Saturday, July 07, 2012

Welcome to the team


A business leader is a little put off by the Obamunists persistent attacks on business owners..............


To find out more about where Obama stands with his potential donors, Business Insider spoke with fireworks magnate Bruce Zoldan, a prominent political fundraiser from Ohio's Mahoning Valley, where Obama campaigned Friday morning.

A major Clinton backer who has raised money for candidates from both parties, Zoldan was an early supporter of Obama in 2008, and even hosted the candidate for a fundraiser at his home in Canfield, Ohio — but he was noncommittal about whether he would be supporting the Democratic nominee this time around. He told Business Insider that he has been turned off by the Obama campaign's rhetoric on class war and income inequality, which he sees as unnecessarily divisive and antagonistic toward business owners.

"They talk too much about taxing the rich," said Zoldan, founder and CEO of the multimillion-dollar Phantom Fireworks empire. "Tax is not an issue with me — I pay my taxes and I'm happy to do it. But they are too focused on the idea that it is the rich people who are keeping down the poor." 
"I'm not opposed to Democrats on this issue," he added. "What bothers me is to hear that he is making employees — my team members — feel that I am somehow being unfair to them, like I am the bad guy." 

The attacks against Mitt Romney's wealth and record at Bain Capital fit into the message that "anybody in business who is successful has done something unfair to make them successful," he said. "I'm looking for more common ground." 

Zoldan also said that he was surprised by the Obama campaign's lack of outreach to business leaders in Ohio. He said was invited to attend Friday morning's event in Poland, Ohio, but was told it was unlikely he would get any one-on-one time with the President.  

"That doesn't happen with this administration — I don't think he has reached out to the community in the way that he should," Zoldan said, adding that "it wasn't like this under Clinton." 

"It wasn't this divisive, and I'm not sure that he [Obama] helps himself," Zoldan said. "The business community wasn't pro-Clinton, but it was never this hateful." 


No comments: