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Mitt Romney’s Wall Street Days

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    Rolling Stone’s Matt Taibbi on his latest article about the leveraged-buyout career of Mitt Romney.

  • Duration 8:55
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This transcript is automatically generated

So now.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- There probably is the most awful as.

Greedy mother for on the planet who -- god I won't kill your property and your mom.

If we let him -- -- into the broader on the current long title.

The map to -- is.

Articles on greed and debt.

Al Mitt Romney and Bain Capital.

States -- -- while the ground.

Destroyed jobs.

Instruct others with a build good morning to subsided morning satellite also present noting is not -- don't premier bottom undergoing a yet so we just we wanted to do an article it was -- because -- I was covering.

Rom the on the campaign internal or earlier this year and he went into this uses whole rhetorical line about how there's this.

Prairie fire of debt that's gonna race across the country and burn your children alive and everything and we -- only adds to what you're -- does nobody know what this guy -- for a living -- -- he is for twenty years.

He basically borrowed hundreds of millions of dollars in other people had to pay back and I think people were just confused about.

How to leverage buyout business works and we wanted to -- kind of a story that just explain that and didn't really get into anything else and that that's witnesses.

So he was a leveraged buyout -- As -- and I'm trying to follow this wall stretched over your scooter China and alienated I net yeah I know I don't and I think it.

Allow only I only read your articles -- But somewhat compared tonight -- new -- maybe I help.

If that's your right so when.

-- willing to say awful stuff about Britain.

Very sold -- -- relate to that.

But back to this also read the usual to leverage buyout -- Britain's Gordon -- that's right all of so -- -- granting illegal right no no it's completely illegal.

Arm and this is they're gonna -- -- for one -- to -- Unscom of arrests and help fifth at.

The -- It started out I mean -- -- -- -- early deals were more like venture capital deals -- what he -- Staples.

But then he made a decision.

Pretty early in his career that you know what it's kind of a lot of trouble to.

Actually start and build companies and then you gotta worry about whether they succeed or not and you -- -- to ration credit for work and the exactly exactly much easier.

To do is borrow hundreds of millions of dollars -- takeover existing companies with like no money down.

And then.

If they turn around great that they don't turnaround just salute him for their cash and and run up.

Bills and their credit -- and everything's good and that that's the that's the business model that he settled OK so what that business model.

Translate that in any way to run in the country.

Well if you're concerned about the national debt which he seems to be it's it's a very it's an odd.

It's an odd business model to -- depended on for years interest and other Romney.

Constantly.

Compares the national debt.

To use these -- -- no money down mortgages.

That are always heavily criticized.

-- Republicans -- right wingers -- always.

Criticize people who put no money down they didn't get a gigantic house -- about a minute before it.

But that's exactly what Bain Capital did.

With companies for years that put down as little as 5% sometimes less.

To take over gigantic companies like KB toys.

And it's it is functionally no different from those mortgages it's essentially the same thing what -- what is Romney and others and -- capital.

-- in our defense.

They that they don't have to say anything intimated this question never really come up an incredibly.

And that that's that's that was kind of the impetus -- -- for us doing this this -- is because is that.

Nobody is really leveled this criticism and the reason.

It hasn't come up I think is mainly because the Democrats are so terrified.

Of criticizing the private equity business as a whole they've been trying to walk that's why group.

Because they want their money all in well and they're dated a lot of the the big.

Campaign donors we're.

Private equity guys were huge friends of Barack Obama in the last election.

And they've been trying to walk this -- wrote -- a Bill Clinton Cory Booker all these guys came out.

And warned but Barack Obama about criticizing the private equity business criticizing Leveraged Buyouts and they really haven't got -- they've gone after Bain.

Specifically.

Without going after the generalities of how how the business works -- famously -- After all Barack Obama was elected.

That's a day after he was elected not sworn -- But today after he was elected to go all all same -- Larry Summers -- -- -- -- -- crooks who got us in the mess.

February on Arnold -- abortion or sort.

-- because he thought they could get us out of it is right is that why you that.

Oh I think it was a common issue minimum number of things number one it was or beholden to a lot of those people because they'd given him an enormous amount amount tentative -- -- -- election.

In 2000 -- and another thing.

You know a lot of this this -- that says he knows extremely complicated sort of bit the instinct for a lot of politicians is to say.

Well these guys know what they're doing an inordinate none of none of us understand this stuff so we have to go to the guys who know.

Know how this stuff works and they they bring those guys and but it it it it's really a shortsighted decision a lot of cases because it's really actually not that complicated it's just it's it's a different language.

You know I was kind of amused and the president was talking about in his most recent speeches to comparison.

About -- actually -- -- hope and change.

And that is related.

Essentially rules are falls to reload all star on jury -- -- -- -- and rivers said.

Essentially that -- hard on that -- that the Republicans were able to do all of those awful stuff.

Because relent -- not him ha but of course -- Latin.

Reynolds you know Democrats don't of them happened right attempts -- -- -- It's like -- so whatever somebody.

-- -- -- -- From crime -- whatever they do and they say number -- -- responsible influenced.

Hours breathe a sigh of relief.

To know that in fact it's -- wasn't Michael a credit has been murdered always every -- worked out yet.

Exactly and then column I would tell -- -- -- The article undercurrent is -- role is to own.

Greek debt.

-- Mitt Romney and Bain Capital.

States have entered program.

Destroyed jobs -- others with a build near big business guy and -- what did you there.

Well I think met often hits on some of the right points but sometimes goes a little over the top and making his point Illinois doesn't apply because over the top that's why some believable for example -- -- I would say this is not just offensive Wall Street or anything like that which -- knows what you'll say -- men but the -- the line in the article private equity firms are not.

Necessarily evil by definition -- -- -- -- talk about some of the reasons that's kind of buried in the middle and it's a paragraph in and of itself so mean that it's an indictment of the business but it says in the middle.

That the business isn't necessarily.

On evil one there was nothing illegal -- should talk about -- you know.

-- it's -- -- but there's there's a fundamental misconception about I think about what they do a Mitt Romney.

Has presented what they -- for what what private equity firms do as turning around businesses which is really not corporate private equity firms do there in the business of getting returns for themselves and for their investors true which is to completely different things like some of the businesses to turn around -- -- edit edit and its its positive for the private equity firm if the business does turnaround but it doesn't have to turn around that's keeping the people who understand is that it doesn't turn around -- can always do exactly with the mob does when they take over company.

I guess that's they can just run up massive bills on the on the company's credit it's and pay themselves huge bonuses and that's it it it it's it's a thing that's lost in the -- this is not about turning -- businesses by getting paid and -- if you look at the polls.

17 people this country on food stamps.

Or 191000.

Doesn't -- homeless kids in New York City 123001.

-- -- -- Unemployment.

All the Golden -- -- recent jobs report.

On Friday was not good news for the present and -- still ahead right right well I think that has a lot to do is.

With Romney as a candidate and I think use.

You know Iowa again when I was I was covering him earlier in the year.

I was specifically assigned by our editors go out and find one person in a crowd anywhere.

Who was stoked about Mitt Romney not who was voting for -- hated everybody else are you hated Obama.

But just who love Mitt Romney and I I work for a week I crisscrossed South Carolina I did not find that person and and I think.

People can talk -- -- into voting for him but he's he just doesn't have that thing that.

Like that Sarah Palin has where people just go crazy they just connect emotionally with -- -- and you that that's -- -- -- 3% or 4% that that -- --

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