Romney: 'Regulations are Running Amok' [VIDEO]
Candidate says NH commercial fishermen and other small businesses are plagued by too much government regulation.
Flanked by commercial fishermen, and with a possible running mate behind him, Mitt Romney today accused President Obama of letting regulators "run amok."
The presumptive GOP presidential nominee said regulators are "just multiplying like proverbial rabbits."
“If I’m elected president, I am going to be a pro small business president and fight for the rights of small business,” Romney said.
Romney said President Obama continues to hinder small business growth with the passage of national health care reform and too much federal regulation that raises the cost of running a business.
Couple these things with President Obama’s energy policy that allows for less drilling for oil on federal lands and Romney said small businesses such as New Hampshire’s commercial fishermen are left with high diesel fuel prices that hinder their ability to make ends meet.
“We need a president who understands the power of free enterprise,” Romney said. “The president is focused on helping those who need the help the least. I want to help everybody, particularly those who are being left behind.”
He chastised Obama for not focusing more on the economy, creating jobs with higher wages, and lowering the cost of higher education, which is what Romney said voters care the most about.
Romney, dressed in a black jacket and jeans, was accompanied by U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH). Before addressing supporters at the Portsmouth Fish Pier, they toured some of the fishing boats docked at the former Portsmouth Fishermen’s Cooperative that closed three years ago.
Ayotte said Romney would be the kind of president the country needs to help small businesses and New Hampshire fishermen do well again.
“It is actually unfortunate to see what has been happening to New Hampshire fishermen, who are exhibit A as to why we need to make sure President Obama doesn’t get another term,” Ayotte said.
Ayotte said the Obama administration doesn’t understand that New Hampshire fishermen are a vital part of the state’s economy and “who we are.” She said Romney does understand that and with enough voter support in November, Ayotte said, “Help is on the way.”
The number of New Hampshire commercial fishermen has declined over the last 10 years because of federal regulations that imposed strict catch limits on species such as cod, haddock and flounder amid concerns that those and other species were being overfished and needed time to recover under the federal Magnuson-Stevens Act, a fishery conservation and management law under the National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Young fishermen like Joshua Heath, 23, of Hampton, said he would definitely vote for Romney if he made good on his promise to help small businesses and his fellow fishermen.
“In a heartbeat, of course,” he said. “If he says there is a way that I can have a future in this business, he is going to get my vote, no question about it.”
Chris Adamaitis of Portsmouth, a lobsterman who owns his own boat, “Rough Times,” said he is also inclined to support Romney over President Obama because Romney would provide the relief from government regulation that is making it so hard for the few remaining New Hampshire fishermen to stay in their industry.
Between regulations that include strict catch limits on fish such as cod and haddock, high diesel fuel prices and a lobster market that is becoming less lucrative, Adamaitis said fishermen need some relief.
Ariane Cameron of Rye said she brought her 2-year-old daughter, Phoebe, to the Romney event because she is a “big Mitt fan.” As a member of the “Moms for Mitt” group, Cameron believes Romney can turn things around for the better because “he has the actual real world experience.”
She also believes this next election will affect her daughter. “I don’t want to leave her the debt,” said Cameron of the national deficit.
Democrats kept to the Prescott Park area, across a channel from where Romney spoke, could barely be heard chanting "Obama." Terie Norelli, a Portsmouth Democrat and the Minority Leader in the New Hampshire House of Representatives, appeared at the pier before Romney's remarks to tout President Obama's record on the economy and national security.
"Unfortunately," she said (see attached video of her full comments), "Mitt Romney's economic scheme is all too familiar and troubling. It's more budget-busting tax cuts for the wealthy and fewer rules for Wall Street. That's what got us into trouble to start out with."
