Congressionally censured tax cheat tells Romney ‘Americans pay their taxes, unlike you.’
posted at 12:01 pm on September 20, 2012 by Mary Katharine Ham
Chutzpah, thy name is Charlie Rangel:
“Nothing can be further from the truth than Gov. Romney’s ridiculous remarks that nearly half of American people do not pay federal income taxes, they pay other federal and state taxes. The 47 percent figure cited by the Republican presidential candidate covers only the federal income tax and ignores the fact that people may pay a higher percentage of their income on a wide variety of taxes.
Everyone pays taxes. Lower income persons pay state and local, property, excise and sales taxes. In fact, when all federal, state, and local taxes are taken into account, the bottom fifth of households pays about 16 percent of their incomes in taxes, on average. The second-poorest fifth pays about 21 percent. This is higher than what the Governor has paid in income taxes. He has absolutely no moral authority to accuse nearly half of the American people of being irresponsible and freeloaders.”
Speaking of “absolutely no moral authority,” let’s go over Rangel’s record, who was censured by the House of Representatives for a multitude of tax and ethics violations made while he was in charge of writing the nation’s tax policy as Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.
Rep. Charlie Rangel amended his financial disclosure forms under pressure in 2009 to show “that he had omitted an array of assets, business transactions and sources of income. They include a Merrill Lynch Global account valued between $250,000 and $500,000; tens of thousands of dollars in municipal bonds; and $30,000 to $100,000 in rent from a multifamily brownstone building he owned on West 132nd Street.” That wasn’t all. “The latest filings come on top of an amendment to Mr. Rangel’s 2007 disclosure form reported this week showing that he had failed to list at least $500,000 in assets.” The new disclosures doubled Rangel’s net worth.
Rep. Charlie Rangel rented several apartments in Harlem at suspiciously below-market rates from a big campaign donor, combining several to create his home while using one of them as a campaign office. That was a violation of rent-control laws, which require rent-controlled apartments to be used as residences.
Rep. Charlie Rangel parked his Mercedes for free in a Congressional parking space for about five years, never declaring the approximate $300 monthly fee on his taxes, as IRS rules require. Luckily, the House Ethics committee determined that he didn’t violate any rules because they only apply rules about parking to staff, not members.
Rep. Charlie Rangel used Congressional letterhead to solicit donations for the Charles B. Rangel Center for Public Service at the City College of New York from companies that might have significant interests in the policy making of his committee, a move ethicists said “crossed the line.” He’d already funneled federal earmarks for the center.
Later, one of the big donors to the Charles B. Rangel Center for Public Service benefitted richly when Rangel changed his position on closing a tax loophole.
Rep. Charlie Rangel failed to report $75,000 in rental income or pay taxes on a Dominican villa he owned, causing the New York Times to call for him to step down from his Ways and Means Chairmanship.
In 2008, Rep. Charlie Rangel was forced to pay back taxes on rental income on his villa in the Dominican Republic— a property he was advised to buy by one of his donors and for which he later received preferential treatment when the interest rate on his mortgage was waived.
Rep. Charlie Rangel took the “Property Homestead Deduction Act” tax break on his Washington, D.C. residence for five years, despite the fact that he maintained his primary residence in New York for electoral reasons. Lawmakers who maintain a residence in D.C. but must also maintain a primary residence in their districts are not eligible for the homestead break, tax lawyers told the NY Post.
Rangel is one of the most demonstrably corrupt manipulators of the tax code in Washington, and his longtime position as the guy who wrote tax code for the rest of us makes the corruption all the more despicable.
The headline on his press release should have been, “Americans pay their fair share in taxes, unlike me.”
H/t Village Voice.
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This azzhole calls himself an “independent”.
Independence is indignant.
How can anyone who’s “independent” ever vote for Obama?
Goebbels and stupidity have a ball.
Schadenfreude on March 15, 2013 at 4:33 PM
Mitt didn’t put a $1 million reward on this guy?
Wimp.
IlikedAUH2O on March 15, 2013 at 4:36 PM
I’d put it another way: The grim truth was that Romney was fighting a battle that Romney couldn’t win.
besser tot als rot on March 15, 2013 at 4:36 PM
Good luck to the guy getting a job at an event that may contain confidential information …
I’ve always amazed at people do to get a little notoriety. I always wonder – what are they going to do with the rest of their lives? It certainly won’t be what they been doing up until now …
besser tot als rot on March 15, 2013 at 4:38 PM
Lord. Get over it already. How long are these morons going to milk this thing? I don’t want to rain on their parade, but Romney lost and isn’t a factor anymore. Time to retire this along with “blame Bush”.
totherightofthem on March 15, 2013 at 4:40 PM
I have never watched msnbc but is this what they call NEWS? If so, not going to ever watch it!
L
letget on March 15, 2013 at 4:43 PM
Yep. As soon as Romney became front runner I knew Obama was likely to win re-election.
You would think Republicans would have learned that the media isn’t picking candidates for them because they think the candidate in question will be strong.
The Republicans won big on Obamacare in 2010, and selected the one man who couldn’t make it an issue in 2012 as their standard bearer.
Insanity.
18-1 on March 15, 2013 at 4:44 PM
I think we’ve definitively established that already. It was a constant buzz during the campaign after it was said (and Mitt was already bleeding from his Bain career), and it’s still being spoken about now.
You are right that Obama was always ahead of Romney, though. It goes to show what an… unelectable… candidate Mitt Romney was.
Stoic Patriot on March 15, 2013 at 4:44 PM
BTW, I didn’t watch the video if by some small chance they got views to add to their numbers.
L
letget on March 15, 2013 at 4:45 PM
He was talking about 47% on handouts.
There once was an America where nobody wanted to be a leech.
The Iron Engine of American Enterprise is being replaced by an Indonesian Bus.
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://blog.andrewweddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/dscf3627-500.jpg&imgrefurl=http://blog.andrewweddle.com/?p%3D195&h=375&w=500&sz=30&tbnid=muVIuZs7PQV1YM:&tbnh=92&tbnw=122&zoom=1&usg=__Aks8lj7h5hQ0FuY6MZ_vwF_DFE4=&docid=4bSutqifEgb0mM&hl=en&sa=X&ei=RIlDUbmLDfi84AOn8oCgCg&ved=0CC8Q9QEwAA&dur=406
IlikedAUH2O on March 15, 2013 at 4:50 PM
This guy and the MSM will relive this 3 and 2 2out bases loaded bottom of the 9th World Series grand slam homer for the rest of their lives.It’s like the medals I was awarded during my years in the Army.I can take all of them down to the cafe,lay them on the table and with a $1.50 I can buy a cup of coffee.
docflash on March 15, 2013 at 4:52 PM
Romney didn’t lose because this remark fired up Obama voters. Fewer people voted for 0 in 2012 than in 2008.
Romney lost because Republicans didn’t get out and vote for him, he got fewer votes than McCain in 2008. I doubt they were put off by the 47% remark.
iurockhead on March 15, 2013 at 4:52 PM
I thought the guy taping it was Carter’s grandson or some such thing. Also, where’s the lawsuit as it was an illegal surreptitious recording in the state in which it happened???
What happened to all that?
NJ Red on March 15, 2013 at 4:52 PM
They act like Oblamo won in a landslide. Sheesh.
NJ Red on March 15, 2013 at 4:53 PM
besser tot als rot on March 15, 2013 at 4:38 PM
He can always be a commenter on MSNBC.
Schadenfreude on March 15, 2013 at 4:54 PM
I think so. This was the truth to be dealt with finally revealed, and had he been a true conservative, it was a soft ball he could have sent over the fence. Instead they threw it out there like it was an outrage (and the fact the 47% doesn’t have skin in the game is) against… uhm… people that don’t pay their fair share… but get to vote for others to pay more? And Mitt’s reply was to cower?
