Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Larwyn's Linx: Where Policy Is Made

Have a great link you'd like me to review? Drop me an email!

Sotomayor

SOTOMAYOR: All of the legal defense funds out there, they're looking for people with Court of Appeals experience because it is -- Court of Appeals is where policy is made. And I know, and I know this is on tape, and I should never say that because we don't make law, I know. (laughing) Okay, I know. I know. I'm not promoting it and I'm not advocating it. I'm -- you know. (laughing)

Supreme Court hasn't viewed Sotomayor's decisions kindly: Bench
The Reverse Racist: EIB
Alito and Sotomayor: the Lawyers' Take: Power Line

Obama just appointed himself: Goldberg
Sotomayor's Radical Group Helped Kill Estrada Nomination: Spectator
Sotomayor: Gun Ownership "Unconstitutional": Jumping in Pools

Why you should oppose Sotomayor: PJM (Kimball)
Policy-making Judge-slash-radical hack Sotomayor: JWF
The case against Sotomayor: TNR

Nation

Maryland's millionaires go missing: WSJ
GM creditors watch Chrysler lawsuit: FT
Let's try Maryland's success in Michigan!: BlogProf

MIA: the mockery of Joe "Dumbya" Biden: PJM (Mauro)

World

Doomed to repeat history: Center for Security Policy
When will Barack Obama stop fudging it?: Telegraph (UK)
The Halimi Cover-up: INN

Diseases returning, thanks to anti-vaccination movement: LGF
Chevron: No good deed goes unpunished: BMW
Persecuting Terror Defeaters: HNN

Media

Max Boot: let's throw Cheney, Levin and Coulter under the bus: Greenroom (CK)
10 News photos that took retouching too far: 10,000 words
Newspapers less popular than airlines: BizWeek

Cornucopia

Life imitates art imitates life (NSFW): Shawarma Mayor
Two greatest worst car ads of all time: BizWeek

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

This wasn't mentioned in the safari brochure



ACORN internal memo blows cover off its claims of "non-partisan" status


The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, ACORN, is a far-left organization that purports to promote the poor and disadvantaged. It is currently being investigated for voter registration fraud in least 14 states, having submitted hundreds of thousands of bogus registrations throughout the country.

ACORN claims to be "a non-profit, non-partisan social justice organization with national headquarters in New York, New Orleans and Washington, D.C.."

And despite its troubling track record, ACORN receives plenty of money from Democrats in Congress. ACORN affiliates in just 11 states are reported to have received more than $31 million in taxpayer funding. And ACORN has plenty of affiliates. Hundreds, in fact.

ACORN founder Wade Rathke also founded the huge public sector union, the SEIU (Service Employees International Union), which also happens to funnel funds to ACORN. Other ACORN affiliates, like the American Institute for Social Justice, also send millions directly to its parent.

Worse, ACORN is competing for $8 billion in Stimulus dough, thanks to President Obama.

So where does the money go? Fox News traced the money to a single, small funeral parlor in New Orleans on Elysian Fields Avenue. It appears to be a bank for ACORN and as many as 268 of its far-left affiliates.

And some of its affiliates -- like "The ACORN Institute" -- are 501(c)(3) organizations.

To maintain its tax-exempt status, various arms of ACORN purport to be a non-partisan, community support organizations. These are laughable propositions, to be sure, but thus far have resisted attempts to puncture their complex corporate veils.

But Mitchell Blatt may have found a damning piece of evidence that destroys ACORN's claims of non-partisanship. It's an internal ACORN memo -- dated January 26, 2004 -- that spells out explicit gerrymandering strategies to benefit Democrats.

This is a long-term, multi-faceted project with the following goals:

a) Impact the post-2010 Congressional redistricting process by building progressive electoral majorities in swing state legislative districts in states where partisan control of legislative bodies is potentially in play.
b) Organize in 10 – 20 selected Congressional Districts where recent close elections and/or demographic shifts make them likely swing districts.

The strategy here is to build the long-term, targeted organizing and electoral capacity needed if we are to have a Congress with a progressive majority. The redistricting process is key, since it is unlikely that there are enough competitive House districts to end right-wing control of the House of Representative before 2012. But we need to start now.

