Romney misled voters about when he left Bain.

He Is Not Leveling with Voters, and is Undoubtedly Responsible for Layoffs and Outsourcing

Today The Boston Globe is reporting that Mitt Romney left Bain Capital in 2001, not 1999 like he claims, proving him undoubtedly responsible for Bain investments that led to layoffs, bankruptcies and American jobs getting sent overseas.

This raises questions about why he won’t release his tax returns – perhaps there’s still more about his time at the corporate buyout firm that he doesn’t want voters to know about.

 Romney isn’t telling the truth about when he left Bain. Romney has consistently claimed he couldn’t be blamed for bankruptcies and layoffs from Bain investments after February 1999 because he left for the Olympics. Now we know he hasn’t been telling the truth.
o Please see today’s Boston Globe article, “Mitt Romney stayed at Bain 3 years longer than he stated.”

 Romney left Bain Capital in 2001 – not 1999, like he claims. According to the Boston Globe and official Bain filings with the SEC, Romney didn’t leave Bain until 2001. He continued as the firm’s president and CEO, remained on the payroll, and continuously signed government documents representing himself as the head of that firm.

 Responsible for Outsourcing and Bankruptcies: Romney is undoubtedly responsible for Bain investments that cost workers their jobs and sent American jobs overseas:

o Ampad in 2000: Romney and his partners drove the company into bankruptcy after destroying 1,500 jobs. They walked away with more than $100 million.

o GS Industries in 2001: Romney and his partners loaded up the steel manufacturer with debt and drove it into bankruptcy, costing more than 750 workers their jobs.

o Stream International in 2000: chose not to open call centers in the United States in favor of opening one in India.

o Modus Media in 2000: cut jobs in California while expanding in foreign countries like Singapore, Ireland, Mexico and China.
o SMTC in 2001: an electronics manufacturer that sent nearly 430 jobs from Denver to Mexico.

 Romney’s New Ad Is False: Today Romney released an ad claiming he isn’t responsible for investments in companies that shipped American jobs overseas – a premise totally undermined by both The Boston Globe and official Bain filings with the SEC. His campaign claims the Globe story is “inaccurate,” but won’t say why – the best it can offer is that Romney would not “be guilty of a federal felony.”

 Either Romney is misleading the American people or he misled the SEC – neither is a sign of leadership. A former SEC commissioner said that SEC statements aren’t “meaningless” and that if Romney really wasn’t involved, they “could be considered a misrepresentation to the investor.”

 What’s Romney Trying to Hide? This revelation raises serious questions about why Romney misled voters about when he left the corporate buyout firm. Does he refuse to release his tax returns because there’s still more about his time at Bain that he doesn’t
want people to know about? Romney needs to come clean so the American people can make their own judgments about his record, perspective and motivations.