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25 Comments
- EnviroChem, on 05/28/2009, -3/+28Great context for the numbers. Totally debunks the talking point that dealerships are being targeted for closure because they have Republican owners.
- normlsparky, on 05/28/2009, -4/+26It sounds like the religious right has allowed their persecution complex to spill over into their politics.
- Dipsomaniac, on 05/28/2009, -6/+19Boy, Republicans are really scraping the bottom of the barrel for things to whine about, aren't they?
- Hillsfar, on 05/28/2009, -5/+17Yeah, but few people listen to Nate, and lots of people listen to Limbaugh. That needs to change. I hope Keith Olbermann and Jon Stewart mention the stats.
- novenator, on 05/28/2009, -8/+17and yet another reason not to trust Republicans!
- kingnova, on 05/28/2009, -2/+8Is anyone really surprised by this? It's the old "make up a story, and hope the truth gets buried when it comes out a couple days later" tactic.
Old trick, and works pretty well. Don't believe me? Let's see if any of the stories related to these facts make the front page. - inactive, on 05/29/2009, -0/+4You people are insane. Look, we get it! The Republicans are crooks, but news flash: if you've been reading Digg for the past few months, guess what? The Democrats are crooks too, especially Obama.
I'm guessing that a lot of you enjoy watching football, you know, supporting one team despite how bad they play. You people do the same thing with politicians. You stick to them, even though all they do is lie, steal, cheat and deceive. - philomatic, on 05/29/2009, -1/+4Not to say the conclusion is wrong, but wouldn't it be more accurate to report the % of owners who donate to the GOP rather than the % of money donated that went to the GOP?
- inactive, on 05/29/2009, -2/+4*all sides* not *both sides* Constutionalists and Libertarians are known for their thin skins.
- Chrysalii, on 05/29/2009, -0/+2When was this an issue?
I don't recall seeing it anywhere.
Since it says "conservative blogosphere" I'm assuming that they're trying to talk about people who wouldn't listen to logic anyway, since it's citing the Huffington Post...I don't care...attacking conservatives and citing the Huffington Post is like attacking liberals and citing Fox News. - Bloodwine, on 05/29/2009, -0/+2Not sure why you are being dugg down, because almost every small businessman I've dealt with has been Republican.
- orlandogeek, on 05/29/2009, -0/+1That's because Nate is obviously well educated and smart which makes him one of those untrustworthy loony elitist socialist fascist liberal communists!
/s - gnixon70, on 05/29/2009, -0/+1Doubt any politician is as pure as the driven snow on either side. The costs alone to run a successful campaign even at the city level is more then any honest person can afford. By the time a politician gets to the national level, they are so compromised by special interests and lobbyists, that they stopped even caring about the needs of the people who elected them in office long long ago.
- orlandogeek, on 05/29/2009, -0/+1You know I was going to try and break this down how these things called facts work, but I have doubts that the effort would have changed your opinion.
- Bloodwine, on 05/29/2009, -1/+2@nice, I concede, everybody has a persecution complex.
Minorities, religious people (of all religions), young people, old people, and everybody else. - PureAdrenaline, on 05/29/2009, -0/+1Hmmmmm...maybe that could be one of the many strategies from the Obama socialist playbook...that the government target the AUTO industry for takeover, because the dealers in that industry are more LIKELY to be REPUBLICANS than in other industries!!
- lyonsban, on 05/29/2009, -0/+0Few Republicans and Democrats are crooks, unless you mean politicians and talking heads. The latter because politicians are compromised the first time they take a $1000 donation and the latter because talking heads get to be talking heads by cheerleading their team regardless of facts.
- dienaked, on 05/29/2009, -2/+2Funny how you can't use percentages when it comes to hiring/firing minorities. They just stick you with a quota.
- 07dcolem, on 05/29/2009, -4/+4You'll find that most business owners are republican.
- unpluggedboy, on 05/29/2009, -1/+1Shhhh. That might debunk their debunking!
- ComDesProf, on 05/29/2009, -0/+0Excellent comment, I've used the football analogy several times and it fits perfectly. The majority of people really do treat politics like their favorite sport, they support their team with the same blind fanaticism no matter how bad they suck. Trust me, I understand the psychology all too well, I grew up watching the Saints...
...who are totally going to kick ass this year. - OriginalLucid1, on 05/29/2009, -3/+1If nothing is amiss, explain why no dealerships who donated to Obama got the axe? Maybe most dealership owners donated to republicans, but the ones who did not seem to have gotten a break.
- deema1, on 05/29/2009, -4/+2This observation is irrelevant and I'll tell you why. Giving 55% ownership of Chrysler to the pro-Obama Democratic union in spite of junior credit rights and a smaller loan was a way of preserving the jobs of and paying off the base. Obama's team didn't allow anything to happen to those who supported him and has gone out of his way to appease them.
Contrast that with the dealerships. Obama and his task force are closing 789 of 3200 dealerships -- 25% of the dealers out there. Let's pretend that 100% of dealerships are Republican, which would prove the Democratic talking points even further. Unlike the union which was given majority stake in Chrysler, dealerships are being closed down, forced to absorb their own losses, and have been given nothing in return. They are stuck with inventory they cannot return, they have building expenses and investments that they were forced to make by Chrysler over recent years, as well as other dealership fees that they are not able to recoup. Some have reported that their businesses are being taken from them and given, not sold, to competitors. Some of the dealers being closed are in the top 5% - 10% in sales, so I defy anyone to explain how the task force is making their evaluations. Dealers have said that they have asked the question to the task forces and they are refused an answer. Why close the top sellers? Why are the heavy GOP donors being closed while others are not? Some dealership owners are losing everything they have because it's literally being stolen from them. And they're being prevented from selling things on the open market to try recoup some of what they have in it.
It seems that one group is being handled with kid gloves over their Democratic affiliation, while the other is being summarily terminated and stonewalled by the government.
Also keep in mind that Steven Rattner, the head of the auto task force, is married to the former national finance chairman of the Democratic National Committee. He has been involved in a number of questionable pay-to-play schemes, including the one that got Bill Richardson in trouble. He was also involved in an alleged kickback scheme at New York state's pension fund. And remember that he also threatened bondholders who wouldn't give up their legal rights and accept the disproportional Chrysler bankruptcy deal/payoff with government audits, investigations, and property seizures.
This should be alarming for all Americans, regardless of your political affiliations. You're attempting to justify something that is rife with illegality. America was established with laws and when you break laws and contracts you're breaking America. Whenever the government picks the winners and losers, not the market, then you have an abuse of power. While you may relish this decision because it doesn't affect you or because they're "on your side", keep in mind it takes very little to be herded to the opposition. Just try and remember other governments in history that began this way and look where it got them.
I understand that Obama wants to be involved in these problems and facilitate the dialogue and negotiation, and I can respect that. I can even respect the fact that he's setting certain goals he'd like to see. But you have to follow the rule of law. You can't pay favors, especially when it's with taxpayer dollars or a printing press. If you don't, then the entire system is a sham and will be crushed under its own weight. - Bloodwine, on 05/29/2009, -7/+3Trust me, both sides have a persecution process.
- Spindig, on 05/28/2009, -10/+4This article doesn't give the statistics on the dealers that were allowed to be open. That is what I'd like to see.
