dealergate-palooza-o-rama

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 2:45pm

seems that the chrysler and gm dealers that have been getting shut down by the president's task force on cars as they take over the auto industry has been based almost solely on which party the dealers contributed to.

seems that profitable dealerships owned by republicans were shuttered while deeply in debt dealerships owned by democrats were spared. i wonder if rattner will use the white house opress corps to destroy all of them including democratic senator claire mccaskill.

this will get ugly.

a senate investigation?

Updated On: 6/6/09 at 02:45 PM

[madbrian]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 2:51pm

Huh? How do you get your conclusions from that link?

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 2:55pm

the message is clear: donate to the gop and lose your business. i am in awe of just how brutally thuggish this administration actually is.
follow the money

Updated On: 5/29/09 at 02:55 PM

[YouWantitWhen????]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 2:59pm

Where in the article you linked to does it reference political contributions?

I know that is an allegation, but it does not seem to be referenced in your cite.

Here is a discussion of the issue on 538.com. Money quote:

"Overall, 88 percent of the contributions from car dealers went to Republican candidates and just 12 percent to Democratic candidates. By comparison, the list of dealers on Doug Ross's list (which I haven't vetted, but I assume is fine) gave 92 percent of their money to Republicans -- not really a significant difference.

There's no conspiracy here, folks -- just some bad math.

It shouldn't be any surprise, by the way, that car dealers tend to vote -- and donate -- Republican. They are usually male, they are usually older (you don't own an auto dealership in your 20s), and they have obvious reasons to be pro-business, pro-tax cut, anti-green energy and anti-labor. Car dealerships need quite a bit of space and will tend to be located in suburban or rural areas. I can't think of too many other occupations that are more natural fits for the Republican Party. Unfortunately, while we are still a nation of drivers, we are not a nation of dealers."

And, BTW papa, if the allegation you make is true, that businesses are being targeted specifically because of political donations or affiliation, then there should be an investigation and people should be fired. It was wrong under Bush, and if it is being done now, it is still wrong.
But, They Are Republicans! No Fair

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 3:05pm

makes no difference if they investigate. the dye has been cast. everyone sees that this administration will take what it wants from who it wants. the lesson is to be on its good side or you will be crushed and left with nothing.

i thought he would wait at least a year before going hard core stalinist like this. but hey, i've been wroing about a lot of things. assuming that obama would wait to implement a scorched earth campaign again the gop is just one more.

unprofitable dealers who donated to obama were spared while proiftable ones who donated to the gop were closed. all this could have been avoided if the administration had made good on its promise for transparency, but as the gays are finding out, obama's promises and $7.95 will get you a venti mocha frap.

[YouWantitWhen????]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 3:17pm

Papa, if your allegation is true, he will not get my vote in 12.

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 3:31pm

oh, ywiw, it won't be his fault. just like all through his campaign, it will be the fault of those doggone incompetent and corrupt people around him. never his fault.

[Yawper]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 3:43pm

The criteria for dropping a dealership has more to do with location and customer satisfaction than it does debtload. You see, wise businessmen know to put profits back into their businesses and develop them rather than pocketing all cash for personal use and screwing customers to get more.

It wouldn't be any surprise at all if Republican owned dealerships had the most dissatisfied customers AND unhappy employees not caring about quality of service rendered - the very things that filter upward and reflect poorly on the automaker. Without bankruptcy the automakers couldn't easily shed the very dealers that are hurting them the most.

Believe me, when you have a vehicle that seems to be a piece of junk when others with the same year, make, and model aren't having issues, odds are your dealership or independent mechanic is the problem, not the vehicle.

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 3:54pm

except that this wasn't their call. the administration shoved this down their throats and told them who to close.

but don't let that stop you from imagining scenarios, there yawper.

we are in control here

Updated On: 5/29/09 at 03:54 PM

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 5:13pm

Keith Olberman totally eviscerated this conspiracy theory on the WTF? section of his show last night. It was pretty hilarious.

[Unknown User]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 5:39pm

It brings me back to the question, "If Obama is so awful, why do they have to keep making stuff up about him?"

