The Rats are Bailing on Obama

[SMOKE 1,426]

I am not saying they are. I believe Romney's tax returns and President Obama's school records are none of anyone's business.

i thought it was a fiasco.

[JohnR! 5,495]

No, the Bain thing is just partisan mud throwing. If there were a smoking gun hidden in his tax returns we would have already seen it.

The smoking gun is IMHO precisely what Romney is hiding. Why else would he be subjecting himself to be tarnished with mud?

[Bad_Daddy 2,209]

That will not happen. Romney is no different than Obama. Expect the same results.

I don't like either one of them. I would have went with Paul but he was a bit too out there for my liking. This has to be maybe the worst presidential field during my life time...or at least that I can remember off hand.

[JohnR! 5,495]

i thought it was a fiasco.

It is.

[JohnR! 5,495]

I don't like either one of them. I would have went with Paul but he was a bit too out there for my liking. This has to be maybe the worst presidential field during my life time...or at least that I can remember off hand.

I would have voted for Paul precisely because he was way out there... I really think he could shake things up a bit by not being from either party.

I honestly believe he could have done a better job than Obama and Romney combined...

[SMOKE 1,426]

I don't like either one of them. I would have went with Paul but he was a bit too out there for my liking. This has to be maybe the worst presidential field during my life time...or at least that I can remember off hand.

It is.

we'll have to disagree on that one. i don't see it being any worse than obama sealing his records & invoking executive privilege on fast & furious documents (that he knew nothing about)

[JohnR! 5,495]

we'll have to disagree on that one. i don't see it being any worse than obama sealing his records & invoking executive privilege on fast & furious documents (that he knew nothing about)

It is not any worse. It is just as bad.

Romney is no different than Obama!

[Karee 4,191]

It is not any worse. It is just as bad.

Romney is no different than Obama!

A federal agent died with one of those "fast and furious" weapons. Yeah that's the same as releasing years old tax returns.

[JohnSmith2007 353]

The smoking gun is IMHO precisely what Romney is hiding. Why else would he be subjecting himself to be tarnished with mud?

Why? I already answered that. So as to not provide Obama's campaign any ammunition in regards to his successes in business. If he was to release his returns they would be poured over and every little tidbit that could fuel class warfare would be brought out. Lets not forget, we have a left leaning community organizer that has already said that any success is dependent on the government running against a rich capitalist with a background in venture capital. The heat from not releasing his returns is far less than the snowstorm of attacks he would get if he did, regardless of whether his returns are above board or not.

[JohnR! 5,495]

Why? I already answered that. So as to not provide Obama's campaign any ammunition in regards to his successes in business. If he was to release his returns they would be poured over and every little tidbit that could fuel class warfare would be brought out. Lets not forget, we have a left leaning community organizer that has already said that any success is dependent on the government running against a rich capitalist with a background in venture capital. The heat from not releasing his returns is far less than the snowstorm of attacks he would get if he did, regardless of whether his returns are above board or not.

What you present is one possibility.

The other is that he really has something to hide.

Unfortunately, he is the only person who can actually settle this.

[SMOKE 1,426]

It is not any worse. It is just as bad.

Romney is no different than Obama!

we'll disagree again. romney's taxes have passed all legality tests by the IRS. obama has refused to let anyone even see any paperwork.

[JohnSmith2007 353]

What you present is one possibility.

The other is that he really has something to hide.

Unfortunately, he is the only person who can actually settle this.

And I hope it goes "unsettled" for you then. Romney was my last choice on the Rep side but I can't see him shooting himself in the foot just to satisfy his oppositions request for ammunition. I am wholly unsatisfied with either candidate but I can't see a smart guy like Romney do something as stupid as that. He would have nothing to gain and everything to lose if he gave any more up.

[JohnR! 5,495]

And I hope it goes "unsettled" for you then. Romney was my last choice on the Rep side but I can't see him shooting himself in the foot just to satisfy his oppositions request for ammunition. I am wholly unsatisfied with either candidate but I can't see a smart guy like Romney do something as stupid as that. He would have nothing to gain and everything to lose if he gave any more up.

As I said, when it comes to transparency, he is no different than President Obama.

we'll disagree again. romney's taxes have passed all legality tests by the IRS. obama has refused to let anyone even see any paperwork.

And yet, both are acting within the law.

[JohnSmith2007 353]

As I said, when it comes to transparency, he is no different than President Obama.

Is there ANY politician that is truly transparent? Nope. None that has any shot at national office anyway. So in that very small way they are alike. In every other way they couldn't be more different. As I said, I am wholly unsatisfied with Romney but at least we have a very clear difference between the two candidates politics and world view.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

i'm pretty sure the IRS would have knocked on his door by now.

Why? There are quite plausible scenarios out there that his tax returns contain nothing illegal but very damaging politically. One of those is the possibility that Romney applied for amnesty for the late disclosure of offshore accounts.

The other possibility is that he got caught up in having an undeclared offshore account and took the IRS amnesty in 2009.

Matthew Yglesias also thinks the IRS amnesty program could be the answer:

Failing to apply for the amnesty and then getting charged by the IRS would have been both financially and politically disastrous. So amnesty it was. But even though the amnesty would eliminate any legal or financial liability for past acts, it would hardly eliminate political liability.

Wouldn't it be great if we knew which Swiss bank Romney's money had been hidden in? As you may know, the IRS nailed Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS) for helping Americans commit tax evasion (the illegal kind, as opposed to legal tax avoidance). As a result, UBS coughed up the names of more than 4,400 Americans (out of 52,000 originally sought by the IRS) who had accounts there. This was the backdrop to the IRS amnesty: for the first time, the U.S. had breached Swiss banking secrecy and Americans with Swiss bank accounts could no longer be sure that their secret was safe.

In fact, we do know which bank held $3 million of Ann Romney's blind trust. It was UBS.

How do we know? Brad Malt, the Romneys' trustee, said so. Not only that, when Romney released his 2010 tax return in January of this year, he had to amend two previously filed disclosure forms, for 2007 and 2011. In 2007, he had not specified that the UBS account was in Switzerland, not the U.S., according to ABC News (UBS has branches in the U.S.).

Let's review the bidding: Ambiguous disclosure in 2007. UBS income on 2010 tax return. Retroactive revision of 2007 disclosure. IRS amnesty for undisclosed foreign accounts in 2009 powered by UBS prosecution. Refusal to release 2009 tax return. Yes, 2009 could be a big problem.