, so if his dealership gets put out, there is something afoot.
Remember British Leyland, as compared with GM. All their cars were junk. I know because I owned a couple.
Just heard this story on Cavuto on FOX. He’s going to gather info before he breaks the story en total. I spoke with Jim Marsh the dealer here who was forced out and he’s been thinking something like this was happening. I also attributed his career in the military to the Air Force. It was the Army, But we’re all friends anyway. Mr. Marsh and I are in contact about all of this. I’ll keep you posted.
Obama thinks he’s Tony Soprano now- strong-arming legitimate, legal rights and claims from hedge funds… mafia-style, including union death-threats… so he could hand 55% of Chrysler over to the UAW, who donated $5M to his campaign.
If that’s not stealing, I don’t know what is… it doesn’t matter how much you dislike hedge funds.
Now he’s destroying the evil capitalists that didn’t support his fraudulent, disingenuous campaign?
The White House says there’s “no evidence”- note that Hitler was careful to only give verbal orders, too… and Obama’s not new to this sort of thing.
Obama’s completely out-of-control. But what did anyone expect with a neutered press, compliant congress, and cabinet full of sycophants?
http://reaganiterepublicanresistance.blogspot.com
Obama thinks he’s Tony Soprano now- strong-arming legitimate, legal rights and claims from hedge funds… mafia-style, including union death-threats… so he could hand 55% of Chrysler over to the UAW, who donated $5M to his campaign.
If that’s not stealing, I don’t know what is… it doesn’t matter how much you dislike hedge funds.
Now he’s destroying the evil capitalists that didn’t support his fraudulent, disingenuous campaign?
The White House says there’s “no evidence”- note that Hitler was careful to only give verbal orders, too… and Obama’s not new to this sort of thing.
Obama’s completely out-of-control. But what did anyone expect with a neutered press, compliant congress, and cabinet full of sycophants?