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 6:08pm

Say it ain't so.

Accusing Obama is like accusing Gary Cooper in High Noon of turning tail & running.Just because Obama actually feels he cannot make a mistake & everything he says & does is right. He wants his universal healthcare basically rubber stamped without debate. What is he afraid of? If it ever sees sunlight, it will smell like a rotting fish on a windowsill in Vegas in August

Dare say nothing bad about our fearless leader.Like a doting father, he knows whats good for all of us & will give us his medicine if he has to jam it down our throat to do it.

Change , brothers & sisters, change. I won't tell you what kind of change but take my word it is good for you. Sound like Elmer Gantry, another snake oil salesman peddling his wares.

Lord, can ya hear me. He doth have a Messiah complex.I next
expect him to come to the white house on a donkey while multitudes holding palms & shouting "Messiah, messiah".

Rember what you wish for. Well you got it & you are stuck with him.

[Unknown User]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 6:24pm

No Roxy, no one said that. No one but Republicans ever say Obama is infallible or the Messiah. This is a Spurious charge. (look it up)

Yes, most of these closed dealerships donated to Republican causes- but as several people pointed out, the vast, overwhelming majority of dealerships give to Republican causes.

Do you understand that? 88 to 92 percent of all dealerships give to REPUBLICAN causes- so theoretically 88 to 92 percent of the dealerships closed would give to Republican causes.

Incidentally, 100% of Republicans voted NOT to bail out the auto industry. They wanted to let ALL dealerships close.

[Yawper]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 7:10pm

Yup, the Republicans thought they were geniuses slapping around Detroit, ignoring us when we tried to tell them their constituents would feel it, too, that the auto industry supported millions of jobs around the country. Now they're crying like two year olds losing a toy now that their local dealership contracts are going away - and it's only a fraction of the dealers that would have been lost if the companies hadn't been picked up by Bush and Obama!

Everybody up here is hoping Corker and Tennessee lose the Spring Hill plant (we already know we'll be losing more facilities here). Reportedly GM will announce plant closings and file for bankruptcy on Monday.

[ZONEACE]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 7:57pm

Oh look, roxy making an idiot of himself, yet again.


Good show Roxy, good show.


Say hi to the wife for me.

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 8:15pm

that would be the olbermann who put on the mancow piece knowing it was faked? yeah, there's some credibility.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 10:01pm

Same to you Zone

Take the old tried & true democratic response . Don't actually debate an issue ( because you can't) but name call & smear. Nice to see you have it down right Zone. Keep up the good work.

Mrs R occasionally looks at you & others who post & laughs & just shakes her head.

Updated On: 5/29/09 at 10:01 PM

[ZONEACE]

Posted: 5/29/09 at 10:09pm

Oh roxy, you severely addled old man.

[madbrian]

Posted: 6/1/09 at 9:02am

Just reviving this thread to point out that this conspiracy theory has be debunked by multiple sources. The link below points out that the vast majority of ALL car dealers are Republicans, but when SOME people saw that the majority of closed dealerships were Republicans, they neglected to acknowledge that fact, and started the rumor mill.

http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/2009/05/news-flash-car-dealers-are-republicans.html

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 6/1/09 at 5:18pm

But but but but that's what Keith Olbermann said last week!

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 6/6/09 at 10:35am

seems the democrats have their own conspiracy theories regarding:
dealergate

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 6/6/09 at 12:08pm

I'm tired of -gates. I wish we could only have -paloozas or -o-ramas from now on.

In fact, Obama-o-rama would be pretty fantastic.

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 6/6/09 at 3:07pm

but still no bama-lama-ding-dong, right?

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 6/6/09 at 5:19pm

It doesn't strike me as so bad, anymore. I guess it's because during the whole campaign he was so not the crazy one. Not when you had McCain playing dong to Palin's ding. If you will, as it were, so to speak.

But anyhoo, I was meaning more suffixes than nicknames.

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 6/6/09 at 5:30pm

just had to find a way to slip a dong in there, huh?

those of you who will not sing...