GOPUSA ILLINOIS Daily Clips - November 21, 2008

GOPUSA ILLINOIS Daily Clips - November 21, 2008

DIERSEN QUESTION: Foreign countries, foreign organizations, and foreign people always put their own interests ahead of America's interests. Outrageously, ever increasingly, foreign countries, foreign organizations, and foreign people and their operatives are taking control of America. Success that foreigners are having in taking control of America's automotive industry is just one example. Why aren't Americans speaking out against this?

ILLINOIS REVIEW
-- Paul Caprio declares war on Senate Republicans who elected Radogno - Fran Eaton
http://illinoisreview.typepad.com/illinoisreview/2008/11/caprio-declares.html
-- McKenna congratulates Radogno - Fran Eaton
http://illinoisreview.typepad.com/illinoisreview/2008/11/mckenna-congrat.html

CHICAGO TRIBUNE & CHICAGO SUN-TIMES & SOUTHTOWN STAR
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: The anti-Republican anti-conservative anti-religious Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times, and Southtown Star gush over Radogno. What does that say about Radogno and what does that say about the twelve who voted for her?
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-1121edit1nov21,0,3599851.story
http://www.suntimes.com/news/commentary/1291624,CST-EDT-edit21b.article
http://www.southtownstar.com/news/opinion/editorials/1291562,112108edit.article

WINDY CITY TIMES
-- JANUARY 30, 2008 FLASHBACK: Christine Radogno: A Progressive Republican - Andrew Davis
http://www.wctimes.com/gay/lesbian/news/ARTICLE.php?AID=17367

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
-- Republican leader Frank Watson returns to Illinois Senate - Ray Long
http://newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/clout_st/2008/11/republican-lead.html
-- New push for construction Cullerton, Radogno throw support to statewide program - Ray Long
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-new-senate-leadership-21nov21,0,4491214.story
-- FROM THE ARTICLE: Jarrett has been a director along with former Republican Gov. James Thompson at Navigant Consulting, an international consulting firm that has contracts worth about $2 million a year with the state. "She brings - aside from common sense and integrity - a wealth of contacts in the Chicago community," Thompson said.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-obama-jarrett21nov21,0,7075788.story
-- Obama picks tend to fit the Bill (CLINTON) Hillary Clinton, former staffers up for top jobs - Christi Parsons and Peter Nicholas
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-clintonistas_frinov21,0,2743526.story
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: The countries, organizations, and people that have always done everything they could to destroy America's automotive industry and will continue to do everything they can to destroy America's automotive industry are overjoyed that George Will wants General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler to go bankrupt.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-oped1121willnov21,0,6725196.story
-- Wheaton: Timeless suburb ages gracefully - Leslie Mann
http://www.chicagotribune.com/classified/realestate/communities/chi-wheaton-profile_chomes_1121_nov21,0,6690367.story
-- Foes protest proposed College of DuPage policy book revisions Dispute is latest turmoil in school's public drama - Ted Gregory
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-cod-21-nov21,0,360902.story

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
-- Preparing for last days, Robert Novak looks back - Barbara Matusow
http://www.suntimes.com/news/otherviews/1291548,CST-EDT-open21.article
-- Legislature OKs $90 million for horse-racing industry - Dave McKinney (FROM THE ARTICLE: "I do have fundamental problems with taking from one industry and giving to another when they haven't been able to connect with the public," said Rep. Jim Durkin (R-Westchester) who voted against the plan.)
http://www.suntimes.com/news/politics/1291696,CST-NWS-leg21.article
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: Countries, organizations, and people that drove the stock market down to elect Obama agree with Terry Savage that the "global economy is too big for governments to control"
http://www.suntimes.com/business/1292018,terry_fake112108.article
-- For many CEOs, private jets the only way to fly - AP
http://www.suntimes.com/business/1291702,CST-FIN-jets21.article
-- Mexican emigration drops 42 percent
http://www.suntimes.com/news/world/1291757,CST-NWS-mex21.article

DAILY HERALD
-- FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD IN DUPAGE EDITION: DIERSEN HEADLINE: College of DuPage Trustees David Carlin and Kory Atkinson defend proposed policy changes
http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=252682&src=2

BEACON NEWS
-- Cross re-elected as GOP House leader
http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/beaconnews/news/1292101,2_1_AU21_CROSS_S1.article

