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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/vk9KXBBy-QQ/story01.htm
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WASHINGTON ? After months of getting a pass on the subject from his rivals, Mitt Romney was challenged in the Republican presidential debate Saturday night on his frequent claims that he created great numbers of jobs in the private sector. Newt Gingrich, for one, said Romney’s record as a venture capitalist was one of flipping companies, taking out all the money and “leaving behind the workers.”
Who’s right?
The bottom line remains unknown about how many jobs were gained or lost from Romney’s work at the Bain Capital private equity company. But this much is clear: His accounting behind the assertion that he created more than 100,000 jobs at companies he helped start up or turn around has been flawed.
A look at some of the claims in the latest GOP debate and how they compare with the facts:
ROMNEY: “But in the business I had, we invested in over 100 different businesses and net … net, taking out the ones where we lost jobs and those that we added, those businesses have now added over 100,000 jobs.”
GINGRICH: “I’m not nearly as enamored of a Wall Street model where you can flip companies, you can go in and have leveraged buyouts, you can basically take out all the money, leaving behind the workers.”
THE FACTS: Romney has never substantiated his frequent claim that he was a creator of more than 100,000 jobs while leading the Bain Capital private equity company. His campaign merely cites success stories without laying out the other side of the ledger ? jobs lost at Bain-acquired or Bain-supported firms that closed, trimmed their workforce or shifted employment overseas.
Moreover, his campaign bases its claims on recent employment figures at three companies ? Staples, Domino’s and Sports Authority ? even though Romney’s involvement with them ceased years ago.
By that sort of charitable math, President Barack Obama could be credited with creating over 1 million jobs even though employment overall is down about 2 million since he came to office. But Romney accuses Obama of destroying jobs while using a different standard to judge his own performance ? cherry-picked examples that leave everything else out.
By its nature, venture capitalism often results in lost jobs because profitability and efficiency are key to investors, not how many people are on the payroll. Bain Capital profited in cases where employment went both up and down.
Staples, now with close to 90,000 employees, and Sports Authority, with about 15,000, were startups supported by Romney. The direct work force at Domino’s has grown by nearly 8,000 since Romney’s intervention. But Romney got out of the game in 1999, which has not stopped his campaign from crediting him with jobs created at those companies since then.
Romney toned down the braggadocio in the latest debate, saying that of the Bain-supported companies that grew, “we’re only a small part of that, by the way.” But he insisted his claim of more than 100,000 jobs was a “net net” figure that takes into account job losses elsewhere, even though his campaign has defended the assertion only by reporting on the performance of Sports Authority, Domino’s and Staples.
No one has been able to produce a full accounting of job gains and losses from the scores of companies Romney dealt with at Bain. But a Los Angeles Times review of Bain’s 10 largest investments under Romney found that four of the big companies declared bankruptcy within a few years, costing thousands of jobs and often pension and severance benefits.
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RON PAUL about RICK SANTORUM: “So he’s a big government person, along with him being very associated with the lobbyists and taking a lot of funds. And also where did he get ? make his living afterwards? I mean, he became a high-powered lobbyist in Washington, D.C. And he has done quite well. We checked out Newt, on his income. I think we ought to find out how much money he (Santorum) has made from the lobbyists as well.”
SANTORUM: “When I left the United States Senate, I got involved in causes that I believe in…. I was asked by a health care company to be on their board of directors. Now, I don’t know whether you think boards of directors are lobbyists. They’re not.”
THE FACTS: Santorum was not, as Paul suggested, a registered lobbyist after he left the Senate. But Santorum did trade his Washington experience for lucrative work afterward, not unlike Gingrich, who has faced plenty of tough questions about money he earned from the corridors of power despite never being registered as a lobbyist.
Financial disclosure records show that from January 2010 to August 2011, Santorum earned at least $1.3 million working as a corporate consultant, political pundit and board member. Santorum reported that the American Continental Group, a Washington lobbying group, paid him $65,000 in consulting fees. The firm’s lengthy client list includes Microsoft Corp., Comcast Corp. and the American Gaming Association.
