Following the money, connecting the dots...
- Using heavy-handed tactics and legal jujitsu, Gwinnett Place Mall shut down the Atlanta Tea Party.
- Simon Property Group owns Gwinnett Place Mall.
- Melvin Simon (a Forbes 400 billionaire) is co-chairman of Simon Property Group, Inc.
- Melvin Simon has provided large political contributions to Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Al Franken, John Edwards, the DNC and many other Democrats and Democrat organizations.
- Melvin Simon was a major contributor to Obama's inaugural committee and has given at least $1 million to the William J. Clinton foundation.
- Melvin's wife, Bren, is a well-connected Democratic activist who has personally donated enormous quantities of cash to various political candidates, was a fundraiser for Hillary Clinton's presidential bid, and contributed to Obama's inaugural committee (to the tune of $50,000).
Update 1 here
Update 2 here
Some comments on the American Thinker post.
"First, reschedule the Tea Party to PUBLIC property that WE THE TAXPAYERS pay for. Next, BOYCOTT the mall and the stores in it for the remainder of the summer. I am sure that will get some attention. We are at war with this jokers, and we can not let up."
"Always remember, the Democrats are the party of dirty tricks."
"This turn of events was more than 'unfortunate', it was intentional sabotage. The Simon Company and it's uber-leftist owner did not 'suddenly' discover that the Tea Party is a political event. He deliberately suckered the organizers of the Atlanta tea party. This was planned and deliberate. It is not a coincidence that they waited until two weeks before the event to suddenly tell the event organizers, 'Oh gosh, we just realized this is a (gasp!) political event, and our policy is, well we just can't be a party to something like this.'"
"Obama looks at Iran's street protests against the Mullah statists, and then he looks here at the Tea Party protests against the Obama statists, and he gets very uncomfortable. That's why he is like a deer in the headlights on Iran. With his background as a community organizer he knows the power of public outcry, and he fears popular demonstrations against his regime more than anything. That's why he will do whatever he can get away with to put it down. But it will not go away just because he wants it to."
"Typical Obama supporters (Simon Property Group) -- petty, egocentric, and so pampered they're blind. They just put a 'bee in the bonnet' of already angry tea partiers. Really dumb."
"I really hope no one in this nation is intimidated in any way from their right to assemble and dissent. People in Iran are getting beaten and some murdered..and that's not stopping them yet. Surely, we can do as much."
"Pass this link to ANY and ALL investors: [http://tr.im/puGe]. Let the SPG know that you plan to remove ALL business with any links to SPG. Don't just boycott, go after their INVESTORS as well."
"The US Corpocracy shuts down the freedom to assemble once again. This is a typical democrat dirty trick. Apparently, dirty tricks, snarky comments, and blatant hatred of middle America is all the democrats have."
More
Contact Simon Properties
Contact the Atlanta Tea Party
