Romney jokes about dad's decision to close Detroit auto plant
Washington Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney joked about his father's decision to close a Detroit plant in the mid-1950s and shift the work to Wisconsin, remarks that have drawn fire from Democrats.
On a telephone town hall meeting with Wisconsin voters Wednesday, Romney recounted the decision of his father, George Romney, then CEO of American Motors, to close the company's Hudson plants on Detroit's east side and shift the work to the company's Kenosha, Wis., plant.
American Motors was created by the merger of Nash-Kelvinator and Hudson Motor Car Co. in January 1954. The decision moved Hudson production to Wisconsin, resulting in thousands of workers in Michigan losing their jobs, although some workers from Detroit were given a chance to transfer to Wisconsin. The Hudson brand continued in production until the brand in June 1957.
"One of (the) most humorous stories, I think, relates to my father. You may remember my father, George Romney, was president of an automobile company called American Motors," Romney said, according to audio of the call posted by ABC News and first reported by the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
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http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20120328/POLITICS01/203280456/Romney-jokes-about-dad-s-decision-close-Detroit-auto-plant?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE
Man, he takes tone deaf to a whole new level.