“The senator did general consulting and provided his advice and opinion on which way the Senate may go, based on his record in the Senate and his history in leadership,” said David Urban, president of American Continental Group.
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ROMNEY: “I was in a state where the Supreme Court stepped in and said, marriage is a relationship required under the Constitution for ? for people of the same sex to be able to marry. And John Adams, who wrote the Constitution, would be surprised.”
THE FACTS: John Adams would be surprised to hear he wrote the Constitution. He was a minister to Britain at the time, after having been minister to France. He was not a delegate to the Constitutional Convention. He was, though, an architect of the Declaration of Independence. And he constructed the Massachusetts Constitution.
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SANTORUM, on Obama’s approach to large street protests of the elections in Iran in which Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was re-elected over a perceived moderate: “We had a president of the United States who stood silently by as thousands were killed on the streets, and did nothing. Did nothing. In fact, he tacitly supported the results of the election.”
THE FACTS: Santorum appears to have substantially exaggerated the death toll, for which there is no authoritative estimate. Opposition supporters in Iran claimed hundreds may have died; the Iranian government claimed several dozen.
Obama indeed reacted cautiously ? tepidly in the opinion of critics. Wisely or not, he had reasons for doing so. Iran analysts had warned against overt U.S. support for Ahmadinejad’s foes, saying such backing might taint them as well as give the Iranian government evidence that the unrest was caused by outsiders. Iranian opposition figures wanted distance from the United States over fears that U.S. support would impugn their credibility.
Once the severity of the crackdown became known, Obama condemned the violence and said the Iranian government should respect the rights of free speech and assembly. When it became clear that opposition protesters were relying heavily on social media to get their message out and organize, the State Department intervened with Twitter to delay a planned upgrade that would have shut down the service in Iran.
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ROMNEY, on Obama: “He wants us to turn into a European-style welfare state.”
GINGRICH: “His desperate efforts to create a …. European model.”
THE FACTS: Republicans seldom make clear what they are talking about when they accuse Obama of trying to turn the U.S. into a “European-style welfare state.”
They no doubt are referring at least in part to Obama’s health-care overhaul, but that falls far short of many European plans of government-sponsored, universal health-care coverage. There’s little evidence that any of Obama’s proposals are modeled on European laws, policies and practices. And in finance, European nations appear to be moving in the direction of an American model, with tighter restrictions on banking practices and deficit-reduction programs.
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Associated Press writers Nancy Benac, Charles Babington, Joan Lowy, Matthew Lee and Tom Raum contributed to this report.
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>>> on the poll of a likely republican primary votener south caroline a. good news for mitt romney . he’s the front-runner now surging 17 points in the past month to 37%. also good news for rick santorum as well. he surged 15 points in the skt place. the big loser? newt gingrich . he dropped 25 points in the past month and falling from the top of the pack to 30 place. joining me now to talk about all of this and make sense as well, deputy washington bureau chief michael crowley . let’s put up that new cover here. looks like south carolina republicans are — how do you like me now?
>> they sure are and striking numbers. the conventional wisdom held that south carolina is not going to be a natural state for mitt romney . he didn’t do well and gave up on it. he didn’t stand a fighting chance . it’s a strong showing. i am surprised and i thought the race might have been closer and shows that his performance in iowa is making people feel like he’s the front runner and there is a rallying effect.
>> let’s talk about how deep that support is. we should note here that we like mitt romney and rick santorum , but there is a chance we could change our mind.
>> we saw this in iowa going into caucus day and a very large percentage of voters have not committed. i really think that this number is interesting, but let’s see what the number is after new hampshire votes. rick santorum may have surge and he’s got momentum. surprisingly strong showing in new hampshire and generate more free media and more sense that he has the ability to take romney down. they see the numbers in south carolina move. i will say this does suggest that there is a rallying and that the establishment is pushing for the nominee.
>> you want to wonder if mitt romney is able to with stand the evangelical presence in the state like south carolina , you have to wonder whether there is another state and another primary that will be able to stop him.
>> who knows what will happen. we had a big surprise in new hampshire , but if romney will win and doesn’t stumble, if he wins that, train has a lot of momentum. i would not want to be standing in front of it. south carolina has been a place where the nominee soiledified and george w. bush knocked out general and bob dole knocked it out. there is a history of the establishment.
