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Obama campaign attacks romney's record as bain capital executive by ferujkll sdff
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Obama campaign attacks romney's record as bain capital executive |
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Business,Business News,Business Opportunities
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By Tracy Jan, Globe Staff WASHINGTON -- The Obama campaign Monday unleashed its first ad attacking Mitt Romney s record as Bain Capital executive, inwhich laid off steel workers in Missouri painted him as a callous vampire and job destroyer who is out of touch with theaverage working person. The two-minute ad -- to begin running in the key battlegroundstates of Iowa, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Colorado and Virginia -- iscoupled with a six-minute video featuring the story of GST Steel, a105-year-old steel mill in Kansas City, Missouri that Bainpurchased in 1993, saddled with debt, and shuttered eight yearslater after Romney and his partners reaped handsome profits. As aresult, the ad said, 750 workers lost their jobs, health insurance,severance pay, even pensions. When their ledgers weren t balanced, it wasn t hard to see whogot the short end, said David Foster, lead negotiator for theworkers of GST Steel who stars in the ad campaign, during aconference call with reporters.
They didn t care about the folkswho actually built things and made GST what it was in the firstplace. The Obama campaign today also launched a new website,RomneyEconomics.com, to highlight Romney s business philosophyfocusing on wealth -- not job -- creation, a key message thepresident s supporters hope will hamper Romney s ability to touthis business experience as the reason he should be electedpresident amid economic turmoil. Romney often repeated the hard-to-confirm claim during theRepublican primaries that he helped create 100,000 jobs during histenure at Bain. The website features other companies that suffered under Bainmanagement and breaks down the business practices, which the Obamacampaign deems questionable, used by Romney and his partners. Romney s history at Bain shows that he is not about strengtheningthe middle class, but about creating wealth for himself, hispartners and his investors, said Stephanie Cutter, Obama s deputycampaign manager, on a conference call with reporters.
It istelling of the kinds of values he would have as president, andcalls into question whether voters should elect someone like Romneyto the Oval Office, she said. The bottom line here is that GST workers really lost out, andRomney and his partners did not, Cutter said. Romney economicsis not a prescription for a stronger country. The Romney campaign fired back by criticizing the president seconomic record, attacking him for using stimulus money to rewardwealthy campaign donors with taxpayer money for bad ideas likeSolyndra, said Andrea Saul, a Romney spokeswoman.
If the Obama administration was less concerned about pleasingtheir wealthy donors and more concerned about creating jobs,America would be much better off, Saul said. The Romney campaign also pointed out that the bankruptcy andlayoffs at GST Steel occurred after Romney left Bain Capital in1999 to run the Salt Lake City Olympics. Romney has said he took personal responsibility for making the investment in GST Steelbut not for managing the company. Asked by a reporter whether it was fair to hold Romney responsiblefor the bankruptcy when he was no longer at the company, Cutterresponded, He set this in motion. It was his structure that putthis in place.
He was still making profits. Foster added that Romney s most grievous sin was walkingaway from the misery that he cost so many people. Joe Soptic, a former GST Steel worker who lost his job after 21years when Bain closed the plant, accused Romney and his partnersof cutting corners to save costs. As a safety observer, he said onthe conference call, I felt like I was going to war every day, fighting for safety goggles and respirators.
He likened the mill toa sweat shop for the eight years Bain managed it, withemployees working 16 hour days because retirees were not replaced. It seemed like they would do anything to keep costs low andprofits high, Soptic said. All they were concerned about wasmoney. The ad also paints the now familiar theme that the Obama campaignhas used to set the president apart, by focusing on Romney sconcern for the wealthy instead of the average worker, a messageObama supporters hope will resonate with middle-class voters. I think there will be a debate about what vision makes the mostsense for the future of this country, and the president certainlybelieves that one that is focused on making sure everybody gets afair shot and a fair shake, everybody plays by the same set ofrules is one that is preferable and has a far better chance ofsucceeding than an approach that is basically -- that says to themiddle class, you re on your own, said Jay Carney, Obama presssecretary, in response to a reporter s question about the Bain adaboard Air Force One en route to New York for the president todeliver the commencement address at Barnard University.
Tracy Jan can be reached at tjan@globe.com. I am an expert from RAMs, usually analyzes all kind of industries situation, such as infrared wall heaters , toilet vanity units.
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