[quote=ucodegen]The problem is that it opens the whole thing to a fishing contest. Romney makes most of his income from Investments. 2008 was a very bad year for investments and any smart tax planner would use the losses of 2008 to cancel any gains in 2009 and after if possible. I think the Obama campaign is trying to bring up that Romney didn’t pay taxes in 2009 (because of investment losses). This is likely to play well people who don’t understand saving and investing, and will make a good ‘sound bite’ and diversion from the facts and presidential performance. The problem is that the previous election, very few Democrat Presidential hopefuls revealed their tax returns. Almost all of the Republican hopefuls revealed 2 years. One needs to ask: What is the real point of this requirement?
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John Stewart’s reply to this line of argument –
http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-july-18-2012/mystery-finance-theater-2012
[quote]
“You can’t release your returns because if you do the Democrats will be mean to you,” Stewart said, in an apostrophe to Romney. “I see your concern. These Obama people, whatever you release, it’ll never be enough. They’ll just keep hounding you and hounding you with frivolous transparent demands like this.”
Stewart then played a reel of clips showing conservative pundits and commentators insisting that Obama release everything from his college grades to Michelle Obama’s Princeton senior thesis to the President’s long-form birth certificate.