HERALD NEWS
-- Radogno to lead GOP Senators - Nathaniel Zimmerman
http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/heraldnews/news/1291690,4_1_JO21_RADOGNO_S1.article
(THE ARTICLE: SPRINGFIELD -- Illinois Senate Republicans voted by secret ballot to name Sen. Christine Radogno, of Lemont, as their leader during a closed-door session Wednesday night. Her victory is sure to hearten GOP moderates and irk social conservatives outside the Senate, but it would not seem to signify a major ideological shift among her colleagues, who generally are to her right. Though she can claim to be a fiscal conservative, Radogno also is an abortion rights supporter who has backed measures to prevent discrimination based on sexual orientation. Recently, she has served as the Senate Republicans' budget negotiator. Radogno was not immediately available for comment. The voting concluded about 9 p.m. No doubt her job will not be an easy one. Republicans are a 37-22 minority in the Senate. Time will tell if running more candidates cut from the same cloth as Radogno can change that. A 12-year veteran of the Senate, Radogno beat out Sen. Kirk Dillard of Hinsdale, who going into the vote appeared to be her main competitor. Dillard did not endear himself to his party when he praised Barack Obama in an Obama campaign commercial during this year's primary election. But some conservative activists still considered him more palatable than Radogno. Family PAC, a major campaign donor to conservative candidates throughout the years, made thousands of automated phone calls to constituents of five senators - all conservatives, most in solidly Republican districts - in an attempt to persuade them to not vote for Radogno. One of the organization's leaders, Paul Caprio, sent a letter to Senate Republicans opposing Radogno's candidacy. Other social-conservative groups did the same. To vote for Radogno is "to spit at the pro-family movement," Caprio said hours before her selection. "She is the extreme left-wing maverick of the caucus." Caprio said he could not understand why the vote appeared close ahead of the gathering, with social conservatives apparently backing Radogno. Radogno's ascension means that moderates now lead the Republicans in both the Senate and the House, where Rep. Tom Cross, of Oswego, is the minority leader.)

NAPERVILLE SUN
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: College of DuPage Trustees David Carlin and Kory Atkinson defend proposed policy changes
http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/napervillesun/news/1292028,6_1_NA21_PROTEST_S1.article

ST. LOUIS POST DISPATCH
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: St. Louis Post Dispatch demonizes and denigrates the American automotive industry
http://www.stltoday.com/blogzone/the-platform/published-editorials/2008/11/saving-the-auto-industry-from-itself/

BLOOMINGTON PANTAGRAPH
-- State Senate's outgoing GOP leader Frank Watson makes emotional return to Capitol - Mike Riopell
http://www.pantagraph.com/articles/2008/11/20/news/doc4925a016855c2711660144.txt

SPRINGFIELD STATE JOURNAL REGISTER
-- AS THE DEMOCRAT PARTY'S STRANGLEHOLD TIGHTENS ON AMERICA AND ON ILLINOIS: Illinois unemployment rate rises to 7.3 percent - Tim Landis
http://www.sj-r.com/news/x776454250/Illinois-unemployment-rate-rises-to-7-3-percent
-- For now, conservatism a philosophy without a party "Conservatives think the election results prove that conservatism is in trouble. Actually, conservatism is fine. It’s the Republican Party that’s in trouble." - Ted Rall
http://www.sj-r.com/opinions/x1751724626/Ted-Rall-For-now-conservatism-a-philosophy-without-a-party
-- Genius, thy name is President-elect Barack Obama - Ann Coulter
http://www.sj-r.com/opinions/x1720663082/Ann-Coulter-Genius-thy-name-is-President-elect-Barack-Obama

PIONEER LOCAL
-- Proud of Iberle and other veterans - Nancy J. Thorner, Lake Bluff
http://www.pioneerlocal.com/lakeforest/news/forum/1286164,Lf-letters-112008-s1.article

CHICAGO PUBLIC RADIO
-- What Will Obama Do With Fitzgerald? - Rob Wildeboer
http://www.wbez.org/Content.aspx?audioID=30350

NBC5
-- Fowl Video: Turkeys Killed While Palin Talks
http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/us_world/NATLParty_fowl-Palins-Turkey-Pardon-Turns-Bloody-.html

CBS2
-- Mike Flannery And Other Obama Advisers To The Public: Temper Expectations
http://cbs2chicago.com/local/Obama.advisers.expecations.2.869896.html (Includes video clip)

