Lawyers defending the government-orchestrated deal by which Chrysler
was purchased by Fiat and hundreds of dealers were thrown out of the
network have raised President Barack Obama's eligibility for office as
a possible issue in the dispute.
In a footnote in their latest court filing, attorneys
representing the old car company at the firm of Jones Day have cited a
"scheme" purportedly on the part of the lawyers for the former Chrysler
dealers – the plaintiffs in the case.
"Although the debtors have no independent knowledge of these
matters, the debtors have taken note of certain public statements
connecting the motion to a crusade involving the movants' counsel to
challenge Barack Obama's legitimacy as president of the United States,"
the court filing states. "For example, one report has stated: Birthers
are launching yet another scheme … [that] involves a legal maneuver
known as 'quo warranto,' a prerogative writ requiring the person to
whom it is directed to show what authority he has for exercising some
right or power (or 'franchise') he claims to hold."
Attorney Stephen Pidgeon, who along with Leo Donofrio is representing more than 70 former Chrysler dealerships put out of business
by the machinations involved in granting massive quantities of taxpayer
funds to Chrysler, which then was taken over by Fiat, said it's a good
sign for the case.
"This is very encouraging because they are attempting to
distract the court from the law, a tactic they would not employ if they
truly thought the law was on their side. … This case is getting very
interesting," he said.
"Opposing counsel have certainly lost their cool by grabbing mud and
slinging it right in the court's face," he said. "They did this by
laying the 'birther' card in a memo supporting their objection to our
motion while our motion has absolutely nothing to do with the
president. In fact, we clearly stated in that motion that we do not
contend the government requested the Chrysler dealers be rejected," he
said.
"It appears that Old Chrysler's attorneys are doing their best to
distract the court from the law by raising issues which do not affect
the case. … I have reminded these attorneys and the court that 789
small businesses
were gutted and approximately 40,000 jobs lost as a result of the
Chrysler dealers having their livelihood ripped from them," he said.
WND reported when the case originally developed that the lawyers were challenging in U.S. bankruptcy court the government's use of Troubled Asset Relief Program funds to bail out Chrysler.
Both Donofrio and Pidgeon previously worked on the issue of Obama's eligibility.
The new case challenges the government's intervention in the
auto industry, specifically allocating some $8 billion-plus to
Chrysler, which later was forgiven.
Pidgeon told WND the plaintiffs in the case are former Chrysler
dealers who lost their businesses as part of the "restructuring" of the
automobile company. They have been damaged with the loss of their
businesses, and the case alleges the Obama administration, through its use of TARP money, influenced Chrysler's outcome.
Donofrio told WND the core issue is the disbursement of TARP funds to the automaker that were intended to help banks
and financial institutions. The previous Treasury secretary had
indicated such expenditures were not appropriate, and, in fact, a
congressional effort to authorize the expenditures failed, he said.
The team of attorneys confirmed that a "quo warranto" case is
possible but it is not connected to the TARP case. Nothing has been
filed to date.
Donofrio originally confirmed questions in that scenario could
include a demand for details about Obama's eligibility. Donofrio
contends that since by Obama's own admission his father never was a
U.S. citizen, Obama was born a dual citizen. The framers of the
Constitution, he argues, did not consider a dual citizen to be a
"natural born citizen" as required for the presidency.
The burden, then, would shift to Obama and his administration
officials to document their constitutional authority for their
decisions and their handling of taxpayer money.
But Pidgeon originally told WND the plaintiffs in the TARP case
are the former Chrysler dealers, and their interests will be paramount.
The goal is "to get them restored," he said, and "put them back where they were before their contracts were rejected."
"Our clients are not in this action as 'birthers,'" he said,
citing a term used for people who question Obama's constitutional
eligibility. "Our clients are here to seek redress for wrongs."
Cases regarding the dissolution of Chrysler and its eventual
transfer to Fiat are being heard by Judge Arthur Gonzalez in the
federal bankruptcy court in the Southern District of New York.
The dealers simply seek compensation
for the value of the franchises and contracts with Chrysler. The
arguments revolve around statements from Alfredo Altavilla, an
executive for Fiat, who was quoted in the court's decision as saying
the nullification of the contracts was required.
