CNN 2012-07-18

 Thanks for joining us. Let's talk first about this controversy 1 over when you left Bain Capital. I'll put one of the documents in question up on screen, their SEC filing stating that you were CEO at Bain Capital past 1999.

 
When you say you left Bain to run the Olympics, why was your name still on these documents and why didn't you clear this up sooner?
 
Well, I was the owner of an entity 2 that is filing those information - that information, but I had no role whatsoever 3 in the management of Bain Capital after February of 1999, not that that would have been a problem, to have said that I was with the firm beyond that, but I simply wasn't. 
 
I left in February of 1999 to go out and run the Olympics. I went out and did that full-time 4, relinquished 5 all management authority and role in Bain Capital after February of 1999.
 
Then how do you explain that discrepancy 6, though, that your name is on these filings and yet you said publicly you left the firm in 1999? Weren't you concerned, at some point, that these filings might become public and people would see that your name was still on these filings?
 
Well, there's nothing wrong with being associated with Bain Capital, of course. But the truth is that I left any role at Bain Capital in February of '99. And, and that's known and that's said by the people at the firm. It's said by the documents, offering documents that the firm made subsequently about people investing in the firm. And I think anybody who knows that I was out full-time running the Olympics would understand that's where I was. I spent three years running the Olympic Games. And after that was over, we, we worked out our retirement 7 program, our departure official program for Bain Capital and handed over the shares I had. But there's a difference between being a shareholder 8, an owner, if you will, and being a person who's running an entity. And I had no role whatsoever in managing Bain Capital after February of 1999. 
 
And by the way, this is all an effort on the part of the president's campaign to divert attention from the fact that the president has been a failure when it comes to reigniting America's economy. We have had now 41 straight months with unemployment above 8 percent. And so he continues to try and find some way to attack me other than to talk about policy. And it's time to talk about what it will take to get America working again.
 
And you mentioned the president's campaign and what they've been ...
 
... I don't, I don't, yes. Yeah.
 
I know there's going to be every effort to try, to try and find some kind of attack piece on the part of the Obama campaign. But interestingly, every independent fact checker that's looked at this in-depth, not just taken a quick interview, but looked at  it in great depth, has said that the president's claims are false, misleading, wrong-headed. It got multiple Pinocchios from one reviewer. Look, what he's doing is doing everything in his power to try and divert attention from the fact that his policies have failed the American people.
 
Yeah.
 
And, nd this, this, these kinds of attacks in this campaign are simply completely out of consistent, out of character from what we'd expect from the presidency 9.
 
Let me ask you ...
It's beneath his dignity.
 
Yeah, and let me ask you about what the campaign has said. As you know, Obama's, President Obama's deputy campaign manager, Stephanie Cutter, was very harsh in a conference call on Thursday. Listen to what she said and then we'll get your response afterward 10.
 
Either Mitt 11 Romney, through his own work and his own signature, was misrepresenting his position at Bain to the SEC, which is a felony, or he was misrepresenting his position at Bain to the American people to avoid responsibility for some of the consequences of his investments.
 
Ms. Cutter suggested you might be guilty of a felony, Governor Romney. What is your response to that?
 
Is that really what's expected from the campaign of the sitting president of the United States, of the Republican nominee 12 of his party? I mean is this, is this the level that the Obama campaign is willing to stoop to? Is this, is this up to the standards expected of the presidency of the United States? I don't think the American people think so. I certainly don't think so. 
 
Do you believe that they're still … 
 
They announced early on, one of their insiders said that they, their, their campaign was going to be based upon the strategy of quote "kill Romney" end of quote. That's what they're doing. It's disgusting. It's demeaning. It's something which I think the president should take responsibility for and stop.
 
And do you believe you're being swift-boated(罗姆尼也说他没听过这个词) in this campaign?
 
Boy, I hadn't heard that term, but I'll give it some thought. I think what the president is doing is terribly destructive to the political process and beneath what the people of America expected from someone who said he was gonna rise above partisan 13 politics and bring a new era of change to Washington. We're not seeing that in this campaign so far.
 
You've released your 2010 tax return and a 2011 estimate. Bill Clinton was on the "Today" show today saying that you should release more. As you know, during the Republican primaries, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum and Rick Perry all called for you to release your taxes. Those are leader from both parties saying that you should release more of your taxes. When are you going to release more of your taxes and how many years?
 
I've indicated that, well, first of all, we've complied with the law. The law requires us to put out a full financial disclosure. That I've done. And then, in addition to that, I've already put out one year of tax returns. We'll put out the next year of tax returns as soon as the accountants have that ready. And that's what we're going to put out. I know there will always be calls for more. People always want to get more. And, you know, we're putting out what is required plus more that is not required. 
 
All right, Governor Romney, thanks very much for your time. We appreciate it.