The first step is to review the literature analyzing the redistricting process state-by-state, determine which states’ re-districting processes are in the hands of state legislatures (most), which state legislative bodies have a close enough Democrat-Republican ratio to be in play, and which state house and state senate districts in those states are competitive. With this information, one can then target appropriate legislative districts. We have identified an organizer with previous experience with 21st Century Democrats and the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee who we would like to hire to develop this targeting plan.

In other words, ACORN plotted a national campaign to benefit a Democrat Party takeover of Congress, explicitly naming the Democrats as beneficiaries of their "largesse".

Sounds non-partisan, eh?

You can read the entire memo here, preserved for posterity.

I am recommending that like-minded individuals report this egregious violation of the tax code to the IRS. To do so, fill out a Form 13909 (Tax-Exempt Organization Complaint (Referral) Form). Then use one of the following methods to dispatch the form to the IRS:

  • Mail to IRS EO Classification, Mail Code 4910DAL, 1100 Commerce St., Dallas, TX 75242-1198,
  • Fax to 214-413-5415, or
  • Email to eoclass@irs.gov.

Feel free to reference ACORN's own memo.

Georgia State Sen. Jeff Mullis (Chickamauga) has filed legislation urging the IRS to revoke ACORN's tax exempt status. Consider this additional ammo for Mullis' efforts.



Linked by: Pat Dollard. Thanks!

Top 10 reasons to favor a gun over a woman...


Papa B sent this one in with the missive, "You didn't get this from me." Oops.

Top 10 reasons to favor a gun over a woman

#10. You can trade an old 44 for a new 22.

#9. You can keep one gun at home and have another for when you're on the road.

#8. If you admire a friend's gun and tell him so, he will probably let you try it out a few times.

#7. Your primary gun doesn't mind if you keep another gun for a backup.

#6. Your gun will stay with you even if you run out of ammo.

#5. A gun doesn't take up a lot of closet space.

#4. Guns function normally every day of the month.

#3. A gun doesn't ask, "Do these new grips make me look fat?"

#2. A gun doesn't mind if you go to sleep after you use it.

And the number one reason a gun is favored over a woman....

#1. YOU CAN BUY A SILENCER FOR A GUN
and YOUR LICENSE MUST BE RENEWED AFTER 5 YEARS OR IT IS NULL AND VOID.

Boys will be boys


Izismile has the complete collection. My favorites:







Ruh roh! On tape, Burris promised campaign check for Blago!


The Chicago Sun-Times reports that Roland Burris was caught on tape in a compromising position (hat tip: Marathon Pundit) offering cash to the disgraced Governor Blagojevich weeks prior to his receipt of Barack Obama's Senate seat.

In a November conversation caught on an FBI wiretap, Roland Burris promised Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s brother that he’d write the governor a campaign check by mid-December, Burris’ lawyer said today.


That was about seven weeks before Rod Blagojevich appointed Burris to the U.S. Senate
...

...Burris did not mention a promise of a check in a Feb. 4 sworn affidavit that Burris submitted to an Illinois House panel investigating Rod Blagojevich’s impeachment.

Maybe he forgot.

Illinois blogger-in-residence Marathon Pundit has the salient analysis.

Two words for you, Senator Burris: Resign now.

Five words for you, Governor Patrick Quinn: We want a special election.

Within hours of Blagojevich's December 9 arrest, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) called for a special election to decide who would be Barack Obama's successor in the Senate. But Durbin backed off his call almost immediately.

While still lieutenant governor, Patrick Quinn called for a temporary appointment by the governor--he's governor now--followed by a quick special election.

I favor Durbin's initial stand.

We want a special election!

Indeed.


Larwyn's Linx: Saving America from the Abyss

Have a great link you'd like me to review? Drop me an email!

Nation

Saving America from the Abyss: PJM (Solway)
Is California Too Big to Fail?: McArdle
Will The Left Apologize To Bolton?: LegalIns

Scenes from Memorial Day: First In
Cheney: crystallizing Obama's hypocrisy: PJM (Guariglia)
Obama's War on Talk Radio: Morris

"We're out of money": Instapundit
Ayers and Dohrn say racism not dead: Sun-Times
He’s From The Government And He’s Here to Help: Six Meat

Is Obama another Jimmy Carter?: Forbes (Raman)
Mark Levin on Dreher, Frum and Friedersdorf: Riehl
Debating Mark Levin with Conor Friedersdorf: Riehl

Climate & Energy

Disproving The Anthropogenic Global Warming (AGW) Problem: Watts
Hyperion boasts 70 orders for mini-reactors: Denver Post
The greening of the slums: JWF

