The Meaning of Mitt: The Dark Side of Mitt Romney

[tpsbmam]

Some snippets from a long article in the February Vanity Fair. It was billed as "The Dark Side of Mitt Romney" in the table of contents, but I don't think the author quite got there. But there were definitely interesting bits about him and his personality!

<snip>

If Romney is exceedingly comfortable around family and close friends, he’s much less so around those he doesn’t know well, drawing a boundary that’s difficult to traverse. It’s a strict social order—us and them—that has put co-workers, political aides, casual acquaintances, and others in his professional circles, even people who have worked with or known him for years, outside the bubble. As a result, he has numerous admirers but, by several accounts, not a long list of close pals. “He’s very engaging and charming in a small group of friends he’s comfortable with,” said one former aide. “When he’s with people he doesn’t know, he gets more formal. And if it’s a political thing where he doesn’t know anybody, he has a mask.” For those outside the inner circle, Romney comes across as all business. Colleagues at work or political staffers are there to do a job, not to bond. “Mitt is always the star,” said one Massachusetts Republican. “And everybody else is a bit player.” He has little patience for idle chatter or small talk, little interest in mingling at cocktail parties, at social functions, or even in the crowded hallway. He is not fed by, and does not crave, casual social interaction, often displaying little desire to know who people are and what makes them tick. “He wasn’t overly interested in people’s personal details or their kids or spouses or team building or their career path,” said another former aide. “It was all very friendly but not very deep.” Or, as one fellow Republican put it, “He has that invisible wall between ‘me’ and ‘you.’” Referring to the time later when Romney was governor of Massachusetts, a Democratic lawmaker recalls, “You remember Richard Nixon and the imperial presidency? Well, this was the imperial governor.” There were the ropes that often curtailed access to Romney and his chambers. The elevator settings restricted access to his office. The tape on the floor told people exactly where to stand during events. This was the controlled environment that Romney created. His orbit was his own. “We always would talk about how, among the legislators, he had no idea what our names were—none,” the lawmaker said, “because he was so far removed from the day-to-day operations of state government.”

So, the guy isn't removed only because he's a kajillionaire. He's removed because he's a narcissistic asshole who doesn't give a damn about anyone else, who they are, what's important in their lives....and talk about living in a bubble! Damn, he clearly creates an almost impenetrable one! Can you imagine this asshole as president? He wouldn't care about anyone's lives or how devastating his policies would be to the 99% -- hell, he would't even bother to clutter up his little bubble with people who'd tell him the truth about how much he was fucking up people's lives.

Review of Mitt's tenure as bishop is varied, particularly as it pertained to women. He actually got high marks from some of the more liberal Mormon women who confronted him at a big meeting about sexist church issues -- he apparently agreed to quite a lot of their demands. The other description that stuck out for me as being so consistent with everything I've read about him is he lacked the "empathy and courage they had known in other leaders."

What follows refers to the story of Peggie Hayes, who had joined the Mormon church when she was a teen, along with her mother and siblings. The church was really supportive -- Peggie & her family had really rough times. Among other things, Peggie babysat for Mitt's kids and those of other church members'. She was married at around 18-years-old and divorced -- by age 23 she was a single mom with a daughter. She moved back to the Boston area, where Mitt was by then bishop of her "ward" (congregation). She got pregnant (she was single) and, again, Mitt was supportive via helping her find ways to make extra money (she was working as a nurse's aid), including helping to "organize" their basement. But then, he hit her with a what sounds for all intents and purposes like a demand that she surrender her baby for adoption through the church's adoption agency!

Hayes was deeply insulted. She told him she would never surrender her child. Sure, her life wasn’t exactly the picture of Rockwellian harmony, but she felt she was on a path to stability. In that moment, she also felt intimidated. Here was Romney, who held great power as her church leader and was the head of a wealthy, prominent Belmont family, sitting in her gritty apartment making grave demands. “And then he says, ‘Well, this is what the church wants you to do, and if you don’t, then you could be excommunicated for failing to follow the leadership of the church,’?” Hayes recalled. It was a serious threat. At that point Hayes still valued her place within the Mormon Church. “This is not playing around,” she said. “This is not like ‘You don’t get to take Communion.’ This is like ‘You will not be saved. You will never see the face of God.’?” Romney would later deny that he had threatened Hayes with excommunication, but Hayes said his message was crystal clear: “Give up your son or give up your God.”

I need to add that Ms. Hayes continues to be grateful to Romney for the good he did for her and for her family. But she ultimately resigned from the church because of him. Her son (now a healthy adult) had a serious health problem and she hoped he'd get past her defying him by keeping her son and called on him for emotional/spiritual support. He sent 2 other guys -- that did it for her after his insistence that she give up her son! There were other instances mentioned in the article, he could be a total asshole, mostly by being a strict adherent to church doctrine and dismissing/being a total jerk to those who didn't strictly adhere to church rules.


About his time at Bain Capital:

For 15 years, Romney had been in the business of creative destruction and wealth creation. But what about his claims of job creation? Though Bain Capital surely helped expand some companies that had created jobs, the layoffs and closures at other firms would lead Romney’s political opponents to say that he had amassed a fortune in part by putting people out of work. The lucrative deals that made Romney wealthy could exact a cost. Maximizing financial return to investors could mean slashing jobs, closing plants, and moving production overseas. It could also mean clashing with union workers, serving on the board of a company that ran afoul of federal laws, and loading up already struggling companies with debt.

And his personal wealth:


<snip>

It was those kinds of deals that enabled Bain Capital to report the highest returns in the business in the 1990s. Romney’s own net worth would grow to at least $250 million, and maybe much more, a trove that would enable him to foot a large part of the bill for his 2008 presidential campaign. Asked about a report that his wealth at one point reached as high as $1 billion, Romney said, “I’m not going to get into my net worth. No estimates whatsoever.”

I thought the strongest portion of the article talked about Mitt's really strong Mormonism (I have to think the fundies will hate that), his relationship with his wife Ann, and how his beliefs played out during his leadership in the Mormon church. I thought the part about Bain and questions about his personal wealth were the weaker parts of the article.

(Emphases are mine.)

[Angry Dragon]

1. Just a shallow man

[Blue Owl]

2. Mitt Romney is also PRO-SLAVERY

Because if corporations truly are people just like Mitt says, and a corporation buys or sells another corporation -- well that sounds like slavery, my friend.

Not only that -- but only someone with a sick lust for absolute power (such as a slave owner) would find joy in firing their workers.