Welcome Back, My Friends . . . NE AG in Car Dealers' Pockets

Robert Farago
by Robert Farago

Earlier today, we reported that Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning was mounting a legal challenge to GM’s dealer cull via anti-trust regulations. I pointed out that Bruning’s zeal probably had a little something to do with GM and ChryCo car dealers in his patch. A bit of Googling adds the words “and how” to that supposition. Campaignmoney.com lists contributions to the “Friends of Jon Bruning” Political Action Committee. It has to be said: Jon’s not lacking for friends in the car biz. Number two on the list: Craig “Ugliest Web Site in History” Cox of Cox Chevrolet. Baxter Chrysler Jeep Dodge clocks-in at number six. A diligent member of our B&B points out that many of the “homemakers” on the list are attributed to “Anderson.” Talton “Tal” Anderson and his family own a slew of dealerships in NE and western IA, and AZ (and maybe elsewhere). Over on opensecrets.org, we learn that Jon Bruning is number 11 on the list of top recipients of car dealer contributions. Hey! Hillary’s number one! And there’s Joe Biden! Say it ain’t so, Joe! Anyway, nothing illegal here. But it helps to have a scorecard to know why the playa is playin’.

Robert Farago
Robert Farago

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  • Taxman100 Taxman100 on Jun 18, 2009

    So Obama selling everyone out to save the UAW has nothing to do with their political support of him?

  • Johnthacker Johnthacker on Jun 18, 2009
    You might wonder why there are so many contributors listed as “homemaker” on the PAC’s list, but I couldn’t possibly comment. Ah, House of Cards and Francis Urquhart. "You might very well think that; I couldn't possibly comment."
  • Ruckover Ruckover on Jun 18, 2009

    taxman, there are now about 500,00 UAW members, right? Obama received just under 70,000,000 votes. Do you think a president who will run again would alienate 70 million voters just to placate half a million UAW members? Perhaps, just perhaps, Obama and Bush thought that the hit on our economy would be catastrophic if GM and Chrysler went under quickly. They both might well be wrong. Perhaps a freefall into chapter 7 would have been the best thing, but perhaps, the two presidents were trying to do something positive for the country as a whole. Not every action is nefarious. Sometimes people just see things differently.

  • Angrystan Angrystan on Jun 19, 2009

    "The Texas AG announced last week that he too will bring a suit against GM’s plan." All I see coming out of this is the reopening of Jamestown and the closure of Arlington. If the corruption in Texas no longer works, exactly zero reasons exist to do business there. "So Obama selling everyone out to save the UAW has nothing to do with their political support of him?" Everyone save the people who live in the communities and states with a large industrial presence, the other businesses and services in those areas, and the tax base of the same areas. Perhaps 30% unemployment, triggering the CDS gambit payoffs, and the widespread elimination of the country's capacity for manufacturing and war at a profoundly greater cost would be good under some rationale. Somehow, I do not fully comprehend the point.

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