Katrina Trinko: For Mitt Romney, It’s 1994

Nearly two decades ago, Teddy Kennedy placed attacks on Bain Capital at the centerpiece of his senate campaign. His prime target was Ampad, a Bain-owned company that had bought an Indiana plant. According to a recent biography, The Real Romney, “the day Ampad bought the factory, SCM [the former owner] fired the workers. Many were rehired, but at lesser wages and reduced benefits.” Kennedy’s campaign, the authors claim, seized on the opportunity to cast Romney as the villain, and made “six thirty-second TV spots featuring nine Ampad workers” that were “withering” in their criticism.

 

Now, the Obama campaign is hoping that the Ampad saga — including the follow-up story that around 200 employees lost their jobs when the plant closed in 1995 — will turn voters against Romney. Yesterday, the campaign released a six-minute video about Ampad, featuring interviews from angry former employees. A sample quote from a former employee: “To me, Mitt Romney takes from the poor and middle class  and gives to the rich. It’s just the opposite of Robin Hood.”

 

This isn’t the first time Team Obama has attacked Romney’s Bain record...