BREAKING!! Romney to Release Tax Return From 2011

[binnie]

No, those that earn more (are supposed to) pay more. There are plenty of people that work very hard for a pittance and don't pay much, just as there are plenty of people that don't work very hard that pay a lot. I simply question a system that creates situations where it is not worth while to work harder because the return on that work is not worth the effort.

I think we agree here - you earn more, you (should) pay more. My confusion of 'work harder' and 'earn more' didn't help matters (although I generally think that those who end up earning more have generally worked harder - it takes a lot of work to become a surgeon, for instance, but a surgeon's working day may not be as visibly hard as someone who works in construction).

I guess the issue on whether working more is worth it really depends on what the individual wants. Some people reach a point where they are content with their lot (a lot which would not content many others) and therefore do not see the need to work harder for a little more money. To you or I that might seem crazy, but it's not our life.

[Nickdfresh]

...
Let me add. This is how i know Obama is not a true Catholic and is more Muslim. He must have never read the 10 commandments that clearly states to not covet thy neighbors goods. If you think that you deserve something that someone else has and want it without working for it, you are a very sad human being.

Obama's not a Catholic and he not a Muslim, WTF are you even talking about? Did you start your Friday beer binge early today or something?

[jhale667]

[Nitro Express]

This just makes Harry Reid look like the bumbling ass he is. He was the one saying Mitt didn't pay any taxes.

[Nitro Express]

People don't vote issues. They vote their pocketbook. They vote for who is going to benefit them financially the most. Some people have something to gain from Mitt and some people have something to gain from Obama. Always follow the money and there lies the truth. Yes it's shallow but human beings are shallow creatures.

[Nickdfresh]

This just makes Harry Reid look like the bumbling ass he is. He was the one saying Mitt didn't pay any taxes.

When did Reid say that?

[Dr. Love]

I think we agree here - you earn more, you (should) pay more. My confusion of 'work harder' and 'earn more' didn't help matters (although I generally think that those who end up earning more have generally worked harder - it takes a lot of work to become a surgeon, for instance, but a surgeon's working day may not be as visibly hard as someone who works in construction).

I guess the issue on whether working more is worth it really depends on what the individual wants. Some people reach a point where they are content with their lot (a lot which would not content many others) and therefore do not see the need to work harder for a little more money. To you or I that might seem crazy, but it's not our life.

I don't really agree

I think everyone should pay the same percentage regardless of income. I think a progressive tax system is unfair; if we have to tax income, everyone should pay the same rate, and it should be the same for capital gains, corporate income, personal income or anything else.

[MUSICMANN]

Obama's not a Catholic and he not a Muslim, WTF are you even talking about? Did you start your Friday beer binge early today or something?

I meant he pretends to be a christian and spouts off bullshit, but doesn't even know what the hell he is even saying.

[Nitro Express]

When did Reid say that?

[jhale667]

This just makes Harry Reid look like the bumbling ass he is. He was the one saying Mitt didn't pay any taxes.

How does releasing one year (and a "guestimate" of others) prove Reid wrong? Not that I necessarily disagree with the "Reid's a bumbling ass" part...

[Hardrock69]

Especially in light of the fact that Romney's own advisors past and present are like "WTF?"

Former Mitt strategist on Romneyland tax dump: 'Is this an April Fool's joke?'


Alex Castellanos, who worked for Mitt Romney in 2008 and continues to be a Republican political consultant, tells Politico's Maggie Haberman that he is not impressed with the optics of Romney's tax dump move:


"At first I thought this was an April Fool's Joke," said Castellanos, who tweeted something to that effect at me earlier. "But it isn't April. I can't imagine that David Axelrod will now say, I'm glad Mitt put this issue behind him. This will drag Mitt's taxes back into the debate. And there's not many days left. I just can't imagine why they would do this. There are 40 days left and you have now made more of them about Mitt's taxes....you don't serve a life sentence and then confess afterward. They've taken their beating on this (already) ... I just don't understand how a (being) 'little pregnant' strategy (works)."

According to Haberman, Castellanos isn't alone. She says other Republican operatives are telling her this partial dump of Romney's past tax returns will only encourage more questions about his past returns.
One good question, raised by Greg Sargent, is this: what was Mitt Romney's actual effective tax rate during the past 20 years? As he points out, Romney merely released the average tax rate during that time. That means years in which he had lower income count the same as years in which he had a higher income, and given that his tax rate seems to go down as his income goes up, the 20 percent figure he's releasing is probably a bit misleading.
.

OK so here is yet ANOTHER instance where it appears Romney and his lackeys are sabotaging his campaign on purpose. Why are they doing this? By releasing only a single year's worth of returns at this point, he continues to appear as if he has something to hide. What is he hiding? That is the question everyone is asking now....even his own fucking people......I smell mutiny in the air.....if people in his own camp were not jumping ship before....I can see it happening soon....

[Nickdfresh]

I meant he pretends to be a christian and spouts off bullshit, but doesn't even know what the hell he is even saying.

You've just described Elvis and probably 90% of the Christians I've ever met...

[Nickdfresh]

He said "let him prove he has paid tax because he hasn't." He's talking about proving it, not that he hadn't paid any taxes. And quick frankly by releasing a single, politically sanitized year where Rom's knew he was seeking higher office, he really still hasn't proven much other than he pays a lower rate on his investment income than most of us hear have on our peasant, er, middle class incomes...

[ZahZoo]

This whole tax debate is utter bullshit... Let's settle it right here.

Name me 5 elected officials in Washington that have paid more than 20% on income taxes in recent times...?

Crickets chirping...

[jhale667]

It's more about the offshore accounts, and the dishonesty - speaks to their lack of integrity and dollar-worship. Now Ryan stuck his foot in it too...

Ryan's latest whopper: Oops, I 'overlooked' 20% of my income

In an amended return also released Friday, Representative Paul D. Ryan, Mr. Romney’s running mate, disclosed that he and his wife had initially failed to report $61,122 in income from 2011. He said the failure was inadvertent. The change raised their total income to $323,416 and increased their taxes by $19,917 to $64,674, or 20 percent of adjusted gross income.

They owed a penalty of $59 for the original underpayment. The Ryans explained that they had overlooked their income from the Prudence Little Living Trust. Mrs. Little, who died in 2010, was Mrs. Ryan’s mother.

Yup. I overlooked that $60K, almost 20% of my income. $60K here, $60K there, how am I supposed to keep track of it? Who can remember every penny? Besides it came from some obscure source I'd never remember ... what was it again? ... oh yeah, your Mom's trust.

Or maybe, just maybe, what I overlooked was the fact that I would be the vice-presidential candidate and wouldn't be able to count on the trust income going unnoticed and unreported.

Sorry, no time for questions, got to run another sub-3-hour marathon.

(As Paul Krugman has always called him: the flim-flam man.)