AGW prof: I would 'slaughter' skeptics in a debate: Depot

World

Axis of Evil Tortures Obama: AT (Spraygeen)
Netanyahu Declares War: “We Are Answering The Call”: Dollard
Fist clenches harder: Iran sends warships to Gulf of Aden: Reuters

Korean blast demonstrates world's weakness: WSJ
Emergency Wrist Slap Roundup: STACLU
Report: Venezuela sends Uranium to Iran: AP

Nuke test hints that Kim Jong-Il succession looms: Times
Playing The Nork Card: LegalIns
Additional Nork missile launch may be imminent: STACLU

WaPo asks: does Obama condone Chavez's acts?: S&L

Cornucopia

12 Most Unfortunate Product Names: Oddee
Goodbye, tats!: Fausta

If the Terrorists Misinterpret Islam …: PJM (Steinberg)

Forbes’ 2009 survey of the world’s most dangerous countries is out, and the list is comprised almost entirely of Islamic-dominated lands. A second list, of the world’s active conflicts, is essentially a checklist of current Islamic aggression (and describes an entirely related point — the few non-Islamic conflicts have communist/socialist or other totalitarian participants). Somalia, Afghanistan, Iraq, Congo, Pakistan, West Bank/Gaza Strip, Sri Lanka, Yemen, Sudan, Zimbabwe, Ivory Coast, Haiti, Algeria, Nigeria, Georgia — that’s Forbes‘ top 15.

The world’s current conflicts: an Islamic revolt in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iraq; an Islamic butchery in Sudan; an Islamic civil war in Somalia; an Islamist civil war in Sri Lanka; an Islamic invasion into Chad (perpetrated by the Sudanese butchers); an Islamic insurgency in Thailand; an Islamist insurgency across all of Northeast Africa (the Maghreb); an Islamic separatist movement in Kashmir; an Islamist insurgency in the Philippines; and a sustained Islamic belligerency against Israel involving Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, and Iran...

Monday, May 25, 2009

Flat on your back in the hospital is no reason you can't surf the web!


This is a clever solution:

By golly, you can't keep people off the Internet!


An Open Letter to Colin Powell

Dear General Powell,

I read with great interest your recent statement that the Republican Party must be "more inclusive" and that it must expand its "very, very narrow base".

While all Americans respect and honor your service to this country, when it comes to political theory, economics, law and history, you are thoroughly, utterly confused.

On October 19th of last year, you endorsed Barack Obama for President on Meet the Press.

But America had a "moderate" Republican candidate for president at that time. John McCain was an "inclusive" candidate and certainly didn't pander to a "narrow base". Yet you abandoned him, Mr. Powell, and -- in fact -- helped sabotage his campaign by publicly endorsing the most ideologically pure, leftist candidate this country has ever seen.

How is it then, that so-called "moderate Republicans" continue to lose elections? How is it that the most pure conservative in recent history -- Ronald Reagan -- crushed Democrats in two successive landslides? Ronald Reagan -- the very man who plucked you out of obscurity! Republicans have nominated many so-called moderates in the form of George H. W. Bush, Bob Dole, George W. Bush and John McCain; yet they either scraped to win elections or lost them outright.

So why would you endorse Obama? Because you've been attacked by the left; and though McCain is exactly the kind of candidate the "moderate" Republicans have been demanding... and you stab him in the back!

According to Time Magazine, the endorsement of Obama was in the works for months. And it was arranged with Meet the Press, where you delivered your endorsement, to levy maximum damage upon McCain's campaign.

Your endorsement and subsequent statements weren't about salvaging the GOP -- they're about marketing the Colin Powell brand! After all, it's the free market system that pays you $100,000 to $150,000 a speech and lets you fly around in private jets.

And who are the racists here? Colin Powell backed Barack Obama because they share the same skin color, period. No other explanation holds water. Because all the other reasons do not make sense. None of them. And that's a disgrace. And the Left claims they're the enlightened thinkers. That the Right must become more inclusive. Yet they're the ones obsessed with race!

And you, Powell, are obsessed with not being called any more names by the Left. Consider your explanation, your rationale for endorsing Obama:

"...because of his ability to inspire... the inclusiveness of his campaign... because he is reaching out all across America... because of who he is and his rhetorical abilities... as well as his substance, he has both style and substance, he has met the standard of being a successful president. Being an exceptional president. He is a transformational figure... for that reason I'll be voting for Barack Obama."

