Romney, who vows to \"fight for jobs,\" oversaw job losses and factory closures as CEO of a private equity firm. Romney changes tune on layoffs

On the stump in economically struggling Michigan and South Carolina recently, Mitt Romney has been making the case that “it always makes sense to fight for every single good job.”

But this position seems to be at odds with the Republican contender's one-time role as chief executive officer of Bain Capital, a large private equity firm.


• In 1992, the firm acquired American Pad & Paper. By 1999, the year Romney left Bain, two American plants were closed, 385 jobs had been cut and the company was $392 million in debt.

The next year, Ampad was forced into bankruptcy.

• Bain Capital and Goldman Sachs bought Dade International for about $450 million in 1994.

The firm quickly fired or relocated at least 900 workers. Over the next several years, it sunk increasingly into debt and laid off 1,000 workers.

In 2002 — after Romney had left Bain — it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

• A 1997 buyout of LIVE Entertainment for $150 million resulted in 40 layoffs, roughly one in four of the company's 166 workers.

The job cuts affected all aspects of the company, from production and acquisition to legal and public relations.

• In 1997, Bain bought a stake in DDI Corp., a maker of electronic circuit boards.

Three years later, Bain took the company public and collected a $36 million payout.

But by August 2003, the company filed for bankruptcy protection, laying off more than 2,100 workers.

Four months after the bankruptcy, unhappy shareholders sued company executives, the initial public offering underwriters and Bain for mismanaging the IPO and failing to disclose company financial information. (Romney was not named in the suit.)

In March, all the defendants settled for $4.4 million.

Some job losses can be a natural part of the private equity business.

Firms like Bain Capital buy controlling stakes in troubled companies, then revamp them and sell them for a profit — a process that can include management changes and "cost-cutting," often code for job cuts.

On the stump, however, Romney paints his Bain-era self as a venture capitalist investing in creative small companies.

"I was responsible for a firm that invested other peoples' money," he said in South Carolina. "So I'd listen to new ideas and try to pick the ones I thought were the most innovative."

That’s not how Democrats and their allies see it.

The Democratic Party in December slammed Romney's private sector record, blaming him for job losses and factory closures.

"If smooth talking Mitt Romney thinks he can rescue his floundering campaign by talking about his business experience then by all means, let's talk about his whole record," Democratic National Committee spokesman Damien LaVera said.

Labor unions are gearing up to use the layoffs associated with Bain Capital, as well as other aspects of Romney’s business record, as a way to target the candidate and give added momentum to their almost yearlong campaign against the private equity industry.

"The more Romney tries to claim that, as a manager, he saved jobs, the more we will point out that these deals do the opposite," said Stephen Lerner, head of the Service Employees International Union's private equity project.

The attacks could mirror some Romney faced in his 1994 Senate race, when striking workers from Ampad drove to Massachusetts to protest at his campaign events.

The employees, mad that the buyout resulted in lower wages, trailed Romney across the state.

His opponent, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), used the incident to label him a “robber baron.”

Romney aides argue that their candidate’s private equity experience is an asset, not a liability.

“When Gov. Romney talks about his private sector experience, he talks about companies that have experienced success and failures. He talks about why jobs come and why they go,” said press secretary Eric Fehrnstrom.

“Mitt Romney can’t guarantee that these lost jobs will come back, but he can guarantee that he will fight for every single one of them.”

Aides also stress that Romney’s business experience is broader than just Bain Capital.

He worked as a consultant at Bain & Co., where he later returned as CEO to help the company’s turnaround.

“He has the experience of being the private sector that no other candidate can boast of,” said Fehrnstrom. “And the enterprises he has led are not only private sector enterprises but also the Olympics and a state.”

Private equity advocates argue that the industry creates jobs.

The Private Equity Council, a lobbying group, funded a study released on Thursday which said the acquisitions of 42 large companies by eight major private equity firms increased employment by 8.4 percent between 2002 and 2005.

Romney formed Bain Capital in 1984, after leaving sister consulting firm Bain & Co.

During his tenure, the firm transitioned from a venture capital company to more of a buyout firm, expanding from a start-up to managing about $4 billion in assets.

The company made him a very wealthy man, earning him much of the fortune he's poured into his presidential run.

Romney spent $17 million of his own money on his campaign as of Sept. 30.

He has acknowledged plowing more of his personal fortune into his campaign but refuses to say how much.

Meanwhile, he’s arguing his experience at Bain qualifies him for the biggest promotion of all.

"I have spent my life learning how jobs come and go," he told voters in Columbia. "We will see jobs continue to leave this country unless we have a president who understands how the economy works and continues to fight for every single job."