Huffington Post: Denny Rehberg, GOP Congressman And Senate Hopeful, Blasts Child Labor Regulations
On February 2, 2012, the Huffington Post reported:
In a speech expounding on the rift between rural America and Washington D.C., Rep. Denny Rehberg (R-Mont.) vowed Thursday to use his funding powers to stop the Obama administration from implementing new child-labor rules pertaining to agricultural work, accusing the "urban" Labor Department of meddling in a "rural" industry it doesn't understand.
BuzzFeed: Marco Rubio Spent Big To Research Himself
On February 2, 2012, BuzzFeed reported:
Marco Rubio isn't running for anything right now, but that didn't stop him from spending more than $20,000 on a top national research firm to check out his own vulnerabilities. [...] "...Now press are digging into things like his family history and his student loans, while liberal Super PACs like American Bridge are doing oppo dumps. So of course we have to do our homework so we can the record straight," said the aide. "The fact that you have sources combing through our FEC report within hours of it being posted says all you need to say about why we are doing our own research." And indeed: The spending was brought to BuzzFeed's attention by American Bridge, a Democratic opposition research group.
AP: Romney Stock Trades Clash With Divestment Pledge
On February 2, 2012, the Associated Press reported:
During his presidential campaign in 2007, Republican candidate Mitt Romney promised that a trust overseeing his financial portfolio would shed any investments that conflicted with GOP positions toward Iran, China, stem cell research and other issues. But Romney's family trusts kept some of those stocks and repeatedly bought new investments in similar holdings as recently as 2010, when they were sold in advance of his latest White House campaign, a detailed review of Romney's financial records by The Associated Press shows. Recently disclosed 2010 tax returns for three family trust funds for Romney, his wife, Ann, and their adult children show scores of trades in such investments, worth more than $3 million when the holdings were all sold in 2010.
TPM: Romney Team Silent On Key Offshore Tax Avoidance Question
On February 1, 2012, Talking Points Memo reported:
Romney has disclosed a substantial individual retirement account (IRA) that, as the Wall Street Journal first noted, could have made offshore investments that circumvented an obscure U.S. tax called the Unrelated Business Income Tax (UBIT).
Washington Post: Romney, Citing Safety Net, Says He’s ‘Not Concerned About The Very Poor’
On February 1, 2012, the Washington Post reported:
In an interview with CNN Wednesday morning that should have been a Florida victory lap, former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney made a fumble that could give rivals an attack ad sound bite. Asked about his economic plan, Romney said repeatedly that he was not concerned with very poor Americans, but was focused instead on helping the middle class.
Atlantic: Have Democrats Succeeded In Pre-Destroying Romney?
On February 2, 2012, The Atlantic reported:
Practically every day for months, Democrats and their allies have been hammering Romney like this. Unions, party committees at the national and state levels, independent groups such as American Bridge and Americans United for Change, and the Obama campaign itself have undertaken an unprecedented effort to tarnish the front-runner while virtually ignoring the rest of the GOP candidates. And it appears to be working.
Boston Globe: Boston Lawyer Brad Malt In Crossfire Over Romney Investments
On January 30, 2012, the Boston Globe reported:
In 2007, as Romney prepared his first run for president, Malt sold stock in dozens of potentially controversial companies, including casino operators, tobacco growers, and firms with ties to Iran. Last year, after Romney pushed for tougher trade sanctions against China, Malt dumped a number of Chinese holdings. He recently shed a money market mutual fund that had invested in government-backed mortgage companies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which are blamed for exacerbating the housing bust.
Huffington Post: Mitt Romney Slams Birth Control Decision Similar To One He Made In Massachusetts
On January 30, 2012, the Huffington Post reported:
The Mitt Romney campaign sharply criticized President Barack Obama's recent decision to require most religiously affiliated employers to offer their employees birth control coverage in an email to The New York Times Sunday, calling it a "direct attack on religious liberty." But in 2005, Romney made an almost identical decision as governor of Massachusetts.
GQ: How Your Oppo-Research Sausage Is Made: Bain Vs. Newt Edition
On January 30, 2012, GQ reported:
A couple weeks ago I met some of the guys from American Bridge, the pro-Democratic super-PAC, loafing around a restaurant in New Hampshire in between interviews. Pointing out how poorly the Republican candidates have fared in attacking Romney's economic record, American Bridge president Rodell Molineau told me his crew was "here to help" with that job. Unlike the other opposition research shops, which are usually affiliated with actual campaigns and do their business only on an anonymous basis, the unaligned American Bridge actually wants credit for landing hits. Curious to sample their wares, we said we'd be happy to oblige. Here's what they sent us:
Daily Caller: Richard Lugar Doesn’t Live Here Anymore
On January 30, 2012, The Daily Caller reported:
Indiana Republican Sen. Richard Lugar is running for re-election in a state he has not lived in for over 30 years. Lugar sold his home at 3200 Highwoods Court in Indianapolis shortly after first assuming office in 1977. But due to a loophole in Indiana law, both he and his wife Charlene Lugar are still registered to vote at that address.