What? What did that mean? Was there a single, substantive fact? His "rhetorical abilities"? His "substance"? He meets the standard of "being an exceptional president"?

How do you meet the standard of "being an exceptional president" prior to you serving as president?

I never thought you were that bright, Powell -- but that statement is proof. You prepared that endorsement for months and that's the best you can do?

A lot of people are charismatic: some are dangerous leaders; some are great leaders. But being charismatic proves nothing about leadership! It proves nothing!

And where's the guy's substance? How is he ready to be President?

And, for a guy who says he wants the Republicans to be more inclusive, you ripped McCain on a national stage as well.

"...And I've also been disappointed, frankly, by some of the approaches that Senator McCain has taken recently, or his campaign ads, on issues that are not really central to the problems that the American people are worried about. This Bill Ayers situation that's been going on for weeks became something of a central point of the campaign... ...trying to suggest that, because of this very, very limited relationship that Senator Obama has had with Mr. Ayers, somehow, Mr. Obama is tainted. What they're trying to connect him to is some kind of terrorist feelings. And I think that's inappropriate."

Really? So if a Republican had the same sort of relationship with a Klansman or a Neo-Nazi, you'd be okay with that?

Seven years is just a "limited relationship"? That's spinning like a liberal. And if you don't think Ayers is relevant, why don't you talk to some of the families victimized by the Weather Underground? Maybe you should talk to the families of the three cops that they killed and the security guard that they murdered?

This is an outrageous statement by you -- a domestic terrorist, according to our own FBI, who got off on a technicality and called himself "guilty as hell".

What a disgrace! No wonder Cheney couldn't stand you. No wonder Rumsfeld couldn't stand you. The future of this country was at stake in the 2008 election and the fact that you were plotting for months to come on Meet the Press and make the biggest splash you possibly could, and you spewed this garbage?

And did you complain about the Obama campaign's treatment of Sarah Palin? You said nothing about the attacks on John McCain for his inability to use a keyboard due to his injuries as a POW! Not a word!

"...And I was also concerned at the selection of Governor Palin. She's a very distinguished woman, and she's to be admired; but at the same time, now that we have had a chance to watch her for some seven weeks, I don't believe she's ready to be president of the United States, which is the job of the vice president. And so that raised some question in my mind as to the judgment that Senator McCain made..."

This was an attack on conservatives... on outside-the-beltway politicians. Doesn't this sound like David Gergen or Chris Matthews? You simply parrot the Obama talking points!

So Palin's not qualified to be VP, but Joe Biden is. Right. Palin is smart -- she can learn what she needs to learn. Biden's stupid -- he can't learn to be smart.

General Powell, in one breath you claimed Rush Limbaugh "inserts into our public life a kind of nastiness that we would be better to do without," but you seem to conveniently ignore the vitriol and outrageous attacks directed at Palin by Obama and his minions in the media.

Recently you stated that "Americans do want to pay taxes for services... Americans are looking for more government in their life, not less."

Really? Did you see how California just voted? California -- the bluest of blue states? They don't seem to want to pay more taxes, Mr. Powell. They don't want to be inclusive any more -- it's bankrupted them!

So which Americans want to pay more taxes? You mean the top 50 percent of workers who currently pay 97 percent of all federal income taxes? And, under Obama's cap-and-trade, health care and other monster-government plans, would pay more and more?

Americans do not want higher taxes and more government. They want liberty. The freedom to pursue their interests and live in the civil society without government dictating what kind of cars they must drive, what kind of toilets they must use, and which kinds of light bulbs are "legal".

The American free market and the concept of private property -- articulated by the Constitution -- these things make up the ultimate big tent. That is why the simple conservative principles represented by Ronald Reagan were so successful. The free market knows no racism; the truck driver does not know the skin color of the person who manufactured the boxes he carries; the airline pilot does not know the religion of those who manufactured his engine; nor does the entrepreneur know the gender of the person who shipped him raw goods.

The American free market is the most inclusive of all systems and this is what you, Powell, and your Democrat minions can't seem to comprehend.

You ask us to lose the traditions that made America the greatest country ever seen on the face of the Earth? You ask us to lose the principles and tenets of the Constitution?

This we will not do.

