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Romney campaign gave bonuses to top staff

areafiftyone

areafiftyone

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Mitt Romney’s campaign handed out more than $200,000 in bonuses last month to senior staffers, according to new disclosure records filed Thursday.

Richard Beeson, Romney’s national political director, received a $37,500 payment on Aug. 31 in addition to his salary, according to records filed with the Federal Election Commission.

In addition, records show at least six other top staffers each received $25,000 bonuses on the same date: campaign manager Matt Rhoades, general counsel Kathryn Biber, policy advisor Lanhee Chen, communications director Gail Gitcho, digital director Zach Moffatt and advisor Gabriel Schoenfeld. Two other employees received $10,000 bonuses.

A Romney spokeswoman did not respond to requests for comment on the payments Thursday.

The Romney campaign appears to be on a payroll schedule which, in normal months, would mean two paychecks per month. But in August many received three regular paychecks on the 1st, 15th and 31st, meaning that those who received the largest bonuses were paid more than $45,000 during August. Beeson and most other senior staffer make about $165,000 a year based on their salary payment levels, records show.

The bonuses came the day after Romney formally accepted the Republican presidential nomination at the party’s convention in Tampa. Despite strong fundraising since May, new records show that the campaign was struggling badly for money in August because it had run low on primary funds and was unable to tap into contributions collected for the general election until after the nomination. As a result, the campaign borrowed $20 million.

Records show that the campaign still owed $15 million of a $20 million loan from the Bank of Georgetown on Aug. 31. The campaign has since paid off another $4 million of the total by collecting new contributions for its primary account, officials have said.

Continue reading here: Romney campaign gave bonuses to top staff
 
areafiftyone said:
Mitt Romney’s campaign handed out more than $200,000 in bonuses last month to senior staffers, according to new disclosure records filed Thursday.

Richard Beeson, Romney’s national political director, received a $37,500 payment on Aug. 31 in addition to his salary, according to records filed with the Federal Election Commission.

In addition, records show at least six other top staffers each received $25,000 bonuses on the same date: campaign manager Matt Rhoades, general counsel Kathryn Biber, policy advisor Lanhee Chen, communications director Gail Gitcho, digital director Zach Moffatt and advisor Gabriel Schoenfeld. Two other employees received $10,000 bonuses.

A Romney spokeswoman did not respond to requests for comment on the payments Thursday.

The Romney campaign appears to be on a payroll schedule which, in normal months, would mean two paychecks per month. But in August many received three regular paychecks on the 1st, 15th and 31st, meaning that those who received the largest bonuses were paid more than $45,000 during August. Beeson and most other senior staffer make about $165,000 a year based on their salary payment levels, records show.

The bonuses came the day after Romney formally accepted the Republican presidential nomination at the party’s convention in Tampa. Despite strong fundraising since May, new records show that the campaign was struggling badly for money in August because it had run low on primary funds and was unable to tap into contributions collected for the general election until after the nomination. As a result, the campaign borrowed $20 million.

Records show that the campaign still owed $15 million of a $20 million loan from the Bank of Georgetown on Aug. 31. The campaign has since paid off another $4 million of the total by collecting new contributions for its primary account, officials have said.

Continue reading here: Romney campaign gave bonuses to top staff
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Wait, the Romney campaign is in debt? Why isn't this being reported anywhere? Thought he was going to run his campaign like a business, lol.
 
areafiftyone said:
Mitt Romney’s campaign handed out more than $200,000 in bonuses last month to senior staffers, according to new disclosure records filed Thursday.

Richard Beeson, Romney’s national political director, received a $37,500 payment on Aug. 31 in addition to his salary, according to records filed with the Federal Election Commission.

In addition, records show at least six other top staffers each received $25,000 bonuses on the same date: campaign manager Matt Rhoades, general counsel Kathryn Biber, policy advisor Lanhee Chen, communications director Gail Gitcho, digital director Zach Moffatt and advisor Gabriel Schoenfeld. Two other employees received $10,000 bonuses.

A Romney spokeswoman did not respond to requests for comment on the payments Thursday.

The Romney campaign appears to be on a payroll schedule which, in normal months, would mean two paychecks per month. But in August many received three regular paychecks on the 1st, 15th and 31st, meaning that those who received the largest bonuses were paid more than $45,000 during August. Beeson and most other senior staffer make about $165,000 a year based on their salary payment levels, records show.

The bonuses came the day after Romney formally accepted the Republican presidential nomination at the party’s convention in Tampa. Despite strong fundraising since May, new records show that the campaign was struggling badly for money in August because it had run low on primary funds and was unable to tap into contributions collected for the general election until after the nomination. As a result, the campaign borrowed $20 million.

Records show that the campaign still owed $15 million of a $20 million loan from the Bank of Georgetown on Aug. 31. The campaign has since paid off another $4 million of the total by collecting new contributions for its primary account, officials have said.

Continue reading here: Romney campaign gave bonuses to top staff
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What's your point?
 
apdst said:
All big vampaigns give bonuses to their senior people.
Click to expand...

you might have just inadvertently coined a classic term there.

either way, if it's not a legal issue, then it's not an issue.
 
roughdraft274 said:
Wait, the Romney campaign is in debt? Why isn't this being reported anywhere? Thought he was going to run his campaign like a business, lol.
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if he did that, he would have to outsource his staff to china
 
It's not good to view everything through a partisan lens. However, I think this is yet another window into Romney's soul.

Romney is very generous, to those immediately around him. He also believes that people at the top are entitled to rewards simply because they're at the top.

Lets face it, Romney's campaign is a embarrassment. Even if he wins the election, it won't have anything to do with him or his campaign. What successes can they point to? What message have they not muddled? Which positions have they not changed? They couldn't even run a scripted infomercial without getting upstaged by a chair.

This disaster doesn't come from the boots on the ground, it comes from the strategists on the top. What have they possibly done to deserve a bonus? Why should hardworking men and women be forced to watch their donations go to absolutely incompetent individuals? How does that make someone who makes 30k a year feel when their sacrifice is going to give Romney's political director 37.5k?

This is the most inept campaign in modern history, yet it believes in rewarding itself. Sounds a lot like Romneyomics.
 
MaggieD said:
What's your point?
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That is an appropriate use of campaign funds? I have to wonder Maggie. I thought the money was to be used to elect the candidate, I don't see how bonuses are legitimate. Maybe I'm not savvy about this stuff.

EDITED: If it were merited, maybe, but they haven't run a spectacular campaign. IIMHO anyway.
 
I dunno, IMO bonuses should only be given for a job well done (i.e. if he wins). I wonder what the criteria for these bonuses were.

Also, debt is not necissarily a bad thing. In the business world, debt is used to leverage investor earnings. If debt is used to solicit more contributions, I could see it as being a good thing. Now, if debt is being used to fill a contribution gap, it's not a great thing, but remember...a campaign is not a business. Money is being spent not for the purpose of making more money.
 
JRog said:
I dunno, IMO bonuses should only be given for a job well done (i.e. if he wins). I wonder what the criteria for these bonuses were.

Also, debt is not necissarily a bad thing. In the business world, debt is used to leverage investor earnings. If debt is used to solicit more contributions, I could see it as being a good thing. Now, if debt is being used to fill a contribution gap, it's not a great thing, but remember...a campaign is not a business. Money is being spent not for the purpose of making more money.
Click to expand...

As a side note, a government isn't a business either. The goal of a government is not to generate a profit, rather it is to spend all of it's money (hopefully in a way that benefits its population)
 
JRog said:
I dunno, IMO bonuses should only be given for a job well done (i.e. if he wins). I wonder what the criteria for these bonuses were.

Also, debt is not necissarily a bad thing. In the business world, debt is used to leverage investor earnings. If debt is used to solicit more contributions, I could see it as being a good thing. Now, if debt is being used to fill a contribution gap, it's not a great thing, but remember...a campaign is not a business. Money is being spent not for the purpose of making more money.
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First, it is not your opinion that counts. It is the agreement between Romney and staff. Second, the bonuses were given the day after accepting the nomination. Connect the dots. Win the nomination ... Get bonus.

Most campaigns incur debt at times. Some never get paid off. Some get paid after the candidate gets elected. Can you spell GM?

I don't see anything here illegal, immoral, or fattening.
 
JRog said:
The goal of a government is not to generate a profit, rather it is to spend all of it's money (hopefully in a way that benefits its population)
Click to expand...

Or in our case, spend more than its money.
 
jimbo said:
First, it is not your opinion that counts. It is the agreement between Romney and staff. Second, the bonuses were given the day after accepting the nomination. Connect the dots. Win the nomination ... Get bonus.

Most campaigns incur debt at times. Some never get paid off. Some get paid after the candidate gets elected. Can you spell GM?

I don't see anything here illegal, immoral, or fattening.
Click to expand...

but do we see something inept, as in the campaign and those who have been steering it
romney obviously thinks it is bonus-worthy
which tells us a lot about how he would view his own administration - no matter how it actually performs ... or doesn't
 
areafiftyone said:
Mitt Romney’s campaign handed out more than $200,000 in bonuses last month to senior staffers, according to new disclosure records filed Thursday.

Richard Beeson, Romney’s national political director, received a $37,500 payment on Aug. 31 in addition to his salary, according to records filed with the Federal Election Commission.

In addition, records show at least six other top staffers each received $25,000 bonuses on the same date: campaign manager Matt Rhoades, general counsel Kathryn Biber, policy advisor Lanhee Chen, communications director Gail Gitcho, digital director Zach Moffatt and advisor Gabriel Schoenfeld. Two other employees received $10,000 bonuses.

A Romney spokeswoman did not respond to requests for comment on the payments Thursday.

The Romney campaign appears to be on a payroll schedule which, in normal months, would mean two paychecks per month. But in August many received three regular paychecks on the 1st, 15th and 31st, meaning that those who received the largest bonuses were paid more than $45,000 during August. Beeson and most other senior staffer make about $165,000 a year based on their salary payment levels, records show.

