The answer is almost certainly no. And the reason why is clear in a piece that appeared on today’s Bloomberg website. Headed “Romney Persona Non Grata in Italy for Bain’s Deal Skirting Taxes,” it describes a Bain deal done while Romney was its active CEO.
According to this report, a dozen years ago Bain did a highly leveraged buyout of a telephone directory firm formerly owned by the government, held it for two years, then sold it for 25 times its purchase price, funneling, according to the article, “profits through subsidiaries in Luxembourg, a common corporate strategy for avoiding income taxes…” The buyer of this telephone directory firm, the article added, now has a capitalization less than what it paid for just this new acquisition.
Governor Romney is running for President of the United States these days, claiming his prime qualification for the job is his business experience with Bain. A qualification that this Italian deal suggests are those of a master scavenger, master seller into bubble markets, and further profiting in a masterly manner with tax gambits.
Are these the kind of qualifications that will get America out of its present economic doldrums? If Sheldon Adelson and the Koch Boys spend enough on attack ads, that view might make Mr. Romney our next President. But don’t try this game in Italy. Here. a more knowledgeable public when it comes to Bain games won’t play.