Memo Pad

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Bain Capitalism: Subsidies, Tax Breaks — And Bust-Outs?

January 16th, 2012 1:47 pm Joe Conason

Mitt Romney complains loudly and often about the “European” policies of the Obama White House, from excessive deficits and debt to government subsidies of industry. But his ultra-lucrative career at Bain Capital shows this carping is more rhetorical (and recent) than sincere. His inflated boasts of job creation appear to derive from companies that depended on government grants, tax favors, and other public benefits.

Even worse, however, Romney seems to have been unfazed by excessive borrowing when he worked in the private sector. For instance, Bain piled debt on a steel company it acquired, took the borrowed proceeds as “dividends,” and left the workers and the government to cope with the subsequent bankruptcy. Someday perhaps, Romney will explain just how this predatory style differs from what the mob used to call a “bust-out scheme.”

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  • Lilred

    Is there a way to find out what companies are owned by Bain. So can avoid them?

  • MikeHalligan

    i have a small business, can get one of those $1.4 million deals from the federal government? Hell, i’m still paying off school loans, maybe they could just let me forget those? doesn’t work for me, huh.

  • LogicObserv123

    Can someone explain how the Bain operations are NOT fraud? Especially if they did it more than once? This guy does not merit the office of President. He has earned a jail term.

  • drdavidgreen

    Have you sent all of this on to the Obama campaign staff? If not, you should do so immediately. If so, remind them. This is political dynamite. Keep up the good work.

  • envscience55

    Romney’s rhetoric on job creation, speaking out against the current President when he once worked to destroy jobs all for the sake of nice bonuses, increasing the size of his personal portfolio seems to be the norm for any GOP politician or lobbyist. Having spent five horrible years in DC under the last administration and witnessing DOI appointed officials go to prison, resign to avoid being charged with crimes for taking favors from Abramoff has given me an inside view and indelible dislike for the GOP party and its hypocrites.

    I worked with a civil service employee whos wife happened to be a lobbbyist too while working for the Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs. This man had the gaul to have his wife work as a lobbyist for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians while he was employed with Indian Affairs and by the way he still is. Everyone in Indian Affairs knew of this cozy arrangement his spouse had with the tribe but did nothing to stop it. I mentioned something about this being an ethics violation and let me tell you I was the scourge of the Earth in the OCIO office. Being an American Indian citizen I felt it was my duty to bring this to the light of day.

    During the entire GWB administration this type of unethical behavior was commonplace and actually accepted as the norm. The DASM would take Congressionally allocated funds for the BIA and send them to other agencies within the DOI and therefore short change the tribes. While in the OCIO office a Alaska Native Corporation obtained a huge IT contract through less than legal circumstances and knocked the winning 8A contracting company out of the contract. It was discovered this company was owned by a Bush relative that had the last name of Bush out of South Carolina. An OIG investigation was initiated and to my knowledge even though they found illegal activity nothing was done to those who committed this fraud nor were the federal employees who made it possible for this contract to be awarded to an Alaskan Native Corporation brought to justice. The CIO at that time awarded these unethical non-native federal employees with $30K bonuses, Quality Step Increases and other perks for their part in this injustice. These employees are all GOP supporters and espoused it on a daily basis. Why do I bring this up? What I am hearing today about how bad President Obama has been in no way does it compare to the corruption of the prior GOP administration. I cannot see how these candidates can espouse this rhetoric and not talk about reforming their party and bringing these unethical federal employees to justice by dismissing them and indicting them as well.

    The bottom line is that I have absolutely no respect for any GOP candidate, supporter past of present and never will be able to even listen to their disgusting rhetoric knowing it is all lies in my humble opinion. Five years of seeing this first hand has made me totally disgusted with politics in D.C. including our current administration since they have done nothing to appoint American Indians to positions where they can and would make a big difference in the lives of America’s first people and her real minority that has suffered through more abuse, the American Holocaust and the greed of people like Jack Abramoff. When does this stop and the American Indians are treated with dignity and provided for since no treaties have ever been honored just like a business agreement? Could you buy a home or a business and just outright take it expecting to never honor the contract you signed?

  • kurt.lorentzen

    Romney would just perpetuate that same Wall Street modus operandi, and is NOT what this country needs. Neither is trillions in deficit spending, but I’d take that in the short term over “slash & burn” economics. Romney should go back to his Kennedy-esque compound and bask in his wealth. Our country is torn apart enough as it is.

  • gary13136

    For those of you who may not be familiar with Google’s “Job Central” website, it is a website that lists current job openings around the country. For the past year, one of the most prominent job posters has been Staples; at least here in the Asheville, NC area. I’ve not applied to them, though. It seems to me that if a business regularly posts job openings, especially in our “down” economy, it must be because it’s not a very pleasant place to work. Regular job openings in a company would indicate to me that it’s not a place I would want to work. The employees are probably “job flexibilitied” to the point of exhaustion. Something to think about.

  • tjmnewknee

    Romney is a unscrupleous bastard. He is as big a liar ad Trump