WGIL & WEEK
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: WGIL & WEEK stress the fact that Radogno is a female and that the twelve who voted for her voted for a female
http://www.wgil.com/localnews.php?xnewsaction=fullnews&newsarch=112008&newsid=192
http://www.week.com/news/local/34840649.html

AMERICANS FOR TRUTH
-- President-Elect Obama Lays Out Pro-Gay Agenda - Peter LaBarbera
http://americansfortruth.com/news/president-elect-obama-lays-out-pro-gay-agenda.html

TOM ROESER
-- Why Would Hillary Take Secretary of State? The Logical Question for Dan Hynes that was Unasked During the Carol Marin Interview. The “Sun-Times” is Nothing More than a Dirty-Mouthed Sheet.
http://www.tomroeser.com/blogs/blogview.asp?blogID=24823

CHAMPION NEWS
-- Moving beyond post-election blues - Nancy J. Thorner, Precinct Committeeman, Lake County, Illinois
http://championnews.net/article.php?sid=1437

REPUBLICANS FOR FAIR MEDIA
-- The Mainstream Media and the Cult of Obama: A Threat to American Democracy - An Open Letter to the Washington Post - Daniel T. Zanoza
http://rffm.typepad.com/republicans_for_fair_medi/2008/11/the-mainstream-media-and-the-cult-of-obama-a-threat-to-american-democracy.html

TOWNHALL
-- More Trouble Outside the White House Than In - Sandy Rios
http://townhall.com/Columnists/SandyRios/2008/11/20/more_trouble_outside_the_white_house_than_in

GOPUSA
-- The eHarmony Shakedown - Michelle Malkin
http://www.gopusa.com/commentary/mmalkin/2008/mm_11211.shtml

FOX NEWS CHANNEL
-- VIDEO CLIP: Roskam grills auto execs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxTv6nOLAdA

ABC NEWS
-- VIDEO CLIP: ABC Nightly News Auto Bailout Story - Peter Roskam
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lm1hV0TprcA

CNN
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: Those countries, organizations, politicians, and people who hate America, who hate Americans, and who especially hate anyone who ever had anything to do with the American automotive industry are overjoyed about a new report that concludes that "U.S. power, influence will decline in future." How soon will these America haters call for the immediate destruction of all American nameplate vehicles and for the immediate imprisonment of anyone who ever had anything to do with the American automotive industry?
http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/11/20/global.trends.report/

THE HILL
-- Democrats to Big Three: “Get act together” - Jared Allen
http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/dems-to-big-three-get-act-together-2008-11-20.html

WASHINGTON TIMES
-- Educating the Obama girls The good, the bad and the less fortunate - Deborah Simmons (DIERSEN: One thing America can count on is that no matter what school they attend, the Obama girls will be taught that old white conservative American males who drive American nameplate vehicles caused all the world's past, present, and future problems.)
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/nov/21/educating-the-obama-girls/

WASHINGTON POST
-- Conservative Federalist Society Can Expect Its Status to Shrink - Robert Barnes
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/20/AR2008112003460.html

WALL STREET JOURNAL & USA TODAY & LOS ANGELES TIMES
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: The countries, organizations, and people that wanted Obama to win drove the stock market down to elect him. The countries, organizations, and people that wanted Obama to win were successful. So why do they continue to drive the stock market down? Maybe they aren't driving the stock down anymore. Maybe its those who saved for retirement who are panicking and telling their brokers to SELL. Either way, pretty soon Obama will not have any "wealth" to spread around anymore. Diersen hopes that soon, Obama will direct those countries, organizations, and people that elected him to drive the stock make back up again and keep it up.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122721278056345271.html
http://www.usatoday.com/money/markets/2008-11-20-stocks-thursday_N.htm
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/front/la-fi-markets21-2008nov21,0,1940966.story

ACCURACY IN MEDIA
-- Wall Street and the Rise of Obama - Cliff Kincaid (FROM THE ARTICLE: Joe Biden made headlines by talking about a “generated crisis” for President Obama. But is the current financial meltdown another “generated crisis?” Why did this crisis suddenly occur only six weeks before the election? Is it just a coincidence that it occurred at a time when John McCain was leading in the national public opinion polls and appeared to be on his way to a November 4 election victory? “If it were not for the financial crisis,” commented Byron York of National Review, “McCain might have won” the election. It was the financial mess - not Obama’s massive advantage in campaign spending and a sympathetic media - that really hurt McCain.)
http://www.aim.org/aim-report/wall-street-and-the-rise-of-obama/