General, you are all about the Colin Powell brand. You don't care a whit about the Republican Party. You care only about the Learjet circles, the book tour circles, the cocktail circles in which you gladhand the elites.

You are a petty bureaucrat, who sat on critical information while Lewis Libby's name was dragged through the mud, knowing that your number two man -- Armitage -- was the source of the ridiculous Plame leak.

It's a synergistic relationship that you have with the mainstream media. The media uses Powell; and you use the media.

Your blueprint for inclusiveness is a sham. As are you. You're no more a Republican than Joe Biden or Chris Matthews.

So, good day, sir -- and don't let the door hit your backside on the way out.



With apologies to: Mark Levin, for many of the concepts herein. Linked by: STACLU. Thanks!

Half boy, half man


Phil sent this in:

Half boy, half man

The average age of the military man is 19 years. He is a short haired, tight-muscled kid who, under normal circumstances is considered by society as half man, half boy. Not yet dry behind the ears, not old enough to buy a beer, but old enough to die for his country. He never really cared much for work and he would rather wax his own car than wash his father's, but he has never collected unemployment either.

He's a recent high school graduate; he was probably an average student, pursued some form of sport activities, drives a ten-year old jalopy, and has a steady girlfriend that either broke up with him when he left, or swears to be waiting when he returns from half a world away. He listens to rock and roll or hip-hop or rap or jazz or swing and a 155mm howitzer.

He is 10 or 15 pounds lighter now than when he was at home because he is working or fighting from before dawn to well after dusk. He has trouble spelling, thus letter writing is a pain for him, but he can field strip a rifle in 30 seconds and reassemble it in less time in the dark. He can recite to you the nomenclature of a machine gun or grenade launcher and use either one effectively if he must.

He digs foxholes and latrines and can apply first aid like a professional.

He can march until he is told to stop, or stop until he is told to march.

He obeys orders instantly and without hesitation, but he is not without spirit or individual dignity. He is self-sufficient.

He has two sets of fatigues: he washes one and wears the other. He keeps his canteens full and his feet dry.

He sometimes forgets to brush his teeth, but never to clean his rifle. He can cook his own meals, mend his own clothes, and fix his own hurts.

If you're thirsty, he'll share his water with you; if you are hungry, his food. He'll even split his ammunition with you in the midst of battle when you run low.

He has learned to use his hands like weapons and weapons like they were his hands.

He can save your life - or take it, because that is his job.

He will often do twice the work of a civilian, draw half the pay, and still find ironic humor in it all.

He has seen more suffering and death than he should have in his short lifetime.

He has wept in public and in private, for friends who have fallen in combat and is unashamed.

He feels every note of the National Anthem vibrate through his body while at rigid attention, while tempering the burning desire to 'square-away? those around him who haven't bothered to stand, remove their hat, or even stop talking.

In an odd twist, day in and day out, far from home, he defends their right to be disrespectful.

Just as did his Father, Grandfather, and Great-grandfather, he is paying the price for our freedom. Beardless or not, he is not a boy... He is the American Fighting Man that has kept this country free for over 200 years.

He has asked nothing in return, except our friendship and understanding. Remember him, always, for he has earned our respect and admiration with his blood.

And now we even have women over there in danger, doing their part in this tradition of going to War when our nation calls us to do so.

As you go to bed tonight, remember this shot.

A short lull, a little shade and a picture of loved ones in their helmets.


Please stop for a moment and say a prayer for our ground troops in Afghanistan, sailors on ships, and airmen in the air, and for those in Iraq, Afghanistan and all foreign countries.

'Lord, hold our troops in your loving hands. Protect them as they protect us.
Bless them and their families for the selfless acts they perform for us in our time of need... Amen.'

Amen.



Linked by: Legal Insurrection. Thanks!

RED ALERT: Did anti-Obama campaign contributions dictate which Chrysler dealers were shuttered?


5/28/2009 Update 19:26 ET: Click here for the latest Dealergate post, which summarizes findings thus far.

5/27/2009 Update 19:26 ET: Click here for the latest Dealergate post, which shows statistical evidence that Chrysler dealers were shuttered on partisan grounds.

Critical Updates Below: Red State, American Thinker, Joey Smith and Reliapundit provide anecdotal and quantitative evidence that would appear to confirm a decided bias against dealers who donated to GOP causes or to anti-Obama Democrats.

