In a stunning exposé published Thursday in the The Nation – with support from The Investigative Fund — reporter Greg Palast reveals how key donors to Romney’s campaign made more than a billion dollars off the restructuring of General Motors by holding a key player in the supply chain hostage to their demands during the heart of America’s worst jobs crisis in 50 years.
Delphi Automotive is an auto parts maker that used to be part of General Motors and remains essential for auto production. Without Delphi, there would be no American automotive industry. And unfortunately for America, it ended up being controlled by Elliott Management.
Elliott Management is run by Paul Singer, a massive Republican donor and “defender of the 1 percent.” Ann Romney’s so-called blind trust invested at least a million dollars in Elliott before the fund began buying Delphi at vulture prices—about 20 cents on the dollar—during the worst of the Great Recession. When the hedge fund managers were told that they should save as many American jobs as they should, they refused and forced a judge to hold an auction for the company’s stock. Elliott eventually took over the entire company for 67 cents a share.
Two years later Delphi shares were selling at $22 each, an astounding profit even for Mitt Romney.
How did Delphi undergo such a remarkable turnaround? They took federal bailout funds, slashed worker pensions, fired union workers and sent American jobs overseas.
Greg Palast explains, “The bottom line: the hedge funds’ paydays were made possible by a generous donation of $12.9 billion from US taxpayers.”
Just when you had convinced yourself you could NOT despise somebody more.
Contrare.....my loathing knows no bounds......
ReplyDeleteI live in imd-MI, and Delphi was the lifeblood of Saginaw for decades.
ReplyDeleteWhen this buyout was happening, people were despondent and leaving the area, those who could. Anyone who thinks Romney and his cohorts care about this country are dead wrong. Given the chance and the dollars, they would outsource everything from the USPS to your grandmother's bakery business. They are scum, and should be in prison. They should be kept as far away from the WH as we can keep them. I do hope this comes up tomorrow...or on today's shows.
Yeah, but you have to understand, Gryphen -- if GM went bankrupt-bankrupt, Mittens probably would have made BILLIONS...or...tens of millions...As I've seen speculation that Bain probably would have come in and scooped up what was left of the company for a low price and then sold it for kajillions.
ReplyDeleteRMoney's hand shows he has never done any manual work in his entire life. Just used it to sign contracts and edicts in order to make more money.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile my teabagger friends still believe that Candy Crowley gave help to Obama to win the debate last week. Wonder what they'll say about the NY Times piece about upcoming negotiations with Iran - after the election. (Hopefully it will be Obama Administration that will participate in the talks.) Something that has been in the works since Obama took office, quietly, behind the scenes.
I am going to vote, then take a nap until Nov 7 cause my head is going to explode. We need the Glass-Stegal Act back now, fix capital gains tax and set a fee/transaction, suck revenue from these vultures. Wall street is the American Taliban, we need a new word for greed and deceit. The GOP represents them all, traitors one and all...they don't want more, they want it all.
ReplyDeleteIt's been posted before -- here's the info of who and how Romney's - both Mitt's & Ann's -- trusts operate. Remember those words of Romney's -- 'The blind trust is an age-old ruse'.
ReplyDeleteRomney’s ‘blind trust’ is run by his longtime associate — by his personal lawyer Bradford Malt.
Malt also serves as a Trustee for Romney’s charitable foundation.
Malt also served as outside counsel to Bain Capital
Chances are that his lawyer probably benefited financially from Bain investments in that Romney and Malt have associated with each other from way back.
There is definitely more than a conflict of interest. The trust being run by his personal lawyer, it raises the issue of hiding behind the lawyer/client privilege, which he is doing when you hear him on stage claiming he doesn't know because it's in a 'blind trust'.
You can feel Romney and the tenticles running through this blind trust — none of them being credible -- none of them above board.
Romney owns approx $8 million of Bain which then owns 51% of Sensata -- the largest shareholder. You can be damm sure he's the one manipulating this sale/move to China but again -- via his 'blind trust' lawyer. Lawyer/client privilege.
http://2012.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/12/report-raises-questions-about-mitt-romneys-investments.php
We also know that Romney transferred Sensata stock to his 'charity foundation' for a tax benefits:
"While the workers and the town may suffer, Romney himself has done well as a result of Bain's work with the company. According to his recently released 2011 tax returns, Romney transferred $701,703 worth of Sensata stock to the Tyler Charitable Foundation, a 501(c)3 tax-exempt nonprofit controlled by Romney.... Moving the stock to his nonprofit brings Romney twin benefits. First, he gets to deduct the full value of the stock. At a 35 percent tax rate, that's nearly a $250,000 benefit. At 15 percent, it's just over $100,000.
Second, Romney is able to avoid paying capital gains taxes on the stock price increase. Romney's returns list no cost for the stock, and indicate he obtained them as part of a partnership interest in Bain. Avoiding capital gains taxes on the full increase would save an additional $100,000. In 2010, Romney gifted $170,000 worth of Sensata stock to his charity, saving $25,000 in capital gains taxes that year."
http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2012/10/16/14479899-shining-a-spotlight-on-sensata?lite
What a tangled web he lives in and I wish more would open their eyes to it. He's have us all living in dorms if he could
Also be aware, the right is pushing back with 'Obama benefited from the auto bailout' and is pointing out Delphi in one post and Sensata in another as it falls under a 'pension fund' Obama has invested that shows up on Obama's disclosure forms.
ReplyDeleteI haven't looked too deep into it as I only found the posts last evening, but I do know, that the mutual funds that I personally have, are made up of many different companies under the banner of one fund.
This is the right once again trying to muddy the playing field.
http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/obama-benefited-financially-auto-bailout_655001.html
When Romney says corporations are people too, that's the guy who is one of the people.
ReplyDeleteWell, I guess that explains why the Delphi company disappeared from my neighborhood in Oak Creek, WI. (Across from the Culver's, which, thank goodness, is still there)
ReplyDeleteAt least the city salvaged the observatory they had there. If Mitt had know about it, it woulda been shipped to China too!
Sound to me like Delphi needs a competitor. Someone that can make parts better and cheaper.
ReplyDeletePerhaps someone that make them in the U.S. with U.S. workers.
Anyone who is not a multimillionaire and votes for that slimeball has their own head firming shoved up their own ass.
ReplyDelete