WALL STREET JOURNAL
-- South Could Gain as Detroit Struggles Foreign Auto Makers, Drawn to Region's Nonunion Labor, Are Poised to Reshape U.S. Car Industry - Paulo Prada and Dan Fitzpatrick
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122714059184542693.html

SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: David Sirota is mad at the Democrats for spending trillions to bail out Wall Street rather than spending trillions to provide free heath care to anyone who wants it
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/11/20/ED9C148S1E.DTL

BLOOMBERG
-- Obama Team Said to Explore "Prepack" Auto Bankruptcy - Linda Sandler and Jeff Green
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=adYuNmHciHJQ&refer=home

CANADIAN DIVER & MARKET WATCH & CAR & DRIVER
-- DIERSEN HEADLINE: In 15 of the 27 years that Car and Driver magazine has selected the "10 Best" cars sold in America, including this year, Corvette made the list!
http://www.canadiandriver.com/thenews/2008/11/20/car-and-driver-announces-ten-best-for-2009.htm
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/Car-Driver-Announces-10Best-Cars/story.aspx?guid=%7B28719AFD-29C6-477C-A4AF-30C6FEEDDE6F%7D
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/hot_lists/high_performance/best_worst_lists/2009_10best_cars_10best_cars
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/hot_lists/high_performance/best_worst_lists/2009_10best_cars_10best_cars+page-4.html

