By now, we have all heard of Mitt Romney’s recent comments that nearly half of American households are moochers who are “dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them.” There is a real irony here. The host of the $50,000-a-plate fundraiser for Romney was prominent private equity manager Marc J. Leder. The private equity firm that Leder co-founded, Sun Capital, has more than once driven one of its portfolio companies into bankruptcy – shedding liability for the company’s pension plan and reducing its debt – only to have another of its units buy the company out of bankruptcy. Normally, owners lose their investment in a bankruptcy, but this maneuver allows Sun Capital to retain ownership of the portfolio company after having stiffed the company’s creditors and thrown its workers and retirees onto the mercy of a government agency for their retirement income.
Just this past November, Sun Capital took Friendly’s, the iconic family restaurant and ice cream parlor it took private in 2008, into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Friendly’s used the bankruptcy to jettison the pensions of nearly 6,000 employees and retirees. Outrageous as this seems, Friendly’s also sold itself out of bankruptcy to another affiliate of Sun Capital. A key part of Sun Capital’s restructuring plan involved shifting liability for the pension plan to the federal government’s Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC).
Now, Romney – at the home of the co-founder of a private equity firm that has the distinction of being the firm that took the most portfolio companies into bankruptcy in 2011 – had the gall to cast aspersions on, among others, workers whose retirement savings in private pension plans were wiped out, forcing them to depend on the government for their retirement income. These workers are simply collateral damage to owners who burden companies with unsustainable debt that plunges the companies into bankruptcy while managing to make a profit for the owners and their investors. In the Friendly’s case, this appears to be a transparent effort by Sun Capital to take advantage of the bankruptcy process to abandon pension obligations and throw the workers’ retirement income onto the PBGC while continuing to keep its ownership of Friendly’s. It is surprising that Romney, well known for his time at the helm of Bain Capital, was unaware of the role that he and others at the fundraiser played in contributing to the 47 percent who he says will not vote for him.
Help us Prepare for Trump’s Day One
Trump is busy getting ready for Day One of his presidency – but so is Truthout.
Trump has made it no secret that he is planning a demolition-style attack on both specific communities and democracy as a whole, beginning on his first day in office. With over 25 executive orders and directives queued up for January 20, he’s promised to “launch the largest deportation program in American history,” roll back anti-discrimination protections for transgender students, and implement a “drill, drill, drill” approach to ramp up oil and gas extraction.
Organizations like Truthout are also being threatened by legislation like HR 9495, the “nonprofit killer bill” that would allow the Treasury Secretary to declare any nonprofit a “terrorist-supporting organization” and strip its tax-exempt status without due process. Progressive media like Truthout that has courageously focused on reporting on Israel’s genocide in Gaza are in the bill’s crosshairs.
As journalists, we have a responsibility to look at hard realities and communicate them to you. We hope that you, like us, can use this information to prepare for what’s to come.
And if you feel uncertain about what to do in the face of a second Trump administration, we invite you to be an indispensable part of Truthout’s preparations.
In addition to covering the widespread onslaught of draconian policy, we’re shoring up our resources for what might come next for progressive media: bad-faith lawsuits from far-right ghouls, legislation that seeks to strip us of our ability to receive tax-deductible donations, and further throttling of our reach on social media platforms owned by Trump’s sycophants.
We’re preparing right now for Trump’s Day One: building a brave coalition of movement media; reaching out to the activists, academics, and thinkers we trust to shine a light on the inner workings of authoritarianism; and planning to use journalism as a tool to equip movements to protect the people, lands, and principles most vulnerable to Trump’s destruction.
We urgently need your help to prepare. As you know, our December fundraiser is our most important of the year and will determine the scale of work we’ll be able to do in 2025. We’ve set two goals: to raise $81,000 in one-time donations and to add 1250 new monthly donors by midnight on December 31.
Today, we’re asking all of our readers to start a monthly donation or make a one-time donation – as a commitment to stand with us on day one of Trump’s presidency, and every day after that, as we produce journalism that combats authoritarianism, censorship, injustice, and misinformation. You’re an essential part of our future – please join the movement by making a tax-deductible donation today.
If you have the means to make a substantial gift, please dig deep during this critical time!
With gratitude and resolve,
Maya, Negin, Saima, and Ziggy