Telegraph: Mitt Romney may have breached ethics laws through company linked to Paul Ryan's brother

[Ruby the Liberal]

Mitt Romney may have breached state ethics laws as Governor of Massachusetts by holding a stake in a company that did lucrative work for his administration and was linked to the family of Paul Ryan, a Daily Telegraph investigation has found.

The Republican presidential candidate appears to have profited from a marketing company that was contracted by the state of Massachusetts after receiving $5 million (£3.2 million) in financial backing from Bain Capital, Mr Romney’s investment firm.
One of his vice-presidential candidate's brothers, who is a former Bain consultant, was at the time of the investment a senior executive at the marketing company, Imagitas, which was co-founded by another former Bain executive.

Both Mr Romney and Tobin Ryan, who omits his work at Imagitas from his corporate biography, also apparently stood to benefit from the $230 million (£146 million) sale of the company in 2005, while Mr Romney remained in office.

Massachusetts law requires that all state employees divest themselves of financial interests in private sector contracts with state agencies. At the time, failure to do so could have resulted in a $2,000 (£1,273) fine or a 2.5-year prison sentence. The potential punishments are now stronger.

Asked repeatedly by The Daily Telegraph throughout this week whether Mr Romney had indeed profited from the company, had been aware of the potential conflict of interest, or had taken any action to avoid one, his campaign and Bain Capital declined to comment.

-snip-

Tobin Ryan, who has been quoted in profiles of his brother by American media this week, declined to respond to multiple emails requesting comment, and declined to allow telephone calls to be put through to his office from the front desk at the headquarters of Seidler Partners in Marina Del Rey.

More: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9483845/US-election-Mitt-Romney-may-have-breached-ethics-laws-through-company-linked-to-Paul-Ryans-brother.html

[Democat]

1. If this story was about Biden and Obama it would be front page on every US newspaper

Because it's about Romney and Ryan, wonder if it will ever shows up in the US.

[BumRushDaShow]

2. +infinity. n/t

[Ruby the Liberal]

3. The journo is based in DC.

Guessing if this has any weight, it will get picked up starting with pubs like Slate and MotherJones?

[muriel_volestrangler]

11. Joshua Holland on Alternet has picked it up

http://www.alternet.org/election-2012/report-romney-may-have-violated-massachusetts-ethics-laws-company-linked-paul-ryans

Here's hoping it spreads.

[PSPS]

4. Excuse me, but there aren't any "ethics laws" anymore. Certainly none that are even enforced.

[Ruby the Liberal]

6. There is that.

Maybe they are all too busy looking into the Voter schemes in Ohio and PA to review stuff like this.

[Berlum]

8. And beside, Republicons just don't 'do' ethics

ethics are for the 99% - the 1% like to imagine they are 'special'

[Rosa Luxemburg]

5. How is it the British press tells us about this?

[Doctor_J]

7. Too bad we have to read European press to find out about more

Republican crime.

[sad sally]

9. Another embarrasing and illegal reason the rich RMoney family won't release tax records?

[LiberalFighter]

10. Is Paul Ryan's brother a criminal. Seems he might be.