SCRIPPS NEWS
-- General Motors: venerable, but vulnerable - Richard Williamson
http://www.scrippsnews.com/node/38114
(THE ARTICLE: General Motors is on the verge of bankruptcy because it "builds cars that nobody wants to buy." If you haven't heard that line in the bailout debate, you haven't been listening. "They're a dinosaur in a sense," Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., said on NBC's Meet the Press. "I hate to see this because I would like to see them become lean and hungry and innovative. And if they did and put out the right products they could survive." Such facile rhetoric has been in vogue since at least 1978 and is as obsolete as a Chevy Vega. In 2007, more than 9.3 million "nobodies" bought GM cars and trucks, keeping the brand in a dead heat with Toyota as the world's largest automaker. It was the second-best sales year in GM's 100-year history. Were buyers just being charitable? Does "nobody" want a Corvette? Do the more than 600,000 potential buyers lining up for the new 2010 Camaro not really want one? Clearly, no one wants to buy the Cadillac CTS, Motor Trend magazine's Car of the Year. And what about the fact that Chevrolet dealers were screaming for more Malibus this year to satisfy demand? Was that just public relations? What about Malibu's selection as 2008 North American Car of the Year by the fussy Detroit auto show press and the remodeled model's ranking as best mid-size car in initial quality by J.D. Power and Associates? Chevrolet sales grew more than 4 percent in 2007 to 4.5 million vehicles, with a nearly 34 percent increase in Europe and a 22 percent rise in Asia. There must be a lot of "nobodies" in China, because GM ranks as the best-selling import brand there. And apologies all around for those nasty old trucks that boosted market share for the Detroit Three in the 1990s. GM sold 3.8 million globally in 2007, an increase of 33,000 or 1 percent. As someone who has been reviewing cars for nearly two decades, I can think of few GM products I didn't want to buy, though some of the early Luminas and the misbegotten Pontiac Aztek were quite resistible. The problem isn't that "nobody wants" a GM product, it's the fact that in a hyper-competitive world, a company that once dominated is going to see its market share inevitably slip. Thus, every action appears defensive. The fact is, GM, Ford and Chrysler are still paying for the sins of the '70s and '80s long beyond their expiation(cq) date. Korean car maker Hyundai, meanwhile, is wreathed in laurels for reversing its quality fiascos of the 1980s and is devouring market share from the Detroit Three as well as Japan, Inc. When I say the domestics are "paying for their sins," I mean that literally. GM products bear consistently lower sticker prices than their Asian and European competitors, despite the fact that they typically offer a richer menu of standard equipment and better power options. Take the Cadillac CTS, for example, which retails for $38,980 and comes with a navigation system and OnStar Service as standard equipment. If you turned to import competitors, you might pay $50,625 for a BMW 5-Series or $45,675 for a Lexus GS350 without the nav system. But the Detroit Three are not just paying for their past sins, they're also paying for their past successes. The thousands upon thousands of retirees GM still supports were working on the line when factories were running overtime to keep up with demand. The plants they have closed were built for less competitive times. In 2004, health care cost GM $1,525 per vehicle, compared to Toyota's $201, according to the management consulting firm A.T. Kearney. And health care costs increase with age. Toyota had only 250 retirees in North America in 2004. GM covered about 340,000, including spouses. And those contract provisions were painstakingly negotiated in many a midnight mediation over the decades. It was inevitable that GM, Ford and Chrysler would lose the commanding market share they enjoyed after World War II. Asia and Europe crawled out of the postwar rubble and hit their stride when American industry was growing fat and lazy. Since then, the import brands have expanded their fleets to compete in every market segment, complete with U.S. factories. The Detroit Three lost their virtual monopoly in full-size trucks when Toyota got serious about the Tundra, and Nissan rolled out the Titan, both built in Southern U.S. states hostile to unions and offering extravagant economic incentives. GM has 7,000 dealerships, many of which are protected from closure by antiquated state laws. Toyota has 1,500. While anyone who covers the industry can come up with any number of blunders by the Detroit Three, building unwanted products is not one of the biggies. Not anymore. That was a completely different era. In fact, part of their recent trouble came from the fact that they built vehicles that people did want. Until a year ago, they had a hard time supplying enough Yukons and Silverados for a market flush with cash and credit. Toyota and Nissan were fighting hard for a piece of the action. When pump prices spiked, all of the makers were caught with fleets of gas guzzlers that few buyers could afford, even if they wanted them. But were the automakers to blame for high fuel prices? There's a good argument to be made that the U.S. invasion of Iraq - a government action - and related world instability contributed to the soaring fuel prices that endangered not only the auto industry but the world economy. That's not to say that GM didn't have plenty of high-quality, fuel-efficient cars. With 20 models that get 30 miles per gallon or more, GM offers more than any other maker. They also offer the most hybrid vehicles, ranging from the Malibu Hybrid to Cadillac Escalade And if you want conventional frugality, there's the dutiful little Chevy Aveo, which, at $12,120 costs about $2,000 less than a Toyota Yaris. If it survives, GM will produce plug-in hybrids within a couple of years that should allow most commuters to go to work and back without running their internal combustion engines at all. GM still catches a lot of grief for scrapping the electric EV1 in 1999, but the two-seater was believed to have cost GM $80,000 per unit and could only be leased, not sold. It was a costly boondoggle briefly mandated by one state -- California. Nonetheless, GM soldiers on with development of the Volt, a hybrid designed to run primarily on battery power that might enjoy better success but certainly won't save the company. GM is also playing a key role in the development of so-called "Intelligent Transportation Systems" that will make driving safer and more efficient. In fact, cars that drive themselves are not that far off. Eleven years ago, GM linked eight Buick LeSabres electronically in a system called "platooning." Drivers at the event known as Demo 97 did not have to touch the accelerator, brake pedal or steering wheel. GM's sophisticated OnStar communications system is also seen as a bargain basis for future communication between vehicles. The system would also provide 360-degree visibility and would cost much less than the government's proposed $3 billion to $10 network. GM could be the beneficiary or the victim of government action, but the government has been deeply involved in the automotive business for most of its existence, from catalytic converters to air bags, which, by the way, GM pioneered. Should the U.S. government lend taxpayer dollars to the Big Three? We're talking about a loan, here, not an outright gift like the hundreds of billions of dollars we have poured into Iraq, including $9 billion in cash that simply disappeared. Some respected economists argue that bankruptcy may be the only way for GM to hack the Gordian knot of contracts, laws, regulations and debts dating back to an era of black-and-white TV. But GM questions whether the world's largest automaker could survive bankruptcy. Who would trust a warranty or parts supplies for a company that might not be around next year? If you're occupying an ivory tower or a talk-show microphone, you have the luxury of debating economic theory. If you are among the one out of 10 workers who depend on the auto industry for your daily bread, the question is a little more immediate. At the end of the day, GM may go under, taking much of the world's economy with it. To think that they survived the Great Depression but perished in their 100th year would be a bitter pill to swallow. But let's hope that historians don't blame the demise of the brand on cars that "nobody wanted.")