The release of Mitt Romney’s tax returns yesterday revealed how, as the Los Angeles Times put it, “the wealthiest candidate to seek the presidency in recent history has benefited from a tax code that lets investors pay taxes at a much lower rate than people who earn wages or salaries.” So faced with questions about whether he can relate to regular people, Romney argued on Hannity last night that his large charitable contributions boosted his tax bracket from 15% to “between about 32 and 42%.” Hilariously - or maybe pathetically - Romney claimed in the same segment that President Obama is out of touch with reality and the middle class.
Romney was ostensibly there to comment on the President Obama’s State of the Union address.
Romney said his reaction to the speech was that Obama is “disconnected from reality. I just don’t think he understands what’s happening in American homes across this country. People in the middle class in America are hurting. The median income is down 10% over the last four years… People are hurting in America and he seems to be saying that America’s on the right track, things are going well. That’s not what I’m hearing.”
Well, I don’t know what Romney heard but I do know what Obama said. He said, for example:
The defining issue of our time is how to keep that promise (of the American Dream) alive. No challenge is more urgent. No debate is more important. We can either settle for a country where a shrinking number of people do really well while a growing number of Americans barely get by, or we can restore an economy where everyone gets a fair shot, and everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same set of rules. (Applause.) What’s at stake aren’t Democratic values or Republican values, but American values. And we have to reclaim them.
Let’s remember how we got here. Long before the recession, jobs and manufacturing began leaving our shores. Technology made businesses more efficient, but also made some jobs obsolete. Folks at the top saw their incomes rise like never before, but most hardworking Americans struggled with costs that were growing, paychecks that weren’t, and personal debt that kept piling up.
Nevertheless, Romney told a credulous Hannity, “Look, this guy has failed the American people. They’re suffering. They know it and he doesn’t know it.”
In a fit of hypocrisy Hannity – who can’t seem to open his mouth without being divisive - went on to complain about Obama’s divisiveness.
Still, Hannity never forgets to boost the home team. So when he was through attacking Obama, Hannity defended Romney’s 15% tax rate by “asking,” “Is this a second bite at the apple for most of this money. In other words, did you pay tax on it earlier and then this is the second tax?”
Unfortunately for Romney, he didn’t seem to get the talking point Hannity was trying to put in his mouth. Instead, he rambled about why capital gains tax rates are lower than corporate rates.
When he was finished with the lecture, Romney tried to equate his charitable contributions with his taxes by saying, “In addition to the 15% I paid to the government, if you add up all the taxes I’ve paid as well as charitable contributions, you range between about 32 and 42% so I’m giving a pretty healthy slug back to our community.”
It’s ludicrous to equate charitable contributions with taxes since they pay for entirely different things. It also seems a rather tricky road to hoe for Romney because much of his charitable giving goes to the Mormon Church.
No one fired him, no one crossed the line enough for him to say squat, and they kept it up until he left on his own.
Same thing, but with religion.
Yes, they actually put you in debt if you come up short. And I have had friends back home get pushed out for coming up short too often or being unable to pay on the grounds of strapped/unemployed/etc.
Very touchy issue with LDS- this has been part of the case for them being a cult for years, they put ’em up when you ask about their system.
Pointing out that Mormons tithings aren’t deductable as a charity isn’t slighting anything.
Pointing out that Romney listed non-charities on his submission isn’t slighting anything.
Pointing out that Romney’s numbers don’t stand to scrutiny isn’t isn’t slighting anything.
These are called “facts”- I know they’re the enemy of the right- Romney in particular, seeing how he’s busted in a new lie almost daily now… but dem’s the breaks.
If Romney did pay 3M in charity, you can’t fault that, but, as pointed out earlier… even if all of the groups Romney’s supporters listed can count (I already know not all of them can), he’s lying about the math. Not only that, but he’s arrogant enough to keep lying after being repeatedly contradicted by himself and others.
I can not only fault him for that, but you can bet your a$$ that I will.
And, this “in touch with real America” guy lobbied for his sweetheart tax deal. Just think what us working people could do if we could spend more of our money than we pay in taxes to lobby congress for a better rate….oh yeah, we are all too busy working so we can afford food after we pay our taxes. Most of us didn’t inherit a ton of cash either.
Taking your “winnings” and lobbying congress for a better tax rate and claiming your gazillion $ church is a charity and then calling the president out of touch is, well, out of touch.
BTW, I find it kinda telling that the RW blogs that already have posts up supporting this crap think 3M in taxes plus 3M in charity somehow equals “32-42%” of 42.5 million dollars. Might wanna check the math there, guys…
And that some of them that are providing a so-called list think tithes count. Putting aside that tithes are when you give 10% to the church as a provision, which means they would have said Romney would have had to have given $7.25M for this lie to work.
That would be 17% of his earnings- Fox Nation shorted him 2%. But since tithes are a provisionary measure and not a charity… 3M is 7%, add the 13.9% in taxes…
If you’re starting to feel the need to throw garbage at Romney during his rallies, I honestly don’t blame you. The real numbers between his taxes and charity are still this offensive to most of America. But my point is that it’s telling that his apologists couldn’t collaborate their story before they started lying for him. Especially on something as simple as numbers.