Romney Criticizes Stimulus in Factory that Received Money from Stimulus
EmailCOLORADO SPRINGS, Co. – Mitt Romney renewed attacks on President Obama’s stimulus plan during a campaign event at a metal company that received $2.3 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in November 2010.
“This president came into office and said, “OK, we’re going to get this economy going by borrowing 787 billion dollars in stimulus,” said Romney, speaking to more than a thousand people crammed onto the floor of Springs Fabrication, a metal plant. As first reported by the Colorado Springs Gazette, Spring Fabrication received more than $2 million from the stimulus plan for its work on a project to “upgrade the plumbing of the National Institute of Standards and Technology.”
“That stimulus he had, it did not do the job. I mean, I understand Tom said he was working on a project that got some stimulus money,” said Romney, speaking about Tom Neppl, the CEO of Springs Fabrication.
“I asked well were you able to hire more people because of that, he said no. Didn’t add any more people, just more money into the system, but no more people hired,” said Romney. “That stimulus did not create private sector jobs like it should have, like it could have, it instead protected government jobs.”
In a statement by Neppl provided by the Romney campaign to ABC News, the CEO said that the manufacturer “is not a stimulus success story.”
“I did not support the stimulus, I did not seek out stimulus funds, and the stimulus did not create or save a single job here,” said Neppl. “One of our best customers placed an order as they have in the past, for a government project like those we have done in the past.”
Romney also criticized Obama for the nation’s unemployment rate, saying the president should not be “celebrating” an 8.3 percent unemployment rate.
“And he said if we borrowed that money he would hold unemployment below 8 percent. It has not been below 8 percent since. And he’s celebrating that its at 8.3, said Romney. “Well that’s still above the emergency line of 8 percent, and by the way, he doesn’t get credit for things getting better.”
“I’m delighted things are getting better, I think they are, but the people who deserve the credit for things getting better are people like Tom who built a place like this and employed people in this great state.”
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IF THE CEO OF THAT METAL COMPANY SAYS THAT THE STIMULUS MONEY HAD NO REAL IMPACT ON THE COMPANY,THEN WHY DONT HE RETURN IT TO THE GOVT AND MAYBE SOME OTHER COMPANY CAN FIND USE FOR IT AND MAYBE CREATE A FEW JOBS.I GET TIRED OF HEARING ABOUT COMPANIES THAT RECEIVED MONEY BUT IT DIDNT HELP IMPROVE THEIR BUSINESS.LET THEM EXPLAIN TO THE PUBLIC WHAT THEY DID WITH IT AND STOP GIVING THEMSELVES RAISES.LIKE THE CEO OF VIACON WHO ONLY MADE 42MILLION LAST YEAR(SUCH A HORRIBLE CUT IN PAY)
Posted by: GUY | February 4, 2012, 6:40 pm 6:40 pm
There must have been a DNC bundler operating at Spring Fabrication.
Posted by: newcountryman | February 4, 2012, 7:02 pm 7:02 pm
Dear Tom Neppl, CEO of Spring Fabrication of Colorado Springs,
Would the company that hired you have had the money to hire you without the help it got from the stimulus? Doubt it. That means the $2 million project you did – you wouldn’t have had.
As a CEO, I’m sure you’re intelligent; clearly your company is doing well. But we readers are also intelligent.
Your company benefited from a contract supported by the stimulus. Without that stimulus, your company would have been $2 million poorer. That’s clear to all intelligent people who understand how the stimulus package was set up and worked.
Posted by: Ridiculous | February 4, 2012, 7:07 pm 7:07 pm
Why did Tom take the money if it was bad? This is ridiculous. To receive that much money and then take it and run it down is more than absurd. How could you take such an amount and call it bad? Why would you take such an amount if it was bad?
Posted by: lexingtonlady | February 4, 2012, 7:18 pm 7:18 pm
Hey Tom baby–Would you still have a factory if you hadn’t received the stimulus funds??? I surmise you wouldn’t!!!!!
Posted by: rjstolb | February 4, 2012, 7:28 pm 7:28 pm
Talk about biting the hand that feeds you. Note to the OMB: If ever there’s a need for a second round, skip Spring Fabrication of Colorado Springs.
Posted by: Rodney Wollam | February 4, 2012, 8:00 pm 8:00 pm
This is the main problem for the Republicans. As much as they decry the stimulus, “Obamacare”, etc. this is stuff that they have used and supported in the past. But their whole campaign is based on fear of President Obama and they had to tag anything he did as bad. The constant spiinning has them all completely dizzy.
Posted by: mike | February 4, 2012, 8:03 pm 8:03 pm
Did Romney think to ask, “Then why did you take it?” Springs Fabrication should be on
a banned list for any government money going forward. Springs Fabrication might also
consider a new CEO with more business skills.
Posted by: Cindy LaDuke | February 4, 2012, 8:52 pm 8:52 pm
Interesting. Apparently Nepple didn’t need the stimulus money and clearly isn’t at all grateful for it. So perhaps that was indeed a poor choice by Obama. What I want to know, since it is Mitt that is pointing out this unfortunate choice of recipient for the stimulus dollars, is whether or not Springs Fabrication sent money/jobs to other countries instead of using it here in America. Oh, only Mitt’s companies are allowed to do that? Oh, I see.
Posted by: Joyce | February 4, 2012, 8:57 pm 8:57 pm
Mitt Romney hates it when a company doesn’t go bankrupt. He made his fortune taking huge loans on busniess and walking away with the loaned money and bankrupting the business pushing thousands of families into the street. Remember, he doesn’t care about the poor and he likes to fire people. Mitt Romney NEVER has and NEVER will feel the stress and pain of unemployment. He doesn’t care.
Posted by: dan | February 4, 2012, 9:58 pm 9:58 pm
Why does Romney campaign have to speak for the CEO and not the CEO himself. Does he have problem with his English or something?
Posted by: fp | February 4, 2012, 10:09 pm 10:09 pm
WOW!! Talk about being ungrateful! I suppose he thinks if Romney becomes President he will get more of our tax dollars. How sad is it that someone who has benefited from the President’s policies is now trying to convince people that it did nothing for him. I hope he never, ever get a government contract again. Once again Republicns are showing just how pathetic they are.
Posted by: catmomtx | February 4, 2012, 10:13 pm 10:13 pm
You people are so naive. The stimulus money is nothing but a slush fund to kick back to Obama’s
campaign contribution for 2012.
Wake up !!!!
Posted by: hopeforchage2012 | February 4, 2012, 10:15 pm 10:15 pm
I cannot believe the audacity of Teppl. He receives the $2,000,000 dollars in stimulus money and the ungrateful, sorry, jerk has the gonads to diss the money he received. Give it BACK!!! You deserved to have gone out of business. You ingrate!
Posted by: ausia | February 4, 2012, 10:20 pm 10:20 pm
This is typical republican doublespeak stupidity…they cannot be trusted to run our nation…
Posted by: Eric | February 4, 2012, 11:16 pm 11:16 pm
‘Seems like 99% of the the previous posters are much more perceptive than Dittoheads. It’s about time people stop taking the anti-Obama rhetoric at face value. It’s purely negative GOP spin that instantly discounts anything the President tries to do. Thank God there are plenty of rational, decent people in the country who see right through the nasty things said about our President by those who hate him more than they love this great nation. Hate can blind anyone . Therefore it’s time for the GOP to get a seeing-eye-dog.
Posted by: Mikeyboy | February 4, 2012, 11:20 pm 11:20 pm
HOPEFORCHANGE: We get it !. If you don’t have any facts on which to base your hate speech, just make up something cynical and negative about Obama and post it as if you know what you’re talking about (which you obviously don’t).
Posted by: Mikeyboy | February 4, 2012, 11:26 pm 11:26 pm
the federal government is “one of Tom’s best customers”, and one he clearly wishes he didn’t have.
Gee, if it only takes Tom Neppl’s brains to run a successful company, it can’t be all that hard
Posted by: civisisus | February 4, 2012, 11:59 pm 11:59 pm
Please reinburst the taxpayers for the money you took from the stimulus since it did not help you at all.
Posted by: tonyatq | February 5, 2012, 12:01 am 12:01 am
I also do think the funds were requested or you did not get the funding so who was telling the truth here. The Stimulus helped create over a million jobs and saved many jobs as well. So to hatefully say that the Stimulus was a failure is just right wing nonsense and a total lie. It was very beneficial in my state with a republican governor who would probably also say it did no good.
Posted by: Vicki | February 5, 2012, 1:18 am 1:18 am
So what did they use the money for? Did they just put it in the bank? Or did the stimulus money pay for that order from that very good customer because it TARP funding was for that government project? Would that order have been made without TARP funds to support it? And where would the company be without that order for that government project?
The company I work for also got TARP funds…the funds allowed the military…a very good customer of our company…to make a major purchase for a government project…a purchase that would not have happened without TARP…and that purchase saved 15 jobs, which is 15% of our workforce…
Posted by: KG | February 5, 2012, 1:32 am 1:32 am
“I did not support the stimulus, I did not seek out stimulus funds, and the stimulus did not create or save a single job here,” said Neppl. “One of our best customers placed an order as they have in the past, for a government project like those we have done in the past.”
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This has to be a blantant lie. You simply do not receive government funds without having to go through a lot of red tape with government restrictions. Whether the funds added more jobs or not is debatable but had the company not had the work, it would have had a large problem with employee retention. You do not keep folks unless you have the funds to pay them. BTW, I am a small business owner who has gone through the process of obtaining government funds.
Posted by: Bob Ramos | February 5, 2012, 5:45 am 5:45 am
Obama should be reimbursing the taxpayers all the money he stole and wasted………………..BTW, you can tell the fools who don’t pay taxes–they don’t seem to understand the stimuls was just a way to redistribute money to Obama’s buddies and didn’t help the economy and in fact has it hurt it long term. Fraud, Treason, embezzlement comes to mind when I think of Obama.
Posted by: beensaidsaid | February 5, 2012, 6:51 am 6:51 am
@BEENSAIDSAID: ” they don’t seem to understand the stimuls was just a way to redistribute money to Obama’s buddies and didn’t help the economy and in fact has it hurt it long term.”
So Nepple says after receiving stimulus money” “I did not support the stimulus, I did not seek out stimulus funds, and the stimulus did not create or save a single job here,” said Neppl. “One of our best customers placed an order as they have in the past, for a government project like those we have done in the past.””
Yes, double-speak, traitorous, treasonous talk from an self-centered CEO who took my money. Last year, I paid 34% in taxes and am proud of it. I want a functional country – not a dysfunctional “every rat for himself” hellhole.
Posted by: ViNo | February 5, 2012, 8:04 am 8:04 am
Romney’s choice of holding the event at this plant, his laughingly saying this CEO took funds but hired no one, this ceo’s cursing the funds, and yet he has not laid off any employees this is a way bigger gaffe, and way more telling of who Romney truly is. He actually enjoys the thought that this guy pocketed the millions but didn’t pass it on by actually hiring new people.he thinks it great that this guy is mishandling Americans tax dollars?
Yet again this is what this man is going to do to America! This incident should be heavily reported people have a right to know!
Posted by: fed up | February 5, 2012, 8:40 am 8:40 am
If the money was only for the presidents friends then explain how this clown got any ,republicans stupidity is shining through good thing the rest of us wear shades
Posted by: thomas | February 5, 2012, 9:17 am 9:17 am
Maybe that CEO “clown” wasn’t the stimulus target. Maybe it was a silent partner investor. Who knows how this administration decides who gets tax money? So far their track record kind of sucks.
Posted by: newcountryman | February 5, 2012, 10:06 am 10:06 am
Vino, why are you blaming the CEO for Obama throwing TAX MONEY out the window. He took the money that he could get legally under OBAMA—————Again, it is Obama’s fault that money was wasted as Obama tossed money so his buddies could get the lion share of my tax money. If Obama was a CEO of a company and done this, he would be in prison.
Posted by: beensaidsaid | February 5, 2012, 11:19 am 11:19 am
First it was privatize profit and socialize debt.
Now it is socialize blame and privatize credit:
to paraphrase Romney,
it is Govt.’s fault that people made bad economic choices,
but it is not to Govt’s credit that the economy is recovering.
Posted by: Ridahoan | February 5, 2012, 11:37 am 11:37 am
At least the company still exists and has employees. If Bain and Romney had come into this company…it would cease to exist and the retirement program of the company would have been absorbed by Bain as it had in other cases…people were left without jobs and their retirement fund. This guy has to be thankful for this and I am a little skeptical about him saying it did not help his company. What did he do with it? Why did he take it? How come the stimulus infusion helped the Auto Industry…do you think they made the painful decisions to make it work and are now benefiting as the No. 1 auto manufacturer? Maybe this “Tom” did not make the right decisions? He sounds like a republican denier to me. Funny, how the republicans do not see what is really the truth and can blind themselves to the facts when they choose….like the fact that it was Bush and his policies that caused this recession in the first place. They never seem to mention this. And furthermore, what did Bush spend the surplus that was given to him by Clinton….he did not pay for his two wars…he did not pay for his prescription drug program…what did he spend it on?
Posted by: talmag | February 5, 2012, 11:38 am 11:38 am
President Obama said that his administration would do things “smarter”! Stimulus was squandered very inefficiently. It does not require a rocket scientist to throw money at a problem and hope that some of it does some good.
Posted by: Common _ Sense | February 5, 2012, 12:25 pm 12:25 pm
Dear Mr. Unthankful CEO: Will you please give our tax money back? You don’t need it or want it right?? GIVE IT BACK THEN!!!
Posted by: Stine | February 5, 2012, 12:30 pm 12:30 pm
What an ungrateful snit. He says he didn’t support the stimulus NOR did he request the funds. So…..they forced him to take it? It doesn’t work like that. The guy is being completely dishonest here. The whole stimulus scenario is replete with examples of people and/or companies that were “against” the stimulus, but they had no problem taking the money. Hypocrites, all. Wake up people, and stop believing this negative tripe about President Obama. Much of what Romney has been saying lately has been proven to be lies, yet he just keeps on spewing the same old lies, over and over. This guy is NOT on your side.
Posted by: Jo Hargis | February 5, 2012, 1:48 pm 1:48 pm
Wow, the nievety of Mitt is unbelievable. The CEO needs to give the money back. Hippocrates
Obama 2012
Posted by: Tish | February 5, 2012, 5:46 pm 5:46 pm