Source: RawStory
By contrast, former governor Mitt Romney (R-MA), currently leading the pack of GOP candidates, called for a strong America and a strong relationship with Israel — rhetoric that has most often accompanied robust military spending. Meanwhile, back in Washington, President Obama thought last year that the prospect of automatic defense spending cuts would be enough to pressure the supercommittee into a deal on the debt: it wasn’t, and now he may be stuck with them.
Given all of that, and Romney’s pro-business platform, you would think he’d be the favored son of the defense industry, even in the early stages of the 2012 race. You’d be wrong.
President Obama is leading the pack in donations from the defense industry: according to the Center for Responsive Politics, he’d taken in almost $112,000 from defense industry donors through December 2011, despite not accepting any donations from super PACs or lobbyists. (Complete fourth quarter numbers were only released yesterday, so break-downs aren’t yet available by industry.)
By comparison, Romney only got $56,000 for his campaign from defense-industry donors. Former Senator Rick Santorum (R-PA) — who, notably, was far behind in fundraising when the figures were compiled — took in a paltry $4,900 from defense industry employees despite previously representing a state with a sizable defense industry (Pennsylvania) and currently residing in a state with an even larger defense industry (Virginia).
