Romney-touted firms got government help

COLUMBUS, Ohio, July 31 (UPI) -- Records show many businesses involved in Mitt Romney's "We Did Build This" campaign benefited from government assistance in one form or another.

The Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch reported the campaign was created in response to remarks made my President Barack Obama earlier this month:

"If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help ... somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges. If you've got a business, you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen."

Taking issue with the idea that all Americans received help at one time or another, several business owners hopped on Romney's bandwagon.

Steve Miller, president of Millwood Inc., appeared in the Web ad for "We Did Build This."

"I couldn't put my faith in the government or the banks -- no one wanted to talk to me," Miller said, describing the rough start to his business.

However, Millwood received a state tax break of $44,226, Ohio Department of Development records show.

The president of Service Spring Corp. also participated in the campaign. The company received a $70,000 Ohio Workforce Guarantee in 2005.

"He was trying to say 'Hey, you didn't build that business on your own,'" said Dennis Sollman, president of Sollman Electric Co. "'The government helped you build it.' And that's what ticked me off more than anything."

Sollman Electric Co. received millions of dollars in government contracts for schools and colleges.

Sollman, as well as the other business owners who turned out to prove Obama's comments rather than refute them, could not be reached for comment.