FACT CHECK: Romney’s Economic Record As Governor Was One Of Failure
Despite the polished videos and speeches that we’ll hear tonight, the truth is that Mitt Romney’s economic record as Governor was one of failure. Under Romney, Massachusetts was 47th out of 50 in job creation and 1st in per capita debt. And he did it all while raising taxes and fees on middle class families and businesses by $750 million a year, leaving the state with a $1 billion budget gap, and outsourcing state jobs to India.
UNDER ROMNEY MASSACHUSETTS RANKED 47TH OUT OF 50 IN JOB GROWTH
Wall Street Journal: “The Most Powerful Statistic May Be That Under Mr. Romney, Massachusetts Was 47th Out Of 50 States In Job Creation, Down From 36th When He Took Office.” [Wall Street Journal, 5/31/12]
USA Today Fact Check: Under Romney, Massachusetts Net Job Growth That Was “Far Slower” Than The National Average And Ranked 47th In Job Growth Over The Entirety Of Romney’s Term. “Unlike Obama, Romney took office during an economic uptick. Massachusetts had a net job growth of 1.4 percent under Romney. However, that was far slower growth than the national average of 5.3%. As Romney's opponents have frequently, and correctly, noted, Massachusetts ranked 47th in job growth over the entirety of Romney's term. The only states that did worse: Louisiana, Michigan and Ohio.” [Fact Check, USA Today, 1/5/12]
ROMNEY RAISED TAXES AND FEES BY $750 MILLION ANNUALLY ON MASSACHUSETTS' MIDDLE CLASS FAMILIES AND BUSINESSES
Washington Post Fact Checker: “The Campaign Claims Romney Balanced The Massachusetts Budget Without Raising Taxes, But He Closed Tax Loopholes And Raised Fees To The Tune Of $750 Million Per Year.” [Washington Post, Fact Checker, 6/12/12]
National Conference of State Legislatures: Massachusetts Imposed More Fee Hikes Than Any Other State in the Nation In 2003. [Congress Daily, 8/28/03]
Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation: Fee And Tax Increases In Romney’s First Budget “Will Surely Hit Taxpayers’ Pocketbooks As Hard As Any Tax Increase And, Many Would Argue, Less Fairly As Well.” [Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation 8/11/2003]
Cato Institute On Romney’s Claims He Stood By A No-New-Taxes Pledge As Governor: “Mostly A Myth.” [Cato Institute’s Fiscal Policy Report Card on America’s Governors: 2006, 10/24/06]
BY THE END OF ROMNEY’S TERM MASSACHUSETTS RANKED FIRST IN THE NATION FOR HIGHEST PER CAPITA DEBT AND LEFT WITH A BILLION DOLLAR BUDGET GAP
The Republican Headline: “Mass. Tops U.S. As Debtor State.” [The Republican, 2/3/07]
The Tax Foundation Listed Massachusetts As Ranked With Highest State Debt Per Capita At The End Of Fiscal Year 2007. The Tax Foundation listed Massachusetts debt per capita as $10,546 at the end of fiscal year 2007. It was first in the nation, while Alaska was second. [Tax Foundation, Facts & Figures, 2009]
New York Times: Romney Made The Economy A Central Part Of His 2008 Campaign But “Unemployment Is Still Relatively High” In Massachusetts And Romney Left A $1.3 Billion Budget Gap. “As Mr. Romney seeks the Republican presidential nomination, his fiscal and economic achievements are central elements of his campaign. His first television commercial calls him ‘the Republican governor who turned around a Democratic state. ‘ But some in Massachusetts question how healthy the state’s economic and fiscal condition actually is. Unemployment is still relatively high, and the new governor, Deval L. Patrick, a Democrat, says he is grappling with a budget gap of $1.3 billion.” [New York Times, 3/16/07]