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South Carolina Debate

January 17, 2012 by · Comments Off on South Carolina Debate 

South Carolina DebateSouth Carolina Debate, The Republican presidential hopefuls attacked front-runner Mitt Romney’s business record and his failure to release his tax returns on Monday, looking to halt his growing momentum during the early stages of a debate in South Carolina.

Newt Gingrich, Rick Perry and Rick Santorum challenged Romney on his record and urged voters to take a critical look at the former Massachusetts governor, who leads the race to pick a challenger to President Barack Obama.

“We need to satisfy the country that whoever we nominate has a record that can stand up to Barack Obama in a very effective way,” said Gingrich, the former House speaker, defending his questions of Romney’s work at a private equity firm that critics say slashed jobs and plundered companies.

“That’s part of what a campaign is about, to answer those questions and deal with them effectively,” he said.

Romney said his firm, Bain Capital, invested in more than 100 businesses and some lost jobs while others thrived and created jobs.

“If people want to have someone who understands how the economy works, having worked in the real economy, then I’m the guy who can best post up against Barack Obama,” Romney said.

Perry, the Texas governor, challenged Romney to release his tax returns. Romney has not agreed to release the returns, although he has not ruled out doing it in the future.

“We need for you to release your income tax so the people of this country can see how you make your money,” Perry said.

Romney did not respond to Perry’s request.

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