Tuesday, March 31, 2009

GM Illustrates One Way Street

Politico reports:

Under ousted chief executive Rick Wagoner, General Motors and its political action committee gave twice as much to Republicans as they did to Democrats.

From 2000, when Wagoner took over the Detroit-based auto-maker, through the end of last year, GM and its PAC contributed $1.7 million to Republican candidates and committees, compared only $815,000 to Democratic ones, according to a POLITICO analysis of Federal Election Commission and Internal Revenue Service records.

That balance skews slightly more towards the GOP than the political giving of the auto industry as a whole. Since 2000, the industry has given about 62 percent of its contributions to Republicans, according to an analysis by the non-partisan Center for Responsive Politics.

On the flip side, auto unions have titled their giving heavily to Democrats.

Just one observation here on top of all the other GM discussion from earlier today.  Though the stereotype says that Republicans are the party supported by most CEOs and big corporate execs, the reality is that most rich corporate execs are actually Democrats.  As such, the GOP needs all the help it can get when it comes to executive support in big business.  Unfortunately, Wagoner -- one of the few CEOs who is actually more favorably disposed toward GOP contributions -- is now history.  Aside from the obvious constitutional failings of allowing this to move forward, what did Wagoner's years of support -- and big money -- buy him when it came to crunch time from the GOP?  Absolutely nothing.  I don't recall hearing a single Republican defending him or GM.

So, let's all think how likely other CEOs and execs are going to be to keep supporting GOP candidates when those same GOP candidates refuse to stand up for free enterprise and private industry, especially when the Democrats in government are openly hostile to those same few GOP-supporting execs?

Exactly.  It's a double whammy for the GOP.

So, we see here another logical conclusion to compromising on core principles.  It's never, ever worth it.  Too bad the idiots in the GOP can't seem to figure that out.

There's my two cents.

No comments: