Krugman: 'We can only assume' Romney is 'hiding something seriously damaging'
"Once upon a time a rich man named Romney ran for president. He could claim, with considerable justice, that his wealth was well-earned, that he had in fact done a lot to create good jobs for American workers. Nonetheless, the public understandably wanted to know both how he had grown so rich and what he had done with his wealth; he obliged by releasing extensive information about his financial history.
But that was 44 years ago. And the contrast between George Romney and his son Mitt — a contrast both in their business careers and in their willingness to come clean about their financial affairs — dramatically illustrates how America has changed.
... One more thing: To the extent that Mr. Romney has a coherent policy agenda, it involves cutting tax rates on the very rich — which are already, as I said, down by about half since his father’s time. Surely a man advocating such policies has a special obligation to level with voters about the extent to which he would personally benefit from the policies he advocates.
Yet obviously that’s something Mr. Romney doesn’t want to do. And unless he does reveal the truth about his investments, we can only assume that he’s hiding something seriously damaging." --Paul Krugman
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Isn't it curious how relentless the extremists on the right are about Mr. Obama's birth certificate, which, of course, is a thinly disguised way of making the first bi-racial president seem unAmerican, alien, and "the other." No sane person questioned the president's birth certificate, but that's obvious. What isn't so obvious, because the subject is not being reported widely in the conservative media, is the reason for Romney's reluctance to come clean about his 12 off-shore bank accounts, tax avoidance schemes, secretive investments, and shell companies.
Romney is the ONLY candidate for POTUS who stashes his money in a foreign country. The only one in American history.
Why does a man who wants to be the POTUS need to put his money in foreign countries? Does he have so little regard for the greatest country on the planet that he needs to place his kingly wealth in Caribbean islands and European countries? Why would someone do this? Why is he betting AGAINST America? Why does he disregard what is printed on America's currency and coin: "In God We Trust?" Does his placing his money in foreign banks and trusts mean that he does not trust in America or God????
This sounds a heck of a lot more "alien" and "unAmerican" than the fake birther nonsense the extremists on the right dreamed up and promoted with the help of the extreme jackass, Donald Trump.
Why does Mitt Romney hate America?
"...it doesn’t exactly help paint a picture of Romney as a 'man of the people,' and it serves as a reminder of the importance of the tax returns the former governor is so eager to keep hidden. It now appears we have a Republican [candidate] who amassed a vast fortune after laying off thousands of American workers, wants to give himself another tax cut, owns multiple luxury homes, and stashes cash in the Caymans — all while pursuing an agenda that would make things tougher on American’s working class." --Washington Monthly, 1/2012
Until Romney comes clean and answers these questions, Krugman's assumption stands: Romney must be hiding something.
Coming next: Nicholas Shaxson’s piece in the new issue of Vanity Fair raises important questions about some strange aspects of Romney’s financial history.
4 comments:
If Obama had 12 off-shore bank accounts, tax avoidance schemes, secretive investments, and shell companies, and stashed his money in a foreign country, just imagine the frenzy from the right-wingers. We'd never hear the end of it.
But since it's their guy doing it, their response whenever it's brought up is, as usual with inconvenient facts, to try to change the subject.
If he has nothing to hide, why doesn't he release all tax returns just like all other candidates?
skudrunner, college transcripts and tax returns are not the same thing.
The question is why won't Mitt release more than one tax return, as his father did and as every other candidate who ran for president did?
Also, skudrunner, the other day in my comments, you came here and wrote that Obamacare was a tax on the middle class--obviously false, as PolitiFact reported.
Why should I take what you say here now as anything more than GOP talking points?
skudrunner: "Obama has never run on his record and has always run attacking the other candidate."
Another falsehood. Mr. Obama has repeated again and again that he has given the middle class and small businesses tax cuts; he has ended the war in Iraq, the unemployment rate has DROPPED since he came into office, Osama bin Laden is dead, health care reform has passed. Just to name a few. There are many, many more, and Mr. Obama talks about his record every day on the campaign trail. Your saying he doesn't is also a falsehood that will not go unchallenged here.
Attacking your opponent's record while running for office is how the political game is played.
Romney does it every single day to President Obama. Or haven't your GOP blinders allowed you to notice.
If he has nothing to hide, why doesn't he release all tax returns just like all other candidates?
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