>> no republican candidate has gone on to get the nomination since 1960 . thank you, sir. appreciate your time.
>> thank you.
Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/newsnation/45903396/
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WASHINGTON ? Republican presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich is going after the conservative primary voters he needs to win in Iowa while chief rival Mitt Romney’s advantage in money and organization is allowing him to look ahead to the general election.
With about two weeks left until voters begin assessing the GOP field, Gingrich pressed his criticism of federal judges and the Supreme Court. Romney defended his public and private-sector record against likely Democratic attacks.
Gingrich resumed campaigning Monday, with events planned in eastern Iowa, after taking the weekend off. Romney was appearing on “The Late Show with David Letterman.”
Romney also announced another endorsement, from Sen. Mark Kirk. The Illinois Republican said America needs Romney’s “managerial talent, team-building spirit and hard-nosed sense of economic common sense.”
On Sunday, both candidates took to the airwaves.
Gingrich mounted a broad attack on federal judges and the Supreme Court, arguing that they legislate from the bench and wield too much power in the country.
His argument could resonate in a state like Iowa, where Republicans fought a protracted battle with state Supreme Court judges over gay marriage.
“There is steady encroachment of secularism through the courts to redefine America as a nonreligious country and the encroachment of the courts on the president’s commander in chief powers, which is enormously dangerous,” the former House speaker said Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”
In a rare Sunday talk-show appearance, Romney portrayed himself as Republican best able to defeat President Barack Obama next year.
Romney defended his years making millions in private business, claiming he can handle expected attacks from Democrats who are already trying to paint him as out of touch. He also argued that his tax proposal is kinder to the middle class and less generous to the rich than the flat-tax proposals put forward by his rivals, including Gingrich.
“The president’s going to go after me,” the former Massachusetts governor said on Fox News Sunday. “I’ll go after him.”
Polls in Iowa and nationally show Gingrich ahead of Romney in the race for the GOP nomination to challenge Obama in November 2012. Gingrich has acknowledged that repeated attacks by Romney and others have taken a toll on his campaign.
In a bid to stay out front, Gingrich is focusing on ideology as he courts the Iowa conservatives he needs to win the Jan. 3 caucuses and challenge Romney’s well-organized campaign in what could become a drawn-out primary.
Gingrich contrasted his endorsement by the “reliably conservative” Manchester Union Leader newspaper in New Hampshire with the decision by Iowa’s Des Moines Register, which has a more left-leaning editorial board, to back Romney.
“I think that indicates who the conservative in this race is,” Gingrich said.
The two have set up a choice for primary voters between a candidate, Romney, who hasn’t excited the conservative base but emphasizes his appeal to the independents needed to win the White House, or Gingrich, the candidate who sounds more conservative.
All the candidates were making last-ditch appeals before the holiday week sets in. Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann, Texas Gov. Rick Perry and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum were campaigning in Iowa on Monday. Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman was in New Hampshire, where the primary is set for Jan. 10.
Their campaigns and the special political action committees that support them were planning major ad offensives on the television airwaves.
Gingrich’s campaign planned to spend about $14,000 on ads while his rivals and their allies were set to dwarf that with more than $1.3 million in commercials promoting themselves or attacking Gingrich.
In a sign of his increased confidence, Romney pulled back from his aggressive attacks on Gingrich in recent days and shifted the focus back to Obama.
Romney also has been trying harder to humanize himself and spoke emotionally Sunday about his wife’s struggle with multiple sclerosis.
He said the “toughest time” in his life was waiting in the doctor’s office for her diagnosis. He said he feared she had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, a fatal degenerative nerve condition.
The doctor “did these neurological tests, and then he ? and we could see that she had real balance problems and she didn’t have feeling in places she should have feeling,” Romney said. “And he stepped out of the room, and we stood up and hugged each other, and I said to her, `As long as it’s not something fatal, I’m just fine. Look, I’m happy in life as long as I’ve got my soul mate with me.’”
