The following is my reply to a post on another blog about Harry Reid’s allegations, received from a former Bain Capital investor, that Mitt Romney hadn’t paid any US income taxes in 10 years:
In what may be a moment of monumental reflection, I agree (mostly) with what this post is saying, “That Reid’s statement, without more, is not playing fair or by what we wish the rules were.” Ok, with that said, let me also say that “playing fair” is a concept that is not exercised by Romney’s pitbulls or campaign “strategists, either.
First, in regard to “fairness”…the President has released 12 years worth of tax returns. Excellent! The American people expect their leaders to be able to divulge that kind of information without having to beg for it. Romney has released 1 year of incomplete returns, with a promise to release another year…but, not necessarily before the election. A natural question, which has been asked by left AND right, is, “What can he be hiding?” Assuming guilt or impropriety, just from someone’s action or inaction, is something we Americans are proficient at.
Second, the question everyone is asking, “Why not show him (Reid) to be the “dirty liar” (per Reince Priebus) he is accused of being?” GOP pundits, politicians and political allies of Romney are questioning his strategy of refusing to follow in his father’s footsteps. George Romney started the practice of candidates for US President releasing their tax returns…and it has been followed ever since, to one degree or another. McCain released only 2 years in ’08. However, it was enough to quell the concerns of the left and right, since there were no questions of McCain’s loyalty or financial dealings.
Romney (Mitt, that is), has announced that he has a lower tax rate (13.9% on $21 million in income in 2010) than most Americans have on $75,000). He also has offshore accounts, (including investments, Swiss bank accounts and $100 million IRA), that pay no taxes to the US. Illegal? Maybe not. But I and many others question why, as a loyal American, he refuses to invest in American institutions rather than foreign, and how, with a $6000 per year limit on IRA contributions, he has amassed a $100 million…tax free! Even if it found to be a legal exploitation of a tax loophole, such exploitation is not an attractive quality in a President.
I would be remiss in responding to your correct allegations of “unfair play”, if I didn’t raise (again) an example where Mitt played dirty…in fact, on the border of criminal fraud. Of course, I’m talking about his hypocritical and intentionally fraudulent TV ad, regarding the President’s speech, now simply referred to by the extreme right as, “You didn’t build that!” We all know, by now, that Romney’s ad took the President’s speech, cut and pasted sections and tried to make it sound like the words, in order, of the President. Not only was it an attempt at fraud (defined as “an intentional deception made for personal gain or to damage another individual”)…but it was proof positive of what the President was truly saying…yes, we entrepreneurs work hard and long, but, we also have others to thank for the successes we enjoy.
It seems that the “poster boy” in the ad, a New Hampshire businessman, had several million dollars in government loans, guaranties and contracts! So, yes, his success, at least part of it, can be attributed to HELP FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT!! Gee, what a concept!
So, to summarize…Harry Reid is playing by some of the same rules as Mitt, only, whereas we have proof of Mitt’s fraud, we still don’t have evidence that what Reid has charged is false! Dirty Harry, true…but, there are dirtier Mitts than his in this game of politics!
Comments on: "Dirty Harry Is Trumped By Dirtier Mitts!" (6)
Donna…YOU’RE at a loss?? My goodness! You are at it again (what did Ronnie use to say, “There you go again!”), failing to discuss the issue and pointing, instead, at the President. Why won’t you admit (then we can move on to the President, if that’s what you want) that what Romney did in his TV ad, was unconscionable? If you can’t even admit that, I don’t understand how you can continue to profess such moral noblesse. He lied, misquoted, cut & pasted in order to deceive and harm the President…it is the classic definition of fraud! I also heartily disagree with your condescending attitude…”Liberal envy” (whatever that means) and “distortion of reality” (now I understand why you can’t see Mitt’s fraud…you don’t understand what ‘distortion’ means).
