A DODGE DEALER¹S PERSPECTIVE May 22, 2009 As a loyal and successful Dodge Dealer for over 22 years it is not a big surprise that given the current economy, the marketplace may not support the number of Dealers presently representing Chrysler Corporation products. However, the methodology Chrysler Corporation is attempting to utilize to reduce its Dealer body is unlawful, unconstitutional, un-American and grossly unfair. What Chrysler Corporation is attempting to do, under President Obama¹s direction, is to use the United States Bankruptcy Court in New York to terminate 789 Dodge Chrysler Dealer Franchise Agreements, arbitrarily, capriciously, and without due process of law. The so called ³criteria² establishing which Dealers will be terminated is seriously flawed and ³non-transparent². Many of the Dodge/Chrysler Dealers are profitable, employ many quality employees, support their communities and provide the necessary competition to insure that customers receive competitively priced vehicles. By reducing the number of automobile Dealers you are certain to reduce competition and the undesired effect will be the increased prices that Americans will ultimately pay for the price of a car. Additionally, Chrysler is proposing to take away my franchise without compensating me for its value. I have invested millions of dollars to acquire the Dodge franchise, the Dealership facility and the real estate. Chrysler proposes to transfer my franchise and all the goodwill I created over a 22 year span to a Chrysler competitor, across the street, free of charge, without compensating me one cent. This is occurring despite my Tamaroff Dodge Dealership continuously achieving high sales, high customer satisfaction index ratings, a 5-star Dealer status (Chrysler¹s highest achievement award), and over 22 years having built a loyal and satisfied customer base. It is like ³Crystal Night² in Nazi Germany in 1938, but instead of the Nazis seizing ³private property² without due process of law and compensation, Chrysler and President Obama are using the power of a Federal Bankruptcy Judge to trample and run roughshod over the rights of 789 Dodge/Chrysler Dealers. By using the power and governmental action of the Federal Bankruptcy Court, Chrysler and President Obama are purposely avoiding all state laws and some federal laws which were specifically designed by lawmakers to protect the Dealer from the overwhelming power of the manufacturer. Furthermore, where is the due process for an unconstitutional taking of my franchise rights without just compensation? My fellow Americans, I am a WWII veteran and former P.O.W. who risked my life for our country to defeat National Socialism and Hitler¹s tyrannical Nazi regime. Never in my entire 82 years (50 years as an auto dealer and mechanical engineer) would I have anticipated the President of the United States and an appointed Federal Bankruptcy Judge trampling on my rights, seizing my property and potentially causing me to go into bankruptcy and in the process acting as instruments of FACISM. President Obama, is this the change you promised the American people? Where is the transparency you promised on the campaign trial? To add insult to injury, Chrysler Corporation, at this date, will not buy back any of the Dealers¹ new car inventory; inventory they pushed on the Dealers in the last 90 days threatening them that if they did not purchase the cars from Chrysler they would be remembered come ³termination day.² Finally, the worst point about this ³Executive Branch sponsored taking² is the painful effect of laying off our people, many of whom have been with our company since the beginning. They are like family. It is like throwing your kids out on the street, with no job, no money, and no health care. It is a heartbreaking experience for the employees, their families and for me. Recently, President Obama made a public statement that he is standing by the Dealers . . . Yes, he is standing on their graves. Where is his leadership and foresight as he rushes to accomplish his agenda at the expense of 789 Dodge/Chrysler Dealers and their employees? President Obama and the Obama administration are directly responsible for orchestrating this ill conceived plan. My fellow Americans, WAKE UP before you lose your livelihood and private property without just compensation. If the Executive Branch and Judicial Branch can successfully complete this illegal seizure of property and transfer of wealth from one Dealer to another, then is any American¹s private property safe from unlawful government seizure? As the great Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher once said, ³The problem with socialism is sooner or later you run out of the other guy¹s money.² God Bless our Constitution, our Bill of Rights, and Our Great Country. Marvin M. Tamaroff
Once again, the pitfalls of capitalism hit home. The 22 years of successful and remunerative operations seems to overwhelm the few months of financial disaster. The legality, morality, and justice might be debated (and will be so, endlessly) but the same bankruptcy laws Big Auto is using are also available to the little guy in the event that the laws of supply and demand don't get repealed. It is a damn shame that Tameroff's "family" is getting smacked around like the rest of us. For them, I feel some sympathy, but I can't help wondering how many of them voted for zero. Also, I wonder how many of the family were ants, and how many were grasshoppers.
We don't get the same banktrupcy laws. They rewrote them a 3 years ago so that the average Joe can not dump all their obligations--per the banks directions. Second, they aren't following banktrupcy since the UAW, an unsecured creditor, went before the secured bond holders. they aren't following the law.