“If you think about what makes a difference to you in your life, it’s people,” he continued. “Life is all about the people you love.”
Gingrich, meanwhile, appeared relaxed and jovial in his interview. He acknowledged his comeback exceeded even his expectations. Top campaign aides resigned en mass earlier this year and his White House bid was burdened by deep debt.
“As we were sliding down. I thought I could fight my way back up to being in the top three or four,” Gingrich said. “But I think positive ideas and positive solutions … have attracted people. I think they like the idea of someone who’s determined to be positive.”
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McCaffrey reported from Atlanta.
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(Rainier Ehrhardt/AP)
The Des Moines Register officially endorsed Mitt Romney’s bid for the Republican presidential nomination Saturday, handing the former Massachusetts governor an influential show of support ahead of January’s Iowa caucuses.
In backing Romney, the paper’s editorial board praised the candidate’s “sobriety, wisdom and judgment” and said he offers the best qualities and experience of anyone in the Republican field.
“He stands out especially among candidates now in the top tier,” the paper said of Romney in an endorsement published online Saturday. “Newt Gingrich is an undisciplined partisan who would alienate, not unite, if he reverts to mean-spirited attacks on display as House speaker. Ron Paul’s libertarian ideology would lead to economic chaos and isolationism, neither of which this nation can afford.”
Romney, the paper wrote, has an “ability to see the merits of tough issues from something other than a knee-jerk ideological perspective” suggesting Romney “would be willing to bridge the political divide in Washington.”
“His record of ignoring partisan labels to pass important legislation when he was governor of Massachusetts suggests he is capable to making that happen,” the Register wrote.
While Romney is sure to be thrilled by the endorsement, the paper’s framing of its decision might not help his cause with some Republicans, who have questioned the ex-governor’s conservative credentials.
The Register mentions Romney’s “nuanced” positions on abortion and notes that he’s defended a health care law he passed as governor of Massachusetts that bears more than a striking similarity to President Obama’s health care legislation.
“Voters will have to decide for themselves whether such subtly nuanced statements express Romney’s true beliefs or if he’s trying to have it both ways,” the Register wrote.
It’s unclear if the paper’s endorsement will be enough to help Romney’s bid to do well in Iowa. After months of laying low in the state, Romney has only recently started to invest serious time and money into doing well in the Jan. 3rd caucuses.
While Gingrich has led most polls in the state in recent weeks, there are hints Romney may be gaining some momentum. A Rasmussen Reports survey released Thursday found Romney leading Gingrich by 3 points?a result within the poll’s margin of error.
But Romney still faces an uphill battle when it comes to wooing the state’s base of evangelical voters, an influential voting bloc that has been openly skeptical about Romney’s views on social issues.
The paper hasn’t always backed the eventual winner of the Iowa caucuses. Four years ago, the Register overlooked Romney and Mike Huckabee, who were in a fierce competition for Republican support in the state, and instead backed the party’s eventual nominee John McCain, who had barely campaigned in the state.
The Register is the second major early state newspaper endorsement to come out ahead of next month’s voting. Last month, the New Hampshire Union Leader backed Gingrich in that state’s GOP primary.
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LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – Score one for ABC News in the ratings department.
Saturday night’s GOP debate was the most-watched of the 2012 campaign as an average of 7.6 million viewers tuned in to watch the presidential candidates take on such hot topics as unemployment and immigration.
Despite a relatively late start time — 9 p.m. on the East Coast — 2.1 million of those viewers were in the key adults 25-54 viewer group.
Both of those numbers beat the previous highs, held by Fox News in total viewers (6.11 million on September 22) and MSNBC in the 25-54 demographic (1.73 million on September 7).
They were also well ahead of the numbers for the only other debate on one of the major broadcast networks, CBS News’ telecast on Nov 12.
Moderated by Diane Sawyer and George Stephanopoulos, the ABC debate was broadcast live from Des Moines, Iowa, with the Iowa caucus — the first tally of the election season — less than a month away.
Between the two current front-runners — Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich — Gingrich was seen as the winner of the contest, which was also hosted by Yahoo News, the Republican Party of Iowa and the Des Moines Register.