As Romney greeted supporters at the state pier, he declined to answer reporters questions about Ayotte being in the running as his vice presidential choice. This is the second New Hampshire stop for Romney in a week: He appeared in Manchester last Tuesday, after winning five primaries on April 24, to stake claim as the "presumptive" Republican nominee for president.
maria gomez
2:06 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
the government's definition of small business is anything employing 500 or less. In NH 500 is a BIG business. i'd like to know if he means a one or two person operation, which is about a third of new hampshire business.
bigfoot9p6
2:37 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
Romney's idea of helping a small business is buying it, firing all the workers, selling the rest for parts, and riding off into the sunset with a fatter wallet.
Ricky W Kracker a.k.a. Diggy Swagga
2:44 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
Source please.
Reuben Ryder
2:52 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
Rick is a paid poster. I see him around everywhere.
AJ
2:57 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
Hey, I like Mitt, but you asked what companies his old firm Bain Capital cannibalized.
Let's try Musicians Friend on for size. They were a $600 million a year family business. In 2010 Bain Capital fired the entire staff (half the town of Medford, OR) and moved the company to LA. The new staff is poorly trained --- that's what they tell customers like me -- and big problems crop up with orders.
Another company -- one I used to work for -- Clear Channel Communications was a family owned business from San Antonio that owned half the radio stations in America. Bain bought them and now they are about half as big as they were with intense problems that threaten their existence.
MItt is fine, but not a fan of Bain.
Seamus Carty
6:19 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
AJ,
If these business were truly family owned, then there is no way Bain could have gotten control of them. If the family controlled 51%+ of the stock, they would have veto power over any changes.
AJ
8:42 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
Family members still ran both businesses. Brain took over, shoved the family managers out, put less experienced people at ALL levels, and sucked up profits while a major US brand sank. I don't know why I'm explaining this when most people understood it the first time.
Seafus McCarthy
8:48 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
Seafood never posts anything original. He just picks on other people's posts. That's his M.O. Making the world a more nitpicked place. By the way, your post is too complicated. When you tell these stories, have a point.
Jan Schmidt
2:45 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
Let's see... regulation is a dirty word?
How about a little mad-cow-burger for lunch? WIth a side of GM fries?
Your drink? hmm a nice glass flaming water?
or maybe you have this backwards - De-regulation is what's running amok.
Rose Levy
2:52 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
Yep, when you don't have anything substantial you joke, sing, tell even bigger lies (he was out golfing when Osama was captured and only appeared for the picture!), has no brains, etc. What is IMPORTANT now is for the Congress to have OUR VOTES counted here by an AMERICAN company and not by SPAIN, where corruption has also reigned for a long time. Why not here? Because then votes can be discarded, rewritten, or not counted for OUR candidate but for Obama, the clown in office. Please, let us all contact our Congressional members and say NO to Spain counting OUR votes, and yes, to an American company preferably without ties to either party so we have half a chance to get OUR votes counted.
Jan Schmidt
7:08 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
And just what new insanity is this?
Survivor.
2:57 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
Romney is absolutely correct.
Truth B. Told
2:59 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
It's the president that has run amok.
katherine lockwoob
3:04 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
ANY criticism of of MItt Romney, criticizing his old company, or casting doubt on anything he has ever done, said, or believed is purely FALSE! It's wrong and MADE UP. The man is as close to perfection as is humanly possible. He is telegenic, he is rich, and I'm sure he has been 100% faithful to his lovely wife. This country desperately needs Mitt Romney and I won't stand for any drivel that would imply less!!!!!
Jan Schmidt
7:09 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
He can tell a lie perfectly too.
Bob Samson
3:40 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
It wouldn't be a bad thing if the regulations worked. They don't and just increase the cost of doing business. This results in lower employment.
Florian Schach
4:56 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
It is clear that Regulation is interfering with businesses. The regulatory overreach that we experience in the US isn't harmful to business both present and future. What is clear is that the lack of a developed and symbiotic relationship between Regulatory policy and Business Operations has not only caused a major divide between the two but has in fact cost both sides time, labor and most of all money to enforce or comply (http://bit.ly/zIfsUf ). Therefore, going forward it would be imperative that each side works with each other to form the best implementation and compliance methods possible. Without the acknowledgement for the need of something like this, we're going to run into problems everywhere we go with the economy.
