Hedgecock conspiracy: Obama conducts “jihad against Toyota” to provide “boon to Government Motors”

Written by Media Matters Staff

Published

From Roger Hedgecock's February 1 WorldNetDaily column, “Obama attacks Toyota”:

The current cascade of troubles for Toyota started on Aug. 28, 2009, when a San Diego family died in their Lexus in an horrific crash caused by what is known as SUA - sudden unintended acceleration. The actual cause of SUA is not known. Rumors about a “stuck” gas pedal or faulty software or the floor mat interfering with the gas pedal are still rumors. An investigation is still underway.

Disclosure: My family drives Toyota cars (a Prius and a Lexus SUV), and we have never had a problem with these excellent products. On our cars (and every other Toyota vehicle I've seen), the floor mats are firmly secured by hooks and cannot interfere with the gas pedal. And the gas pedal works just as it should - press down and the car moves faster. Ease up and the car slowly decelerates.

Nonetheless, Toyota faces a perfect storm from SUA. But is government “greed” a factor here? As a co-owner of Toyota rivals GM and Chrysler, is the Obama administration and its jihad against Toyota “consumer protection” or revenge against a successful, non-union, red state based rival? Given what Rahm Emanuel said about crisis as an opportunity to “advance the agenda,” this question deserves closer attention.

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All of this is a field day for the Plaintiff's Bar, another Obama ally. Attorneys made fortunes in the “unsafe at any speed” Corvair, exploding Pinto and rollover Ford Explorer cases. These could pale in significance compared to SUA and the scale of Toyota's recall. The publicity over 52 complaints out of 1.8 million Toyota/Lexus vehicles sold in the U.S. in 2008 has made every owner concerned about the safety of their Toyota vehicle.

This panic could fuel lawsuits big enough to put Toyota out of business in the U.S. What a boon for Government Motors! Indeed, last Friday, GM, Chrysler and Ford all announced ad campaigns aimed at worried Toyota owners.

Toyota will announce a “fix” for the gas pedal this week. What's at stake here is not just the safety of the individual Toyota vehicle, nor even the financial health of that company - but the very existence of a free competitive vehicle market in the U.S.