However, Pidgeon and Donofrio argue that's not supported in the evidence of the case.
Court records show the executive stated: "A restructuring needs
to occur. Whether it occurs before or after the closing of the deal is
not a material difference."
The court, however, paraphrased that to say, "Altavilla also
responded affirmatively to a question regarding whether a dealership
network needed to be restructured for the Fiat Transaction to close…"
They argue the court order presupposed a requirement that the
contracts be cancelled for the deal to close, when that was not the
case, so the order must be overturned.
According to columnist Devvy Kidd,
the case is "complicated" but it may provide to the dealers what has
been lacking for plaintiffs in other challenges to Obama's eligibility.
She explained a "quo warranto may be issued from the United
States District Court for the District of Columbia in the name of the
United States against a person who within the District of Columbia
usurps, intrudes into, or unlawfully holds or exercises, a franchise
conferred by the United States or a public office of the United States,
civil or military."
That means quo warranto applies not just to eligibility but to the "exercise" of authority through public office, she said.
She noted the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals already has
described as "interesting and unresolved" some of the questions raised
in a related case that did not involve the dealers. In that case, once
again, the appellants did not have "standing."
"The Chrysler dealers have the requisite injury – loss of their franchises – to meet the standing requirements," she wrote.
The multiple Obama eligibility cases have cited Article 2,
Section 1 of the Constitution, which states, "No Person except a
natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of
the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of
President."
Some of the lawsuits question whether he was actually born in
Hawaii, as he insists. If he was born out of the country, Obama's
American mother, the suits contend, was too young at the time of his
birth to confer American citizenship to her son under the law at the
time.
Other challenges have focused on Obama's citizenship through
his father, a Kenyan subject to the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom
at the time of his birth, thus making him a dual citizen. The cases
contend the framers of the Constitution excluded dual citizens from
qualifying as natural born.
Further, others question his citizenship by virtue of his
attendance in Indonesian schools during his childhood and question on
what passport did he travel to Pakistan three decades ago.
Adding fuel to the fire is Obama's persistent refusal to
release documents that could provide answers and the appointment – at a
cost confirmed to be at least $1.7 million – of myriad lawyers to
defend against all requests for his documentation. While his supporters
cite an online version of a "Certification of Live Birth" from Hawaii
as his birth verification, critics point out such documents actually
were issued for children not born in the state.
Among documentation not yet available
for Obama is his kindergarten records, Punahou school records,
Occidental College records, Columbia University records, Columbia
thesis, Harvard Law School records, Harvard Law Review articles,
scholarly articles from the University of Chicago, passport, medical
records, files from his years as an Illinois state senator, his
Illinois State Bar Association records, any baptism records and his
adoption records.
 "Where's The Birth Certificate?" billboard at the Mandalay Bay resort on the Las Vegas Strip |
The campaign followed a petition that has collected more than 490,000 signatures demanding proof of his eligibility, the availability of yard signs raising the question and the production of permanent, detachable magnetic bumper stickers asking the question.
The "certification of live birth" posted online and widely
touted as "Obama's birth certificate" does not in any way prove he was
born in Hawaii, since the same "short-form" document is easily
obtainable for children not born in Hawaii. The true "long-form" birth
certificate – which includes information such as the name of the birth
hospital and attending physician – is the only document that can prove
Obama was born in Hawaii, but to date he has not permitted its release
for public or press scrutiny.
Oddly, though congressional hearings were held to determine
whether Sen. John McCain was constitutionally eligible to be president
as a "natural born citizen," no controlling legal authority ever sought
to verify Obama's claim to a Hawaiian birth.
If you are a member of the media and would like to interview Joseph Farah about this campaign, e-mail WND.
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Previous stories:
Closed Chrysler dealers to drive Obama's eligibility
Palin: OK to press Obama's eligibility
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Appeal filed in Obama eligibility argument
Judge tosses eligibility case against Congress
Plaintiff: Courts must hear eligibility arguments
Judge sets 'final' calendar for eligibility challenge
Judge: Eligibility dispute is 'serious'
Obama eligibility case survives 1st court test
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