What happens when you combine conspiracy theories and right wing idiocy?

[ck4829]

Right-wing bloggers were abuzz last week with news of a conspiracy du jour -- that the Obama administration is deliberately targeting Chrysler dealers for closure whose owners have donated to Republican candidates.

Loath to ignore any opportunity to smear President Obama, the ConWeb was quick to jump on the conspiracy. But even as they reported evidence that debunked the claim, they clung to it anyway.

Newsmax's Ken Timmerman appeared to embrace the conspiracy in a May 27 article -- "Many of the closed dealers were also major donors to Republican candidates and political action committees, a review of campaign finance data from the Federal Election Commission shows" -- but it's not until the latter half of his article that he divulges a major debunking fact:

"Auto-dealers as an industry tend to give more to Republican causes than to Democrats, according to an analysis done by Center for Responsive Politics, a nonprofit organization that compiles FEC data and operates the Open Secrets Web site."

That's right -- the reason it seems that more Republican-supporting Chrysler dealers are losing their franchises is because car dealers as a whole tend to support Republicans. Timmerman offered no evidence that Chrysler dealers losing their franchises are any more or less Republican than that of auto dealers as a whole.

http://conwebwatch.tripod.com/stories/2009/chrysler.html

[waiting for hope]

1. Olbermann had a pretty good take

on this:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036677/

[hughee99]

2. When my brother brought this up the other day...

I asked exactly this question. If a vast majority of the all the dealers are repukes, then a vast majority of the closed dealerships would be owned by repukes. I didn't know that this was the case, but that was the first question I asked. I know 3 people who own dealerships in my area (none Chrysler) and all are hardcore repukes.

[Gman]

3. I don't know any car dealers that are NOT Republics

including their Glen Beck-like alcoholic, coke snortin' salesmen.

[Indenturedebtor]

5. I was once a car salesman. What's your profession so I can insult you?

Not everyone can find cures for cancer, or save babies from burning buildings.

[Gman]

6. With apologies to those car salesmen and women that are not alcoholics

drug addicts, provide for their families and in general try to be good and decent human beings such as youself. And there are a lot of them. But I think you know the breed I'm referring to. Sorry to have used such a broad brush.

[Indenturedebtor]

8. It's ok.. and I am somewhat of an alcoholic haha n/t

[gratuitous]

4. Comedy?

The only thing unsettling about it is the respectful hearing even the looniest of these pronouncements get from the major media.

[TexasObserver]

7. The Dealerships are being closed by Chrysler, not Obama!

THAT is the point that needs to be made in response to this latest attack.

A privately owned GERMAN company, Chrysler, is merging with an ITALIAN company, Fiat, and they are deciding which dealerships to close. The very notion that Obama has anything to do with such closures is absurd, and that is what should be said over and over to these rightwing propaganda agents.

It is not surprising that many such dealers give to the GOP. The same is true of GM dealership owners and Ford dealership owners. The question that needs to be asked is: Why are these dealers supporting the GOP, when the GOP made it clear repeatedly the last few months that they oppose any auto bailout?