~ Obama Ignoring the ‘Flawed’ U.S. Constitution: Confiscating Private Property – Chrysler Dealerships – Without Due Process (Updated)

“I think it is an imperfect document, and I think it is a document that reflects some deep flaws.” 
– Barack Obama on the United States Constitution, including the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments, (Sept. 2001).

If you establish the premise that the Constitution you’ve sworn to preserve, protect and defend is “fundamentally flawed,” you can get away with just about anything.  President Barack Obama seems to be living proof of that. 

In another overt example of Obama’s “change,” it seems that, at least in the private business sector, certain protections are being thrown out the window for the sake of expediency, disdain for the rights of private citizens, or contempt for the specificity of the U.S. Constitution.

Maybe all three.

From Reuters, May 26 - Plan to ax dealers not Chrysler’s decision – lawyer :

Chrysler notified its dealers this month it plans to eliminate 25 percent of its retail showrooms and is seeking permission from a U.S. bankruptcy judge to terminate franchise agreements with 789 of 3,181 dealers as of June 9. [skip]

But  ”it became clear to us that Chrysler does not see the wisdom of terminating 25 percent of its dealers,” [Lawyer Leonard] Bellavia said.  “It really wasn’t Chrysler’s decision.  They are under enormous pressure from the President’s automotive task force.” [skip]

Dealers argue closing dealerships will devastate local communities, with some 50,000 direct job losses nationwide, and as many as 200,000 indirect job losses.  Part of their legal argument rests on the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which guarantees due process before government can take away a person’s property.  “We feel there has been a denial of constitutional due-process rights,” Bellavia said.

“I think it’s unconstitutional,” said Jim Anderer, owner of Island Jeep in Lindenhurst, New York. “The Fifth Amendment clearly states you cannot take another person’s property without due process or compensation.  Even in eminent domain, there is an appraised price on the property being taken by the state.” 

Anderer said he has been in business for 22 years and employs 48 workers.  He intends to fight the plan.  “My business is being stolen from me under the guise of the bankruptcy laws, given to another dealer down the street,” Anderer said.  [emphasis added]

Add to this the growing suspicion (which I have to admit, I began to wonder about since the moment the closings were announced) that the selection of Chrysler dealerships to be closed would somehow be discovered to be politically motivated, and you have the seeds of something insidious being planted right before our eyes.  When you consider that it’s being claimed that the “decision about cutting dealers took into consideration factors like location, customer satisfaction, and sales potential,” and then try to reconcile that statement with the realities that a) some of the dealerships being closed have been more profitable than those being kept, and b) “… of those who contributed to political campaigns, every single one had donated almost exclusively to GOP candidates,” according to Doug Ross  – well, the preliminary evidence doesn’t seem to support Chrysler’s official statement.

Doug is careful to point out his investigation is in the early stages:  “What we ask is:  does it seem odd that the list of closed dealerships appears to have contributed a grand total of $200 to Barack Obama and millions to GOP candidates/causes?”

Personally, I have always been loathe to embrace conspiracy theories of any sort — but the Obama administration is really testing me here.  I would normally be quick to dismiss this type of story, but Obama’s own statements and actions clearly fly in the face of tradition, as evidenced by his government invasion into the private and business sectors, his desire to bring from-the-ground-up-change, his claim that our Constitution, which prevents much of what he is attempting to do, is “fundamentally flawed,” and his intention to use the Supreme Court to fix what’s flawed about it (more on this in a future post).

My assessment is that he perceives those flaws to be the license he needs to arbitrarily ignore parts of the United States Constitution, violate them and ultimately, rewrite it.

– RB Stratford

Related Posts:

Joey Smith:  Chrysler Dealership Campaign Donation Information
American Thinker:  More evidence emerges that Chrysler Dealer closings was politically motivated
Red State:  Does Obama have a car dealer enemies list?
Gateway Pundit:  Shock! Big Dem Donor Group Allowed to Keep Their 6 Chrysler Dealerships Open …Update: Their Local Competitors Eliminated!!
Michelle Malkin:  A look at the protected Chrysler dealerships
Red State:  The other list: It gets worse

UPDATE:  I’m still monitoring the developing information on this Chrysler dealership thing, while reserving my final assessment of the situation. 

More Links:

Hot Air:  Hmmm: Chrysler dealers shut down in Obama bankruptcy are mostly Republican? 
Patterico’s Pontifications:  Obama Administration Closing Down Dealerships That Donated to the GOP??
Q and O:  Closing Dealerships Via Barack-Foolery?
Michelle Malkin:  Be careful with Chrysler closure “hit list” claims
Gateway Pundit:  More On Chrysler Closings– Did Team Obama Target Red Counties?
Gateway Pundit:  Even GOP Congressman Loses Chrysler Dealership …Plus Peoria GOP Supporter Losing “5 Star” Business
Red State:  Dancing with the Dealers 3: Targeting GOP Districts
Gateway Pundit:  After Weeding Out GOP-Linked Dealers, Chrysler Looking To Open New Dealerships

And More Links, 5/28

Michelle Malkin:  Dealergate and the MSM
Washington Examiner:  Is Obama closing GOP-leaning car dealers?
Washington Examiner:  Furor grows over partisan car dealer closings
Gateway Pundit:  Hope & Change– Car Czar Behind Chrysler Closings Married to Former Dem Party Leader
Washington Monthly:  THERE IS NO CAR-DEALER CONSPIRACY
Strata-Sphere:  Obama’s “Dealergate” Scandal Needs Investigation
TownHall:  Chrysler Dealership Closings Target Republicans
Fire Andrea Mitchell!:   Which Chrysler dealerships got shut down? Heavy GOP donors! – Big Obama donors keep their dealerships… WTF is going on here?
Nice Deb:  Dealergate: Additional Research Shows Closing Bias

Red State:  Dealergate Update: What we have so far - 5/29
The Other McCain:  What DealerGate Says About the Conservative ‘Message’ Problem - 5/29
Red State:  Dealergate 6: The Clinton Factor - 6/2
Red State:   Dealergate 7: Why were top-performing dealers closed?  6/5
Red State:  Dealergate 8: Look who’s concerned now  6/6
Red State:  Dealergate 9: Questioning the ‘auto task force tyrants’  6/7
RedState:  Dealergate 10: The cost of closing dealers  6/9
Michelle Malkin:  Dealergate continued: More on Chrysler and Clinton cronyism 6/9
Nice Deb:  Latest On Dealergate: Bipartisan Demand For Transparency 6/10

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