Quote from an attorney who Deposed Chrysler's president last week: "It became clear to us that Chrysler does not see the wisdom of terminating 25 percent of its dealers... It really wasn't Chrysler's decision. They are under enormous pressure from the President's automotive task force."

Late night updates from Joey Smith and Thomas Lamb: Large Democrat Donor groups not only remain open in all locations, but have their competition eliminated... and/or can purchase for pennies on the dollar.

Stay tuned. More data crunching is underway.

A tipster alerted me to an interesting assertion. A cursory review by that person showed that many of the Chrysler dealers on the closing list were heavy Republican donors.

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.

Consider the partial list of Chrysler dealership owners, listed below. You'll notice that all were opponents of Barack Obama, most through sponsorship of GOP candidates and organizations, but a handful through Barack's Democrat rivals (Hillary Clinton and John Edwards in 2008, for example).

• Vernon G. Buchanan: $147,450 to GOP candidates and organizations
• Wallace D. Alley and Family: $4,500 to GOP.
• Robert Archer: $4,600 to GOP and conservative causes.
• Homer S. Higginbotham and Family: $2950 to GOP.
• James Auffenberg and Family: $28,000 to GOP; $6,000 to one Democrat candidate.
• Michael Maroone and Family: $60,000 to GOP; $8,500 to two Democrat candidates.
• Jerome Fader: $6,500 to Democrats; $2,500 to Independent Joe Lieberman.
• Stephen Fay and Family: $13,500 to GOP.
• William Numrich: $20,000 to GOP.
• Robert Carver: $10,000 to Democrats including $1,950 to Hillary Clinton, nothing to Barack Obama.

• Robert and Linda Rohrman: $24,000 to GOP.
• Frank Boucher, Jr. and Family: $18,000 to GOP, $1,000 to one Democrat candidate.
• Scott Bossier: $4,300 to GOP.
• Todd Reardon: $17,000 to GOP; $2,000 to one Democrat candidate.
• Russ Darrow and Family: $78,000 to GOP.
• Bradford Deery and Family: $24,700 to GOP.
• Charles Gabus and Family: $30,000 to GOP.
• Brian Smith: $15,500 to GOP.
• Michael Schlossman: $14,000 to GOP; $14,000 to three Democrats ($12,500 to Sen. Russ Feingold).
• Don Hill: $11,000 to GOP; $12,800 to conservative incumbent Rep. Heath Shuler.

• Don Miller: $2,000 to GOP; $1,000 to Feingold.
• Eddie Cordes: $2,150 to GOP.
• Robert Edwards: $1,100 to GOP.
• James Crowley: $19,100 to GOP.
• Stanley Graff: $2,200 to John Edwards (2008 Presidential Run); $500 to GOP.
• John Stewart: $10,500 to GOP.
• John Fitzgerald and Family: $4,600 to John McCain (2008); $2,000 to Hillary Clinton (2008); nothing to Barack Obama.
• William Churchill and Family: $3,500 to GOP.
• Thomas Ganley: $9.450 to GOP.
• Gary Miller: $20,000 to GOP.

• Kevin and Gene Beltz: $18,500 to GOP.
• Arthur Grayson: $14,000 to GOP.
• Eric Grubbs and Family: $26,000 to GOP.
• Michael Leep and Family: $19,500 to GOP; $4,800 to three Democrats including Sen. Evan Bayh.
• Harry Green, Jr.: $10,000 to GOP.
• Ronald Hoover: $5,250 to GOP.
• Ray Huffines and Family: $18,500 to GOP.
• John O. Stevenson: $1,500 to GOP.
• James Marsh: $8,200 to GOP.
• Max Pearson and Family: $112,000 to GOP.

I have thus far found only a single Obama donor (and a minor one at that: $200 from Jeffrey Hunter of Waco, Texas) on the closing list.

Chrysler claimed that its formula for determining whether a dealership should close or not included "sales volume, customer service scores, local market share and average household income in the immediate area."

In fact, there may have been other criteria involved: politics may have played a part. If this data can be validated, it would appear to be further proof that the Obama administration is willing to step over any line to advance its agenda.

It bodes poorly for America and the rule of law.


Update: Noteworthy comments from Cars.com's blogs:

As an employee of one of the affected dealerships... First, this isn't just Chrysler's decision. They were forced into bankruptcy by President Obama. When Chrysler emerges from bankruptcy the Federal Government will be a junior partner in the new Chrysler. This is SOCIALISM! Wake up people! 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. This is illegal!

This is so much more than "just business". This is about control and power by our present administration in Washington. An administration that will stop at nothing to bring complete Socialism to this once great country. Wake up people or get in line now to "drink the Kool-Aid".

I just saw on the list that my local dealership, Wilson Dodge is closing. This is very shocking to me since they are the oldest and most recognized Dodge, Chrysler, Jeep dealer in the metro. This is really sad because these are great people with excellent service...

...There was an interview on the news this evening with the owner of the dealership that is going to be closed in my area where I learned that the DCJ dealership they competed with in my area is factory owned. So, instead of closing their own, they choose to close a successful franchisee. That's #$@?ed up IMO! ...

Update II: Deseret News, 14 May 2009, "Chrysler dealership closures may hurt small-town economies":

"I've been around this forever, and there's no rhyme or reason," Fred Barber, owner of Barber Brothers Motors in Spanish Fork, said Thursday.

...Why were Barber's Chrysler dealership and nine others from Utah among the 789 dealerships nationwide singled out by Chrysler LLC, in bankruptcy-court filings, to be eliminated by June 9? Was there any rhyme or reason to why certain dealerships were selected and others not? What's next for the targeted dealerships, and what will be the ripple effects?

"This is as close to socialism as I've seen — we've got the government running the automotive industry," he added.

Jim Lunt, vice president of Lunt Motor Co. in Cedar City, said employees at his Main Street dealership are anxious, while the owners feel "abandoned."

"It's like they chopped out your legs," Lunt said. "We haven't looked at other manufacturers. We've stuck with Chrysler through thick and thin. You kind of feel like you've been thrown overboard."

Update III: APP, 18 May 2009, "Ousted Chrysler dealers prepare legal fight":

Michael Bernstein, an attorney with Arnold & Porter who represents the Chrysler National Dealer Council, said the dealers may offer a number of objections to the plan in U.S. bankruptcy court, and that the case will enter some uncharted legal territory.

...Bernstein said under bankruptcy law Chrysler would have to show how its "reasonable exercise of business judgment" led to the closing list. While the company cited a bevy of standards by which it chose dealerships, Bernstein said it was noteworthy that Chrysler didn't cite costs.

"There's no cost to Chrysler associated with dealers. Dealers are a source of revenue," Bernstein said. "A lot of people were surprised by the number of dealers Chrysler is proposing to reject..."

Update IV: For those who want to do a deeper dive, here are the lists of both sets of dealers: those who are being shuttered and those who remain open. I have not had time to investigate the latter list, but welcome any help!

AllPar: Chrysler Dealers to be cut and kept

Please email me with with any conclusions, even preliminary ones, which you can draw from this data.

Update V: Rick Moran observes, "Kind of puts George Joseph's letter we published a while back in a different light, doesn't it? Maybe it's not so mysterious a turn of events after all."

Update VI: Red State adds more anecdotal evidence.

Does Obama have a car dealer enemies list?

...There were too many things about the selection of dealerships to be closed that just didn’t add up. Some of the dealers chosen to be terminated were among the more successful outlets in the Chrysler dealership network, and many of them had been loyal Chrysler and Dodge agents who had maintained an excellent working relationship with the Detroit automaker for decades.

Some dealers who got a thumbs down from Obama’s automotive panel told compelling stories about their situations that raised doubts about the process of selecting them for closing. One example, a dealership in Alvin, Texas, had increased its new car sales by 50% in the first four months of 2009, while other MOPAR dealers’ sales were in the tank. Another in Melbourne, Florida, had, at Chrysler’s insistence, totally renovated its facility financed by incurring millions of dollars of debt in the form of a bank mortgage. The are just two of many stories which highlight the incongruities to be found on the list of dealerships not deemed worthy to remain in operation...

...Eric Dondero recognizes some of the dealers’ names on the hit list:

“Vern Buchanan is a Republican Congressman from the Tampa Bay area. Robert Archer is the son of former Republican Congressman Bill Archer. John Culberson, a libertarian-leaning Conservative, is now the Congressman for that West Houston District. He was heavily supported in his election efforts by the Archers Family.”

“Additionally, James Crowley, owner of a Chrysler Dealership in Escondido, California is on the list to be closed. Crowley is a big backer of libertarian-leaning Republican Cong. John Campbell of Orange County.”

