Obama’s remarks get car dealer fired up
Ever since he announced his gas-or-gun promotion a week ago, cars and trucks have been flying off the lot of Mark Muller’s dealership in Butler, Mo.
After all, who hasn’t heard of the stunt by now?
Get a $250 gas card or $250 toward the purchase of a handgun, if you buy a new or used car at Max Motors by the end of May.
It even made the papers in England.
But there’s a little more to the gimmick that’s brought all this attention to Muller’s GM, Ford and Chrysler dealership in the town of 4,200.
There’s the why of it that goes beyond the cheesy, un-PC attempt to pump up his sales numbers in a down economy.
There’s the politics behind it. Muller claims his gun offer is a direct response to that remark Barack Obama made at a San Francisco fundraiser in the lead-up to April’s Pennsylvania primary.
You know the quote, in which the Democratic front-runner explained the anxiety of middle-class Americans this way:
“… (T)hey get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren’t like them, or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations.”
With that quote, Hillary Clinton beat Obama’s brains out for weeks. We’ll be hearing it over and over in the general election campaign, should Obama be the Democratic nominee.
But Muller is still plenty sore. It’s not that he clings to guns and religion. But being a resident of rural middle of America, let’s just say he embraces both in a firm fashion.
“That’s exactly what caused me to do this,” Muller said of the gun offer.
“Every American should carry a gun for their own safety,” he said. “We all carry guns here (at the dealership).
“We’re all God-fearing, gun-toting Americans.”
And they certainly have a growing following, thanks to all the media attention.
As of our conversation on Friday afternoon, Muller and others at the dealership had done more than 120 interviews with reporters from across the country and overseas.
Business has jumped fourfold.
“We’re going great guns,” Internet sales manager Jerry Gilliland said.
He and the rest of Muller’s sales staff had moved 43 vehicles off the lot in four days. Of those, 41 car and truck buyers opted for the gun voucher, which they can apply to the purchase of any handgun they want, assuming they pass their background checks.
Not that I own a handgun, but I have strolled past the gun case at Cabela’s every now and then, and I know that a good pistol or revolver can set you back more than $250.
Muller agreed, but he said the $250 would cover the cost of the small pistol he carries in his own pocket, a Kel-Tec .380.
“It’s about $230, plus it’ll get you a nice holster.”
For a guy who claims to be apolitical — “I don’t like any of them,” he says of politicians — he’s taking Obama’s remark very personally.
Which brings us to the follow-up promotion set for when the free gun offer expires after midnight Saturday.
“Next month we’re going to give away a free Bible with every test drive,” he said.
Something tells me that’s not going to get him nearly as much press. But there’s always the month after.
“It’s a little racy,” he said, “but in July I’m going to offer to give away a free Cadillac to the first homosexual couple to get married in Missouri.”
Not sure how that’s going to sell many cars, especially considering Missouri banned gay marriage four years ago.
But if it’s more attention he wants, that ought to do it.
To reach Mike Hendricks, call 816-234-7708 or send e-mail to mhendricks@kcstar.com.
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