This morning I was greeted with a “did you hear that Mitt Romney believes airplanes should have windows that roll down?”
My response: “Well I’m not voting for him based on his understanding of how airplanes work.”
The other day, after news broke that Romney had released more tax returns to satisfy the calls for a smoking gun more information on his wealth, I started to hear mutterings that his dissenters were complaining he’d paid too much in taxes on purpose. When I realized that the mutterings were true – I started to wonder what these folks honestly expected… Evidence of being a tax cheat? More proof that he’s loaded?
I got the answer when I heard that the big question now is whether Romney took advantage of an IRS tax amnesty initiative in 2009 which would allow Americans who have undeclared offshore bank accounts (the much fabled Swiss Bank Account for example) to fess up and pay the taxes that they’d otherwise be evading. My response? “Has the IRS initiated an audit against Romney, or have charges been filed against him for tax evasion?”
Not even a letter from the folks who prepared his taxes or the former commissioner of the IRS is enough to satisfy the conspiracy theorists that I will refer to now as “Taxers” or the “Taxer movement.” Romney is a bright guy when it comes to money, and the move to release this information a mere 40+ days from the election is brilliant… Not only has he paid his taxes, he’s done what pretty much every wealthy Liberal critic has been unwilling to do and voluntarily pay more taxes than are owed (instead of demanding that the Government take more from the rich).
Now we’re not talking about seated politicians who are prosecuted for tax evasion but manage to keep their seat as well as the backing of party leaders… this is a wealthy GOP presidential candidate who has a history with knowing how to generate and maintain wealth in an economy sorely needing his expertise, running against a well hyped candidate whose record is anything but successful.
My guess here – is that Romney will release the full 2009 data within the next 40 days, and that it will likely show he did not partake in the amnesty program… I’m certain the Taxers will come out with another ‘Gotcha!’ moment, but like the folks who still insist 4 years later that Obama’s birth certificate should be a focus of debate, most folks will see the evidence and move on. Romney is wealthy? Big whoop. Next thing you know, the Obama campaign will report that a tomato is actually a fruit.
Crazy world folks, crazy world.