BTW…we’re not talking about the President…even Republican leaders are calling on Romney to release his returns. He hasn’t even released an entire return for 2010, let alone meeting his promise to release his 2011 return, which we probably won’t see until after the election!! You may not want to know Mitt’s tax and income info, however, it is important to millions of people who care about how he acquired his money, where he hides it, how much tax he pays and whether he is being truthful about his Bain Capital days. Seems like release would put the an end to the allegations…of course, unless they’re true!
If you respond, please stay on topic and address the post…don’t ‘troll’!
Thanks for admitting that Reid isn’t playing fair! A couple of points of disagreement. The ad you keep mentioning is not fraudulent (and criminal?puleese). It does not compromise the speech context. It encapsulates it. I asked this before–do the President’s ads avoid excerpts of speeches, or are all his adds twenty to thirty minutes long? Second, the President can release tax returns all day long, because his story (or what has been disclosed about it–an issue for another day) comports with his contrived narrative. In addition, the press are not looking to shred him. They adore him. (Just saying that gags me, true as it is.) Romney–the guy who is evil because he is wealthy–will only provide the fodder the admin longs for. They will tear him apart mercilessly and hide their own sins behind what is essentially, a tirade against success.
The I mentioned IS fraudulent…read the definition of fraud…it is clear, from a legal standpoint. There is a difference between quoting a speech segment or statement, and cutting, pasting and editing it, making it mean something entirely different that what was said and intended. “Encapsulates it” – double “puleese!”
I love your “professional” analysis that the President’s “story…comports with his contrived narrative.” What are you talking about? You are making allegations and charges that have no backup; he (Obama) released his tax returns because he had/has nothing to hide. Can you say the same of Romney? I can’t…because I’m not convinced he has nothing to hide. IF he released the returns and nothing was wrong, then I would be one of the first to say, “drop the issue.” But, Mitt isn’t even allowing that possibility!
It is not a “tirade against success”…we all love success…but, we can’t tolerate success that entails destroying jobs and lives, or success that is based upon scoffing at the American system of taxation, investment and avoiding taxes by setting up offshore accounts. That’s not success…that’s manipulation and exploitation of the laws of this country…is it any wonder he is considered so out of touch with the average American? I want to know where my President has his money and I want to know that he isn’t trying to avoid paying a fair tax rate…13% is not fair on income of $21 million!
You’re forgetting your roots, Donna. The uber-wealthy have never been “in congruity” with John Doe…especially those born into wealth, who never had to worry about rent, healthcare, their next meal or a job. If you want to avoid the parts of society you don’t like (like paying taxes), why not just move somewhere where you are more comfortable? Like, Monte Carlo, Lichtenstein, etc.
If that’s what you call fraud, then you’d better get ready to file a boatload of fraud suits against POTUS. You have GOT to be kidding, btw. In his self-righteous (and very contrived) history, the president feels comfortable shooting arrows at people who were born into wealth. He wants ammo in the form of proof of that wealth–more tax returns than the law reqires. By the way, Romney made his own dough. He donated his inheritance to charity. Ron, I’m at a loss to reach you. You are so ensconced in hyperbolic rhetoric, that I wonder if you’re just looking to wear me out. Romney is no perfect man, but he’s not a job-killer. He’s a guy who spent his career creating opportunity–yes for himself, but also for the countless people who had jobs because dying companies were rescued by Bain. I’m fed up with liberal envy and distortion of reality. Wake up, smell the coffee, and admit it. POTUS had his chance, and he just wasn’t up to the job. Some of us knew that without the trial run. Nevertheless…
Ron, sorry but I don’t agree. HR is sinking to the lowest common denominator and I find it appalling!! Especially doing it on the Senate floor. I agree the Reps do it all the time but that is no excuse to behave in the same dispicable manner.
As I said in my post, Reid is not right, without more disclosure. But, with that said, there is much more to this story than simply admonishing Reid. There is an easy way for Mitt to show Reid to be the “dirty liar” he is being called by the head of the GOP, Priebus…show us your tax returns! His Dad did so…President Obama did…every serious Presidential candidate did…why does he think he should be exempt? Oh, that’s right…he’s part of that top 1/2 of 1%…the privileged of the privileged! Shouldn’t that count for something? Hmmmmmmm…