It appears that President Obama's sins are catching up to him. Just last week, I wrote about The New York Times’ front-page article on the shellacking Democrats are likely to take in the mid-term elections. Now, the newspaper has an article basically hammering the administration and General Motors for their shell game with the taxpayer’s money.

As Ed Morrissey- do I quote the guy enough?- put it,

First, the Times has decided to give this significant coverage, which means the story of GM’s misleading claim of paying back the taxpayer-funded bailout will continue to have some legs. More importantly, it also points the finger at Treasury and the Obama administration for its complicity in allowing CEO Ed Whitacre to make those claims without challenge.

Later, Morrissey quotes Scott Johnson of PowerLine, who says the very legally relevant following:

Whitacre and GM omitted two facts that render their public relations blitz highly misleading. They are the kind of omissions that constitute securities fraud when made by a company in connection with the purchase or sale of a security or when a company reports its financial results.

First, Whitacre and GM omitted any mention of the remaining $50 billion or so that the government has sunk in the company's equity. Second, Whitacre and GM omitted any mention of the source of the funds with which GM "repaid" the loan. According to TARP Special Inspector General Neil Barofsky, the source of the funds in whole or in substantial part was the United States government TARP program, not GM earnings.

GM's fraudulent public relations blitz took place with the support of the Obama administration, up to and including Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner. Geithner's participation makes his tax cheating and related testimony pale in comparison.

In retrospect, it is obvious that GM undertook the blitz at the behest of the Obama administration. It is symptomatic of the era of national socialism in which we find ourselves, and for which GM is a leading indicator.

The article was prominently posted on Real Clear Politics this morning, which is where I originally found it. I think a warm thank you should be given by the

taxpayer to the article’s author, one Gretchen Morrison, for doing her job in holding politicians accountable and making certain the general public is aware of

where their money is going. I also thank the Times editorial leadership for moving forward with this very devastating article, and ignoring the liberal bias the

newspaper typically shows.

The article can be seen in full at the second link above, but below are some of the more poignant points:

As we inch closer to a clearer understanding of the products and practices that unleashed the credit crisis of 2008, it’s becoming apparent that those seeking the whole truth are still outnumbered by those aiming to obscure it. This is the case not only on Wall Street but also in Washington.

Truth seekers the nation over, therefore, are indebted to Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa, who in recent days uncovered what he called a government-enabled “TARP money shuffle.” It relates to General Motors, which on April 21 paid the balance of its $6.7 billion loan under the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

And later:

Of course, there is much joy in Mudville when a recipient of government aid repays its obligations. And it is also natural that the administration is keenly interested in reassuring taxpayers that losses on their bailout billions will be smaller than expected. Still, employing spin and selective disclosure is no way to raise taxpayers’ trust in our nation’s leadership. 

Note: Apologies for the formatting- for some reason, I can't get it work...