The bonuses came the day after Romney formally accepted the Republican presidential nomination at the party’s convention in Tampa. Despite strong fundraising since May, new records show that the campaign was struggling badly for money in August because it had run low on primary funds and was unable to tap into contributions collected for the general election until after the nomination. As a result, the campaign borrowed $20 million.

Records show that the campaign still owed $15 million of a $20 million loan from the Bank of Georgetown on Aug. 31. The campaign has since paid off another $4 million of the total by collecting new contributions for its primary account, officials have said.

Continue reading here: Romney campaign gave bonuses to top staff
Click to expand...

And we see the reason why the romney campaign got started. It does not matter who wins, they all got paid really large amounts of money no matter what. If I thought Mitt could turn these money making scams into profits for america i might actually consider voting for him, but you can't funnel this money into the national needs, you can just put it in some guys pocket. The only good thing is that a bunch of really rich guys got taken to the cleaners by Romney who gave the money to his friends.
 
He can pay them all a billion dollars a week for all I care.
 
Gina said:
That is an appropriate use of campaign funds? I have to wonder Maggie. I thought the money was to be used to elect the candidate, I don't see how bonuses are legitimate. Maybe I'm not savvy about this stuff.

EDITED: If it were merited, maybe, but they haven't run a spectacular campaign. IIMHO anyway.
Click to expand...

If a corporation were to give employee bonuses, one could wonder if that is an appropriate use of stockholder money. This story is the craziest attempt to stretch trivial non-sense into a gotcha story. Campaigns employee people; employees get bonuses; and in other shocking news, the sun will set in the west today.
 
Fisher said:
If a corporation were to give employee bonuses, one could wonder if that is an appropriate use of stockholder money. This story is the craziest attempt to stretch trivial non-sense into a gotcha story. Campaigns employee people; employees get bonuses; and in other shocking news, the sun will set in the west today.
Click to expand...

Global dimming is real!? We're doomed!
 
justabubba said:
but do we see something inept, as in the campaign and those who have been steering it
romney obviously thinks it is bonus-worthy
which tells us a lot about how he would view his own administration - no matter how it actually performs ... or doesn't
Click to expand...

I don't see anything inept about the campaign. So far the only goal has been to win the nomination. Mission accomplished. Bonuses paid. We will know in November whether or not the campaign was a failure. Polls jump up and down based on the current sound byte. The only poll that matters is coming in November.

We don't know how Romney would run his administration. The only basis so far is his tenure as governor and his performance at the SLC Olympics. Both went relatively well. We do have an idea as to how the present administration will run the next administration, most probably a repeat of the current performance, with no need to worry about reelection.

I don't get the accomplishments of Obama. Gas prices are double, our ambassadors are being murdered and embassies burned. National debt and deficit are much higher. Unemployment is higher, especially real unemployment. More on food stamps than ever in history. Unemployment insurance has been turned into a welfare program with more using it.
 
Fisher said:
If a corporation were to give employee bonuses, one could wonder if that is an appropriate use of stockholder money. This story is the craziest attempt to stretch trivial non-sense into a gotcha story. Campaigns employee people; employees get bonuses; and in other shocking news, the sun will set in the west today.
Click to expand...

Well, I hesitated to comment, because I'm trying to avoid gotcha stories. I waded in on this one because I wondered, is it common practice to give bonuses to campaign staff? I've never heard of it before. Though it's not stockholder money, it is money coming from individual people who expect it to be used to get the candidate elected. Office supplies, campaign supplies, adjunct expenditures, are to be expected. As a donor to a campaign, I'm not enthusiastic about my money going for bonuses, especially for this campaign as there have been many well noted issues with how it's been run. Was it merited? Not that I can see. They did their job, they got him the nomination, but over and above a paycheck? That's questionable.

As a stockholder, I wouldn't question a bonus for the merits a job demonstrably, unquestionably, well done, making me money. There is no demonstrable, unquestionably job done well here.
 
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Whats the big deal ? I dont care what romney does with his campaign money to be honest...It is true his campaign is having some financial difficulty and his fundraising has been lackluster since the convention...
 
Depends on what their salaries are to begin with. If they're working for less than they normally do, the bonuses could be a thank you. Guess it beats getting a DVD boxed set like they would get working for the other fellow. :mrgreen:
 
roughdraft274 said:
Wait, the Romney campaign is in debt? Why isn't this being reported anywhere? Thought he was going to run his campaign like a business, lol.
Click to expand...

Why would it be reported?

Just about all businesses operate with some sort of debt.

Even the wealthiest people take out mortgages or use credit cards.
 
Gina said:
Well, I hesitated to comment, because I'm trying to avoid gotcha stories. I waded in on this one because I wondered, is it common practice to give bonuses to campaign staff? I've never heard of it before.
Click to expand...

As far as I know there are no regulations on campaign staff pay and every campaign has paid staff. I think some campaign managers get a cut of the ad budget as a bonus/pay but IDK. I still think it is a non-story but you may feel otherwise.
 
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