Mitt Romney's European excursion didn't go especially well, but it could have been worse -- he could have gone to Italy.
Mitt Romney skipped Italy on his swing through Europe. That was probably prudent.
That's because Bain Capital, under Romney as chief executive officer, made about $1 billion in a leveraged buyout 12 years ago that remains controversial in Italy to this day. Bain was part of a group that bought a telephone-directory company from the Italian government and then sold it about two years later, at the peak of the technology bubble, for about 25 times what it paid.
Bain funneled profits through subsidiaries in Luxembourg, a common corporate strategy for avoiding income taxes in other European countries, according to documents reviewed by Bloomberg News. The buyer, Italy's biggest telephone company, now has a total market value less than what it paid Bain and other investors for the directory business.
Romney had a direct role in the deal -- he can't point to this as a Bain activity that occurred after his "retroactive" resignation -- and "probably earned more than $50 million, and possibly as much as $60 million."
Italy was less fortunate -- Bernardo Bortolotti, an economics professor at Turin University who advised the Italian Treasury on asset sales from 2002 through 2005, told Bloomberg News the sale is considered "a dark chapter in the country's privatization history, one that has hurt Italians deeply."
Josh Marshall added, "On the tax avoidance and destructive business practices front this seems pretty germane. Especially on the use of offshore accounts."
In the meantime, it looks like we can add Italy to the list of U.S. allies that would not welcome Romney with open arms.
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I thought the story line was that Romney was bad for the US and good for other countries which was at least understandable. So now taking advantage of the errors of the Italian government is a bad thing too?
Say has anybody here ever actually run a business?
Yes!i used to run a business,before going back to being a full time Researcher.Romney is no Business man.If you disagree,please provide instances when Romney took risks with his own capital and was unsure of the outcome.
And please there's Huge Difference between Capitalism and Business.
The former could be perverted--the latter not.
The Perverted form of the former is called Private Equity(vulture- a la Rick Perry ) capitalism,promoted and publicized by the neo-liberals like Romney.
Essentially MO is,the End always justifies the means and profits are more important than sovereignty.
You haven't written anything that requires a reply other than some vague ideas you have about business which is pretty conclusive that you have never engaged in it.
It's not that Romney is a good guy, he isn't. It's not that he would make a good president, we almost certainly will never know. But even Bil Clinton says:
'There’s no question that in terms of getting up and going to the office and, you know, basically performing the essential functions of the office, the man who has been governor and had a sterling business career crosses the qualification threshold."
As for the Italians they thought this was so appalling that they three times elected Berlusconi to be their Prime Minister who is worth literally 20 times Romney and probably 100 times the pirate the Romney is!
He's crooked. Not a good businessman.
tell Clinton not me
Wow. And yet he has his supporters who think that such crap is just business. Forget that it takes a certain type of character to do such crap. Ignore the tax dodge after destructive manipulation of the tax base. Forget the greed being more important than humanity or morality.
Sure the Italians would welcome him with open arms. Then they would tighten their grip around his neck.
Ahhh,but he is a good Christian.
Too bad they can't issue an indictment, which would mean he couldn't visit anywhere else in the world without an arrest.
yes you view such things as iillegal even though you have no idea about any of the laws involved.
Might not want this story to get around. The right is filled with "morans" whose "brians" relish the notion of a Chief Executive that gets under the skin of every other civilized nation. They tend to believe that if you're pissing a lot of people off, you're doing something right because nobody knows anything (except for themselves, of course). So to advertise that Romney effed over Italy will be seen as a badge of honor, not a cause for concern.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-06/romney-persona-non-grata-in-italy-for-bain-s-deal-skirting-taxes.html
Details: If you can't convince them to stop looking for dirt, confuse and befuddle them with details. (Voting can be manipulated?)
The difference is that laws can be made to the effect that "nothing here is illegal, immoral or unethical".
Example: Common Criminal law holds that if you steal money at the point of a gun, it is armed robbery, a crime punished with minimal cost to the system. Common Contract law holds that if you steal money at the point of a pen, it's a crime, but that's too bad, you should have hired a lawyer from the system, a crime punished with profit to the system. Stealing with a gun is a crime, stealing with a pen is shame, "nothing here is illegal, immoral or unethical".
Just you know: Violating "The Ten Commandments" is no longer problem, with criminal law or civil law, but local or so called "sharia" law only comes from a local interpretation (free form ignorance) of scriptures and not accountable to the system, therefore Business law contains "nothing here is illegal, immoral or unethical", the free market is holier than that, since it needs lawyers.
Interesting how a voluntary business transaction turns out to be morally wrong ? Bain was just one of the investors - and who held the gun to the head to those who authorized and completed the sale for Italy ? Selling for profit is what makes businesses succeed. If there is a crime committed by keeping profits offshore I'm sure the DOJ / IRS will not let that slide, but if its a result of the current tax structure design who in their right might would take advantage of it ? One important fact to remember is that it was never YOUR money anyways. This is always the driving force behind the manufactured outrage - somehow people believe they have a stake - that all money belongs to "the people" ok comrades...
Oooh la la, the defense of sleaze in business is amazing here. I recall that Bain and Romney were DETESTED by Wall Street because even in that thicket of ethically, morally and legally challenged 'business' men they were considered the worst: largely because they lied to the firms they dealt with and pretended their fees would be very low, so they got the bids, then once they had the deals signed, they suddenly raised their fees...
i have been researching this, and its very telling of possible tax conduct of romney and or Bain. I hope this gets tweeted everywhere, and the more i research on his dealings in europe, maybe reid isnt off the mark at all.