How Romney is fighting harsh charge he's a heartless job-killer
President Obama鈥檚 supporters are doubling down on their attempt to portray Mitt Romney as a heartless job-destroying financier.
On Monday, the Obama campaign released an ad accusing Mr. Romney鈥檚 former firm聽Bain Capital聽of sucking cash out of a Missouri company named GST Steel, driving it into bankruptcy. Tuesday, a pro-Obama super political-action committee, Priorities USA Action, is releasing an ad that focuses on Bain鈥檚 ownership of (surprise!) GST Steel, which closed in 2001, throwing more than 700 people out of work.
鈥淗e promised us the same things he鈥檚 promising the United States. And he鈥檒l give you the same thing he gave us. Nothing. He鈥檒l take it all,鈥� says a former GST worker named Pat Wells in the .
Yikes 鈥� that鈥檚 harsh, isn鈥檛 it? For the record, we鈥檒l note that super PACs aren鈥檛 supposed to coordinate with candidates, though they can watch the news like everybody else and follow a campaign鈥檚 lead if they wish. Also, by the time that GST went under, Romney was long gone from Bain. He鈥檇 left to run the 2002 Salt Lake Winter Olympics.
Steel firms such as GST faced tough competition from imports during the period in question. Still, Bain did raise the company鈥檚 debt load, while extracting at least $12 million for itself. Overall, the Washington Post gives the Obama campaign ad a rating of 鈥淥ne Pinocchio,鈥� meaning that it shades the truth, and omits some facts while exaggerating others, but contains no outright falsehoods.
So how is Romney responding? First, his campaign is accentuating the positive. They鈥檝e already released their own counter-ad 鈥� a spot that features a thriving Indiana firm named Steel Dynamics in which Bain had a minority stake.
Steel Dynamics "almost never got started,鈥� says one worker in the ad. 鈥淲hen others shied away, Mitt Romney鈥檚 private sector leadership team stepped in.鈥�
Second, Romney supporters are hammering at the fact that one of the Obama campaign鈥檚 top financial backers, Jonathan Lavine, is a Bain director who was at the firm when GST went under.
鈥淪o according to the Obama team鈥檚 logic, Romney, who had left Bain, is responsible for GST Steel鈥檚 demise, but Lavine, who was there, is not? Expect to hear more about this connection,鈥� yesterday on the National Review Online blog The Corner.
Finally, the Romney camp may point out that Mr. Obama is himself responsible for layoffs. Remember the auto bailout? General Motors and Chrysler shut down more than 700 dealerships during that crisis period, at the cost of thousands of jobs.
鈥淎nd the companies did it under pressure from Obama,鈥� writes conservative Byron York, the Washington Examiner鈥檚 chief political correspondent.
Hmmm. We鈥檙e not so sure that invoking the auto bailout is a big winner for Romney 鈥� GM and Chrysler remain alive, after all, which was the point at the time. In any case, the Obama team insists that is a discussion about the presumptive GOP nominee, not their guy. 聽
鈥淭he central premise of [Romney鈥檚] campaign is that his business experience will make him a good president. So let鈥檚 look at what kind of president it would make Mitt Romney. That鈥檚 a legitimate question,鈥� said Stephanie Cutter, Obama deputy campaign manager, in an appearance Tuesday on MSNBC鈥檚 鈥淒aily Rundown.鈥�
