Mitt Romney Just Exposed Himself (As a 1% Elitist)

Hey, don't just take my word... Mittens just outed himself!



And not only that, but he also exposed both the moral and intellectual emptiness of his "job creator" myths.

Citizens for Tax Justice a few months ago estimated that Mitt Romney, due to most of his income coming from investments, pays a tax rate of around 14 percent, a far cry from the 35 percent top income tax rate. Romney then confirmed that the bulk of his income does, indeed, come from investments (and is thus subject to the top capital gains tax rate of 15 percent), but he has refused to release his tax returns in order to reveal the definitive tax rate that he pays. [...]

As Center for American Progress Director of Fiscal Reform Seth Hanlon has explained, the latest data shows that “many middle-class families paid much more [in taxes] than the 17.5 percent average paid by the very rich.” When President Obama suggested the “Buffett rule,” aimed at ensuring that millionaires can’t pay lower taxes than middle class families, Romney derided it as “class warfare,” and “the wrong way to go.”

One of the reasons Romney is able to drive his tax rate down so low is that he is still earning money from his private equity firm, Bain Capital, that is likely subject to a pernicious tax loophole. This loophole lets wealthy money mangers like Romney pay the capital gains tax rate on profits they make investing other people’s money, turning the justification for having a lower capital gains tax rate completely on its head.

During the same press conference, Romney said that he only makes some income from speaker’s fees, “but not very much,” which is money that would be taxed at normal income tax rates. From Feb. 2010 to Feb. 2011, Romney earned $362,000 in speaker’s fees.

This explains why Romney is far to George W. Bush's right politically... Especially when it comes to economic policy. Since it's obviously in his personal interest to continue paying less in taxes than the vast majority of working class families, we can see why he wants to continue coddling the 1% while attacking the 99% with brutal cuts on everything from Head Start to Pell Grants to law enforcement to the Centers for Disease Control to the EPA.

Honestly, this is why I've never bought Mittens' attempt to crown himself as "the winner" last year. Even if he survives the G-O-TEA primary, he now emerges as "The Wall Street Elitist 1% Candidate" with major political liabilities. Perhaps this is why Mittens fell behind President Obama in a big way in the new PPP national poll out today.

Perhaps American voters aren't as stupid as many have made us out to be. Perhaps more folks truly are realizing that economic inequality hurts the overall economy. And perhaps voters are realizing that "tea party madness" is no way to govern a country. Considering how extreme(ly absurd) Mittens and his G-O-TEA have become, President Obama really doesn't look bad, after all.