The list is heavy with influential Republicans and libertarians. Another name on the list is Ray Huffines, who owns a large dealerhsip in the Metro-Dallas/Ft. Worth area. The Huffines family have been major contributors to Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) over the years...

Update VII: Joey Smith, who I must credit with a huge amount of work with the OpenSecrets campaign contribution database, writes:

...I have not analyzed the data from the dealerships that will remain open, but 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.

Update VIII: Reliapundit points us to a Reuters article that would seem to confirm the political nature of the closings.

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."

Update IX: Joey Smith reported tonight that a Democratic donor group in the Midwest and South will not have to close any of their Chrysler dealerships... and their competition was gutted.

The company is called RLJ-McLarty-Landers, and it operates six Chrysler dealerships throughout the South. All six dealerships are safe from closing. The dealer locations are: Bentonville, AR (northwest Arkansas); Lee's Summit, MO (south of Kansas City, MO); Branson, MO; Olathe, KS (near Kansas City); Bossier City, LA (near Shreveport); Huntsville, AL...

The interesting part is who the three main owners of the company are. The owners are Steve Landers (long-time car dealer, 4th-generation dealer), Thomas "Mack" McLarty (former Chief of Staff for President Clinton), and Robert Johnson (founder of Black Entertainment Television and co-owner of the NBA's Charlotte Bobcats). Landers has given money to Republicans in the past, but McLarty campaigned for Obama in 2008, and Johnson has given countless amounts of money to Democrats over the years...

...So far, RLJ-McCarty-Landers will have 8 competing dealerships total[ly] eliminated from 3 of their markets: Lee's Summit, MO; Branson, MO; and Bossier City, LA. I'm willing to bet that the other 3 markets that they serve are similar in nature.

Thomas Lamb writes:

Look into the 32 minority dealerships that were closed and what Maxine Waters had to say.

In one case, you will find the biggest minority dealer in the U.S. being bought up by Democrat donor Gillet out of Vail Colorado.



Hat tip: Bob. Linked by: Ace o' Spades, Gateway Pundit, The Anchoress, Conservative Grapevine, Be John Galt, Bookworm Room, Memeorandum, NewsMax (Ken Timmerman), Protein Wisdom, Say Anything, American Digest, TigerHawk, Atlas, Pat Dollard, Prairie Pundit, The Real Revo, TCOT Report and Nice Deb. Thanks!

Larwyn's Linx: The useless, serial leaker -- Colin Powell

Have a great link you'd like me to review? Drop me an email!

Nation

Memorial Day Message 2009: USBA
On offense, Cheney scores points: Times
The useless, serial leaker Colin Powell: Greenroom

Father-son team raping New York taxpayers: AT (Lasky)
Obama gets schooled on terror: Goodwin
Americans want checks on Obama's Ambitions: HumEv

Who wrote Dreams and why it matters: AT (Cashill)
Bipartisan Team to Destroy Sanctity of Contracts: AT (Lifson)
CAFE sows seeds of U.S. auto industry's destruction: HC

UC Irvine Endorses a New Holocaust: Vicious
Tax the Rich: Charlie Foxtrot
Detroit official's creative method to evade taxes: BlogProf

World

Obama gives Iran time it needs to build nukes: Telegraph
Muslim migrants riot in Athens: Age
Norway's Hydrogen Highway: World

The truth about the Atomic Bomb: Eject Eject Eject
Hitler's European Holocaust Helpers: Spiegel
Planet Obama: Where Hitler spoke Austrian and Churchill didn't torture: AT (Lifson)

Long fight ahead in Swat Valley: National (UAE)
Obama seeks to divide Jerusalem: IsrMat
Now I'm worried about nukes: Surber

Climate

Moonbats sign petition to ban H2O: Moonbattery

Media

Violating "internal controls" at the New York Times: Tiger
Double-speak and the Economy: AT (Anderson)
Is it okay for liberals...: BMW

What the LA Times talks about... and doesn't talk about: Patterico
Newsweek Boob: Iran's Not a Dictatorship, Doesn't Want Nukes: JWF
Gingrich crushes Little Dick Durbin on Meet the Press: MTP (Transcript)

Cornucopia

25 Sites to Download Royalty-Free Stock Photos and Textures: BlueBlots
Flexibility: Ross Sisters Performance from 1944: IZI

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