Nathan Vardi’s Forbes magazine article, “Mitt Romney: The Most Expensive Political Career in American History” makes the observation that, “lots of people pay a high price for getting into politics, but no one has likely given up more, at least financially, than Mitt Romney.”

Forbes has estimated that Romney would be worth approximately $2 billion had he remained at Bain Capital instead of running for office. As it was, Romney made the decision to leave Bain, a thriving private-equity firm, in 1999 in order to rescue the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. He subsequently went on to pursue the political career that eventually led to the GOP presidential nomination.

Romney is currently worth an estimated $230 million, but it is unarguable that he could have amassed a far more abundant fortune had he not left Bain. According to Forbes’ calculations, had Romney stayed at Bain, his stake in the company would be worth $1.5 billion today. Bloomberg pretty much concurs and estimates his stake would be worth $1.32 billion.

Leaving Bain, when he did, was a huge sacrifice–Romney declined a decade of profitable performance fees and Bain’s most lucrative deals, which likely could have brought in another $500 million.

So, had Mitt remained at Bain, Vardi reasons, he would, “probably be worth $2 billion by now.” Additionally, he “has consistently shown that he is willing to sacrifice huge sums of money in order to chase his political dreams,” Vardi adds.

It should also be noted, however, that during Romney’s tenure heading Bain, the firm realized an incredible 173 percent annual internal rate of return on the firms it bought and sold through the end of 1999.

This further demonstrates Mitt Romney’s adept skills in managing a business.  This is key because his initial focus, as president, would be fostering job creation and implementing his plan to jumpstart the economy.

RNC Chairman Reince Priebus reminds us that, “we are in troubled times and we need a strong leader who is ready to tackle our challenges head-on. With too few jobs and a skyrocketing debt, America, more than ever, needs a Mitt Romney.”

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