Yeah, it showed Mitt for what he was. An unelectable establishment candidate. That’s all.
onomo on March 15, 2013 at 4:56 PM
It may have been illegal. But it won’t be pursued, the aggrieved party had an “R” after his name.
iurockhead on March 15, 2013 at 4:56 PM
Hey MessNBC, share with America in detail Obama’s vote in the IL. Senate on the Born Alive Infant Protection Act, then we will get back to you. Cheerio…
hillsoftx on March 15, 2013 at 4:59 PM
Liberals need to keep reminding people why they’re so important to the world, how bad everything would be if not for them saving it. They especially need it now with CPAC going on, with the Conservative message getting a little more notice instead of being dead as the trolls here keep trying to tell us.
Add in a traditionalist new pope, the anti-gun efforts meeting stiff resistance from us and indifference from most Americans, the economy so bad and the Administration so corrupt that even some in the MSM are noticing, plus everything else publicly staining liberalism, and the Left needs a win of any kind. Baby crap like this, reverting to a story months old and ultimately irrelevant, shows how desperate the Left has become.
Having the guy show how his camera works is as lame as Anderson Cooper in Rome the other day during the Conclave, asking people why they were there.
Liam on March 15, 2013 at 5:02 PM
The larger dose of insanity comes in the form of thinking that Michelle Bachmann or Newt Gingrich could have run a campaign that would defeat President Obama.
Kenyan anti-colonialism…
…retardation….
Come on. Get real.
blatantblue on March 15, 2013 at 5:07 PM
Yes, I think that’s about right. Even the hard core lefties that idolize him now might feel a little leery of employing a guy who is willing to turn a fast buck selling unflattering videos.
Jill1066 on March 15, 2013 at 5:09 PM
Joe Biden, an MSNBC hero, has defamed and ridiculed every race and religion on this planet.
So shutup douchebags.
fogw on March 15, 2013 at 5:13 PM
I have to disagree with Allah that the guy’s original intent for recording was benign. He knew enough to immediately leak the tape to Mother Jones. The fact he knew about a left-wing magazine tells me he was a true believer.
IR-MN on March 15, 2013 at 5:15 PM
Jaysus Henry Milton KeeeeRIST whatta-buncha-losers!!!
Katfish on March 15, 2013 at 5:30 PM
My first thought was that it wasn’t a game changer. Romney just got it wrong. The number is higher than 47%. More like 51+%.
But then I considered that the GOP took the House handily. Has anyone tallied the total House vote? On a national aggregate did the Republicans get more votes in total than the Democrats?
If the Rs beat the Ds in total House votes nationally, then maybe it was a game changer. But only in the swing state areas targeted by Team Socialism. But it’s hard to say how those Obama voters would have voted if not for the video.
I doubt any of the possible candidates could have over come the fact the MSM was completely in the tank for Comrade O.
IMO, Romney made plenty of mistakes. But only a candidate with the communication skills and the unwavering self-confidence in himself and in his positions that Reagan possessed could have cut through the protective force field the MSM created to shield their guy. And there was no such candidate in the Republican field. The only one close was Newt, but he had other problems, negatives, and weaknesses.
When the media refuses to criticize a President and goes out of its way to defend and protect him from criticism the challenger must be able to communicate effectively by going around and over them directly to the people, and by using few words.
farsighted on March 15, 2013 at 5:39 PM
LESSON TO ALL FUTURE CANDIDATES:
Always, always, always record yourselves at every press conference, donor dinner, and closed-door meeting.
There is no doubt in my mind that the missing seconds when the camera “stopped recording” that just so happened to occur right during the controversial quote were actually scrubbed intentionally because Romney added context to his comment that would have watered it down (perhaps he said something like “We want to help those 47% become successful and get off welfare” – but the leftist press couldn’t allow something like that to get out).
CANDIDATES FROM OUR SIDE: ALWAYS record yourselves so that the next time there are “missing seconds” from a camera that “shuts itself off” for some reason, you’ll be able to back up what you said with unadulterated context.
Eschelon on March 15, 2013 at 5:51 PM
.
Oh ye of little memory. If I may remind- SCOTUS took the HopeyCare argument off the table —from a 10th Ammendment proposition to a Federally approved tax. I’m sure you would have enjoyed Mitt going BS on the SCOTUS decision-but they are the Final judge and jury- and opponents were neutered. Badly.
For purpses of this thread, Mitts mistake was not hammering home and “redefining his gotcha misspeak” (which was a historical truth anyway as morons Gore and Kerry managed 48%)and using the “crisis” of the gotcha moment to explain how his presidency would work to change it. Instead Team Romney shrieked back from the gotcha “embarrassment” and the liberals won that day. And I don’t remember ANYONE IN BIG NEDIA (sans FOX) asking Mitt- “What do you mean by this 47% statement? Please explain” He should have defended the obvious- regardless how badly the truth hurts the entitled masses, scammers or innocents.
FlaMurph on March 15, 2013 at 5:51 PM
Isn’t there an unwriten ethical understanding that bartenders have that what takes place at a function or between/among customers is discretely kept silent? I would imagine that if criminal behavior were overheard, the situation might be different.
Prouty ran to Mother Jones with his find, so I do not imagine that he was disinterested.
Was the gal who recorded Obysmal’s “clinging to guns and Bibles” speech feted as much by the media?
Ironically, Romney’s “47%” remark was accurate, so what in the world is the brouhaha about?
onlineanalyst on March 15, 2013 at 6:24 PM
So nobody is going to point out that this guy was technically committing a crime by secretly taping Romney at this private dinner?
jas88 on March 15, 2013 at 6:41 PM
um, hello, he’s a democrat. The world crime does not apply.
joeindc44 on March 15, 2013 at 6:50 PM
This is media feedback loop BS.
Romney did not lose or lose votes because of 47%.
He got everyone he possibly could. The polls on this issue were incredibly weak. The fact that he ran from the comments probably hurt him more.
also not discussed: Obama’s brilliant oratorical move of: you didn’t build that, or bitter clingers, or whatever was said in that room of swells in LA where he talked about whatever it was about muslims. IDK, the tape that the LAT won’t release.
Romney lost more votes because he took the foot off the pedal in debates 2 and 3.
joeindc44 on March 15, 2013 at 6:53 PM
…fluke you!
KOOLAID2 on March 15, 2013 at 7:24 PM
Was Matthews wearing his tearaway pants?
Chuck Schick on March 15, 2013 at 7:28 PM
Romney screwed up. When every person is able to carry about on their person a portable television camera, every word you say in public — especially in speeches — must be scripted as if the entire nation would know about it tomorrow.
That means absolutely no generalizations about any group — including the 47% of us who pay no taxes.
It was stupid. I cringed when I first heard it. I might agree with the sentiment, but when it first aired I immediately thought of orphans and injured veterans and boy had Romney stuck his foot in it….
unclesmrgol on March 15, 2013 at 11:19 PM
Two worthwhile points from this thread. The rest are unhelpful, including AP’s original post.
scotash on March 16, 2013 at 5:44 AM
What idiots. Romney lost because conservatives didn’t come out. He didn’t get as many votes as McCain did in 2008. And conservatives agree that 47% of Americans getting a federal check is a bad thing.
Frankly, I blame all those purists who couldn’t be bothered to be so much as a speed-bump in Obama’s path to Socialist Amerika for the mess we’ve got in this country now. Say what you want, if Romney had been elected we’d be getting a budget this year.
Murf76 on March 16, 2013 at 10:58 AM