Mitt Romney Profited By At Least $15.3 Million From Auto Bailout: Report

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/18/mitt-romney-auto-bailout-profit_n_1976651.html?utm_hp_ref=politics

Mitt Romney, who famously authored an op-ed in 2008 suggesting that the federal government should "let Detroit go bankrupt," has been on the defensive in the Midwest ever since President Barack Obama's controversial auto bailout turned the struggling companies around. Political observers roundly agree that Romney's opposition to federal intervention may very well cost him Ohio and therefore the White House.

At Tuesday's presidential debate on Long Island, Romney attempted to recast the story, with himself as the champion of the industry (see the video above), but his comments at the time, recorded for posterity, have made such a reinvention challenging.

But while Romney's political fortunes may have been shorted by the Obama's auto rescue, the bailout was a boon for his personal fortune.

A new report running Thursday in The Nation finds that Romney and his wife, Ann, made at least $15.3 million -- and perhaps tens of millions more -- as a result of bailout funds paid to General Motors. The story, an early copy of which was provided to The Huffington Post, is written by investigative reporter Greg Palast and was backed by the The Investigative Fund at The Nation Institute.

Romney's windfall from the bailout is directly tied to his relationship with Paul Singer, the billionaire hedge fund manager who donated $1 million to the Republican's presidential campaign in April. As The Nation reports, the Romneys invested at least $1 million with Singer's fund, Elliott Management, which is known for investing in distressed or bankrupt companies.

One of those bankrupt companies was Delphi, an auto parts maker that hit financial trouble after being spun off from its former parent, GM. Singer's fund bought up a controlling interest in Delphi for about 67 cents a share on average, The Nation calculates. By last November, Delphi's initial public offering was priced at $22 a share, thanks in part by efforts to cut costs by moving operations overseas and employing non-union workers. Delphi's stock price has continued to take off, with shares closing around $32 as of this week.