Romney Releases 2011 Taxes – Is He Unqualified To Be President?

Ken O’Brien


RepublicanPresidential candidate Mitt Romney today released his 2011 tax returns.
From Mitt Romney’s officialwebsite.
Thismorning, Gov. and Mrs. Romney filed their 2011 tax return with the IRS. At3:00pm today, the Romney for President campaign will be posting the 2011 returnonline. 
Thecomplete 2011 tax return, with full schedules, statements, and attachments,will be made available with all other previously-disclosed information atwww.mittromney.com/disclosure.
Alsoposted will be a notarized letter from the Romneys’ tax preparer,PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP (PWC), giving a summary of tax rates from theRomneys’ tax returns for the 20-year period of 1990-2009.

Regardingthe newly-filed 2011 Tax Return:
In2011, the Romneys paid $1,935,708 in taxes on $13,696,951 in mostly investmentincome.

TheRomneys’ effective tax rate for 2011 was 14.1%.

TheRomneys donated $4,020,772 to charity in 2011, amounting to nearly 30% of theirincome.

TheRomneys claimed a deduction for $2.25 million of those charitablecontributions.

TheRomneys’ generous charitable donations in 2011 would have significantly reducedtheir tax obligation for the year. The Romneys thus limited their deduction ofcharitable contributions to conform to the Governor's statement in August,based upon the January estimate of income, that he paid at least 13% in incometaxes in each of the last 10 years.
In 2011, Mitt and Ann Romney paid $1,935,708in taxes on $13,696,951 in mostly investment income, an effective tax rate of14.1%.
Romney could have paid a lower tax rate in 2011 dueto large charitable contributions, but voluntarily limited them -- and paidmore taxes as a result -- to conform to his previous statements that he haspaid at least 13% in taxes each year.
However, he said in an interview with ABCNews in July:
“I don't pay more [taxes] than are legally due andfrankly if I had paid more than are legally due I don't think I'd be qualifiedto become president. I'd think people would want me to follow the law and payonly what the tax code requires.”
It is being reported that, without limitingthese deductions, his tax rate would have been between 9% and 10.5%. 
 Is he, as hesaid himself, unqualified to be President?
Or is this just another flip-flop that his supporterswill shrug off?

Well accordingto CNN, the Romney campaign said,
Romney'scampaign responded to the discrepancy, saying the candidate wanted to be"consistent" with his August comment.
"Gov.Romney has been clear that no American need pay more than he or she owes underthe law. At the same time, he was in the unique position of having made acommitment to the public that his tax rate would be above 13%. He directed hispreparers to ensure that he is consistent with that statement," a campaignofficial said in a statement.
So Mitt’s accountants engineered the results to makesure that he paid above 13%, but in the process he paid more than he owed underthe tax laws
In addition, Romney has said he will release “summaries”of his past 20 years of tax returns. This after swearing up and down that theAmerican public would get two years and that would be IT.
 (P.S. Herequired his vice-presidential prospects to provideten years of tax returns).