Ron Claxton
5:18 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
The only time we really hear how they want, crave, can't wait to help the smallest of businesses is during the election. After that, it's money talks. But that's the way government has been since about 1790.
Jan Schmidt
7:13 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
We don't need less regulation, we need better regulation - and on the right areas...
Jesse_EngAmer
8:58 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
Regulation in and of itself isn't a danger. Smart regulation can be help just as overregulation or the wrong regulation can hurt.
It does seem the Obama administration has a tendency to over regulate. http://bit.ly/Imd8Gq
Rusty Dewalt
9:40 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
I could care less about big business. Most of them have been awash in liquidity since 2008 when banks were handing them loans and no one else. That's mostly what this regulation argument is about. NH small businesses generally aren't that concerned with it.
Joe Liddell Jr.
9:59 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
and... does anybody really believe they'll raise catch limits? I don't think a fisherman in the crowd really thinks it will happen.
Beverly L. Smith
9:50 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
The constantly rising price of gas is what killed business. We desperately need to get the traders out of oil. Of the $4 you pay for a gallon about $1.75 goes to commodity traders. I would ask Romney what he can do to get his people going in that direction.
ForThePeople
11:03 pm on Monday, April 30, 2012
The first step would be to agree with Obama who proposed this very thing:
http://www.usatoday.com/USCP/PNI/Business/2012-04-18-APUSObamaEnergy_ST_U.htm
LJoel Hackbart
1:53 pm on Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Romney supports even more deregulation. Deregulation- the great
failure.
www.ehow.com/facts_7413347_deregulation-failure.html
www.epi.org/publication/briefingpapers_exportdeath
www.demos.org/.../lessons-deregulation-corporate-cost-cutting-and-b...
www.americanprogress.org/issues/2010/06/cheney_deregulation.html
www.governmentisgood.com/articles.php?aid=15
articles.marketwatch.com/.../30764139_1_wall-street-mortgage-brok...
arran.wordpress.com/2007/.../deregulation-the-3rd-conservative-failu...
www.demos.org/.../lessons-deregulation-corporate-cost-cutting-and-b...
www.ufppc.org/.../9569-news-deregulation-a-cost-cutting-may-have-...
www.ufppc.org/.../9569-news-deregulation-a-cost-cutting-may-have-...
David Victory
12:18 am on Thursday, July 19, 2012
Of course he hates regulation. Stronger regulations could mean Mitt wouldn't be able to hide his money offshore any longer. Regulations are rules, and crooks hate rules. I do understand sometimes they can be troublesome because they apply across the board and are sometimes difficult for companies that have unusual circumstances. But the GOP, like a broken record, bellyaches about "burdensome regulations" endlessly. Why? They want no rules. Money is all they care about, and as we've seen over and over, they don't care if they come by that money fairly or not. They'll steal if they can, because it puts more $$$ in their pockets. They'll poison the water if they need to, because it puts more $$$ in their pockets. They want no limits on their behavior. They don't care what harm they cause in the pursuit of the almighty dollar. Regulations are rules. Regulations are limits. Remove them and watch all hell break loose.
As for the article, "...federal regulations that imposed strict catch limits on species such as cod, haddock and flounder amid concerns that those and other species were being overfished..."
Could it be that the regulation is a good idea? I'm no expert on fishing or marine biology. Anyone know? What happens when a species is overfished?
David Victory
12:21 am on Thursday, July 19, 2012
John McCain actually thought Simple Sarah was a better running mate than Willard. For real.
McCain: Palin Was "Better Candidate" Than Romney
http://slatest.slate.com/posts/2012/07/17/john_mccain_on_sarah_palin_mitt_romney_he_picked_palin_because_she_was_better.html
You betcha!