Breaking: Mitt Romney is richer than you. For at least the second time since announcing his latest bid for the White House, the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination has reminded the public of how much wealthier he is than them in a way that doesn’t exactly win the award for campaign optics.
The first time, the millionaire Romney declared himself ‘also unemployed’ to a crowd of jobless people.
This time the reminder that Romney’s richer than you was more subtle. Just slightly.
The San Diego Union-Tribune broke the story of Romney’s California plans this weekend:
Romney has filed an application with the city to bulldoze his 3,009-square-foot, single-story home at 311 Dunemere Dr. and replace it with a two-story, 11,062-square-foot structure. No date has been set to consider the proposed coastal development and site development permits, which must be approved by the city.
Three years ago, Romney bought the “oceanfront manse in La Jolla” for $12 million. His campaign says the house on the property is too small for Romney’s large extended family, and so he’s dipping into some of that unfathomable personal fortune to expand it.
The campaign told reporters this weekend that work on the project won’t begin until after next year’s presidential election. That’s probably a smart move politically, given the public reaction to the last GOP nominee’s real estate holdings.
So, why California? SanDiego.com reports Romney said last year that the oceanfront property stirred up memories of his (also fabulously wealthy) childhood:
At a book signing in nearby University City last year, Romney explained why he bought the house.“I wanted to be where I could hear the waves,” he said. “As a boy, we spent summers on Lake Huron [in his native Michigan] and I could hear the crashing waves at night. It was one of my favorite things in the world. Being near the water and the waves was something I badly wanted to experience again.”
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Evan McMorris-Santoro
Evan McMorris-Santoro has covered politics for TPM since 2009. Before that, he was a reporter at National Journal’s Hotline covering election 2008. He started his career covering local politics at newspapers in TN and his native NC.
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