Joshua Holland: Mitt Romney's Shady Investments!!

Mitt Romney is not only one of the wealthiest presidential candidates in history, his finances are by far the most opaque. In April, the Washington Post reported that Romney "has taken advantage of an obscure exception in federal ethics laws to avoid disclosing the nature and extent of his holdings." By offering a limited description of his assets, Romney has made it difficult to know precisely where his money is invested, whether it is offshore or in controversial companies, or whether those holdings could affect his policies or present any conflicts of interest. This is no accident. From what we do know, Romney has, or has recently had some highly controversial investments in his extensive portfolio. The New York Times reported that Romney was invested in China's "unfair" trading practices on the campaign trail. His trust "also invested in derivative securities linked to the Japanese stock market and to an index that includes stocks in every major country except the United States. It invested in a derivative that would profit if the dollar fell against a group of foreign currencies," according to the Times. While he calls Russia our "number one geo-strategic foe," he also invested in the politically influential Russian state oil company, Gazprom. Gazprom is one of Russia's "national champion" companies, which are expected not only to turn a profit, but also to advance the country's national interests. It has long been seen as Vladimir Putin's "premier instrument of power," according to Foreign Affairs. Andrew Kaczynski at Buzzfeed reported that while "Romney has often used Chinese piracy ans intellectual property theft as an issue while attacking President Obama on China," he had invested in "Youku, a Chinese version of YouTube" that "became a haven for downloading illegal American content." He also invested in Youku, a Chinese version of YouTube" that became a haven for downloading illegal American content." He also invested in a Bain fund with a major stake in GOME, a Chinese electronics company that, according to the Boston Globe, "is being sued by Microsoft Corp. for selling computers with pirated versions of its Windows and Office software."