Blogs Jul 31, 2012 at 1:42 pm

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid Says He Heard from a Bain Investor that Romney Didn't Pay Any Taxes for 10 Years!

Christopher Frizzelle
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Comments

1
Mormon on Mormon fight!
on July 31, 2012 at 1:59 PM Report this
2
According to Romney, as long as he was strictly within the law, it's what Americans would expect of anyone of presidential caliber, so how could it possibly hurt his image?
thatsnotright on July 31, 2012 at 2:02 PM Report this
3
Reid should give the guy's name to a credible reporter who can confirm it while protecting his anonymity.
I have always been... east coaster on July 31, 2012 at 2:02 PM Report this
4
And someone told me that Obama was put on probation for dealing drugs to other students at Columbia and that's why he won't release his transcripts. (I heard it, so it must be true...)

I also heard that he beats his wife and copulates with his dog…
You_Gotta_Be_Kidding_Me on July 31, 2012 at 2:07 PM Report this
5
The difference @4 being that, you probably didn't hear any of those things from someone who might have actually been in a position to KNOW those things.

(Which is not to say that one should automatically give credence to Reid's statement sans attribution, but it's far more likely someone in his position WOULD hear this from someone in-the-know, than would you or I.)
COMTE on July 31, 2012 at 2:25 PM Report this
6
On the other hand, the McCain campaign says it vetted Romney in 2008 and read his tax returns going back a number of years and nothing was improper was found.

Everything is rumor central these days.
Phoebe in Wallingford on July 31, 2012 at 2:27 PM Report this
7
@6
"On the other hand, the McCain campaign says it vetted Romney in 2008 and read his tax returns going back a number of years and nothing was improper was found."

Romney would be an idiot to do something illegal on his taxes.
That is not the point.
The point is that there are lots of LEGAL things he could do that would look very unpatriotic for someone running for President.

Such as moving large sums of money into tax havens in the Cayman Islands and so forth.

There are LEGAL ways that Romney could pay zero taxes on millions of dollars in earnings/income/whatever.

So whether something was "improper" or not is not the issue.
Whether the actions were impolitic is the issue.
fairly.unbalanced on July 31, 2012 at 2:33 PM Report this
8
@6,

And yet McCain decided Romney would be a poor choice for VP.
keshmeshi on July 31, 2012 at 2:34 PM Report this
9
You can see the photographer's reflection in the mirror behind Pres. Obama.
Urgutha Forka on July 31, 2012 at 2:35 PM Report this
10
@3 In all likelihood as I type Reid is quietly handing over the guy's name to a credible reporter. After all that would be the logical next move.

Timing the release of confirmation for the story a bit tricky depends on how solid a confirmation* one can get. My guess would be if there is solid confirmation for this story out there it'll drop roughly 72hrs or less before the opening of the Republican convention.

*Romney gave McCain's campaign 20 yrs of returns so if this story is true and I'd call it true if Romney had a run of years where he paid less then 5%, the information is out there.
Machiavelli was framed on July 31, 2012 at 2:39 PM Report this
11
@6 - Shady, suspicious, flag raising, eyebrow raising -- just think of the adjectives or other modifiers I could have picked!
Phoebe in Wallingford on July 31, 2012 at 2:43 PM Report this
12
He probably got a refund. He not only did not pay, we paid him.
LaPuerta on July 31, 2012 at 2:46 PM Report this
13
I have said before and I will say again: Rmoney is worth WAY more than $250 large.
Looking For a Better Read on July 31, 2012 at 3:10 PM Report this
14
I just like the picture of Obama and Hill leaders chowing down at the White House.

@9 Good catch!
floater on July 31, 2012 at 3:14 PM Report this
16
@11
"Shady, suspicious, flag raising, eyebrow raising -- just think of the adjectives or other modifiers I could have picked!"

That's why I emphasized "LEGAL" by putting it in all caps.

And then, to further clarify the issue, I posted:
So whether something was "improper" or not is not the issue.
Whether the actions were impolitic is the issue.

While it might have sounded like a great idea at the time, not every means of tax avoidance is something that the general public will accept from someone running for President.
fairly.unbalanced on July 31, 2012 at 3:17 PM Report this
15
@6, McCain didn't pick Romney for VP BECAUSE of those tax returns. Tell you something?

One of the problems of this country is that is IS possible for people to earn hundreds of millions of dollars and legally pay no tax. Romney's sure not going to waste much effort fixing that, now, is he?
Fnarf on July 31, 2012 at 3:17 PM Report this
17
Reid should have done exactly what @3 said before he opened his mouth. If this is wrong, he loses a lot of credibility (what little he has), as does the Democratic Party (what little they have).
Sheryl on July 31, 2012 at 3:17 PM Report this
18
I heard they refused to refute the rumor that Romney beat and cut the hair off of a 12-year old Glenn Beck in 1962.
STJA on July 31, 2012 at 3:18 PM Report this
19
@18 I just read somewhere that that incident lead directly to Glen Beck being unwilling to deny a rumor that he raped and murdered a girl in 1990.

@17 Why? Reid was careful to state the provenience of his information, making it clear that it was unsubstantiated, but that it would explain Mitt's reluctance. As Mitt has not provided proof it is not true, nor a compelling narrative to explain why he has not released the returns, the article is correct that this could very well "harden into truth."

The only falsifiable assertion Reid made was that he heard this from a Bain investor and, even if that is false, and I doubt that is the case, it would be damnably hard to prove.

On the other hand, it sounds like you are judging based on facts not in evidence.
on July 31, 2012 at 3:33 PM Report this
20
...And queue the response of dozen of Romney campaign proxies to clutch pearls and to issue talking points: "How dare Reid say that!" "Oh how our discourse has been degraded!" "How partisan!" "We can't work with a man like that!" "Reid's credibility is destroyed" "We demand his resignation!", etc ad nauseum.
sloegin on July 31, 2012 at 3:53 PM Report this
21
they get cookies!
WFM on July 31, 2012 at 4:03 PM Report this
22
This could be the same type of Waterloo Dan Rather met.
sall on July 31, 2012 at 4:28 PM Report this
23
In all fairness we don't know Romneys tax returns had Sen McCain rejecting Romney. Maybe he just sat there and let Romney talk (for instance). Yes I know that seems unlikely given the choice of Palin but it might not have been the taxes is the point.

david on July 31, 2012 at 5:27 PM Report this
24
Regarding McCain not picking Romney, the impression I got from Halperin and Heilemann's Game Change was that Palin was chosen for simple demographics: an attempt to peel away female voters from the Dems and shore up McCain's credentials among Evangelicals. Now, I will be the first to admit Halperin is far from reputable, but in this case his credentials are beside the point. It is entirely plausible to imagine Romney being skipped over, in whole or in part, for reasons besides his returns.

Of course, that doesn't mean the Democrats can't use it as a cudgel.
Xenos on July 31, 2012 at 6:07 PM Report this
25
@24 I agree. I have always thought that Palin was chosen (I was never sure that McCain chose her) in order to capture the Hillary supporters. A vagina is a vagina after all, right?
crone on July 31, 2012 at 9:41 PM Report this
26
Nancy's new hairdo is so much better than that old metallic helmet.
sarah70 on July 31, 2012 at 10:40 PM Report this
27
Am I the only one who thinks this picture looks like a photohop out of The Onion?

Theodore Gorath on August 1, 2012 at 5:31 AM Report this
28
Bear in mind the Reid is a Mormon too. The very very clear rule is "NEVER EVER dis another LDS member" So for Harry to do this is really indicative of something worth investigating and taking seriously. To go against the church like this is a big big deal.
dr. jim on August 1, 2012 at 12:16 PM Report this
29
Whether it's true or not it's a very shrewd political move. The only way Romney could possibly disprove the statement is to release a decade of his tax returns. If he doesn't, then the most reliable information we have is that he paid no taxes. If he does, then we get his taxes. Win Win. Reid is pretty safe in the election so even if it turns out he's full of shit he's likely to get reelected.
Root on August 1, 2012 at 1:07 PM Report this
30
So where are the tax returns?
Will in Seattle on August 3, 2012 at 12:36 PM Report this

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