Trust Me

Trust me he says.  Of course having said that, he also said, “I am a severely conservative candidate” after saying “ I am a moderate and on the left of Ted Kennedy”. He also said he was in favor of a woman’s right to choose before he said he would overturn Roe v Wade.  When governor he was in favor of a mandate that every citizen should have healthcare insurance before kissing up to the TEA Party and promising to overturn the mandate that every citizen should have healthcare insurance.  While trust may be given, trust must also be earned.  In the case of Mitt Romney, trust without verifying was, in the words of Reagan, not the way to deal with anyone with a history like Mitt. While his supporters are all saying Romney should be trusted, none are denying the claim that perhaps Romney had a period in his recent past when he was legally able to avoid paying any federal income taxes. During the Republican quest for the nomination, he was called out by his fellow republicans a minimum of fifty-nine times for misstating facts or misspeaking.  Gingrich, for one, outright accused Romney of lying.  Now it is entirely possible that he paid all of the taxes he was “legally” required to pay but it is also possible in doing so he actually paid no federal income tax for a period of time. After all, both General Electric and Exxon/Mobile have been known to legally pay all of the taxes either corporation owed when actually not only not paying a penny in federal income tax nbut actually getting a refund.  Could that be what Mitt is trying to avoid?  Were there years when, in spite of astronomical earnings, he actually owed no federal income tax?  Unfortunately, there are loopholes in the tax code that individuals with income like Romney have been known to not owe a single penny in federal income tax while your average teacher or copy actually not only paid a higher percentage of their income in federal income tax but actually paid a higher dollar figure in federal income tax. There is no way someone like Romney can be an advocate for middle class America with that record.  There is only one way Romney can earn the trust of anyone on this issue and that is for him to release his tax returns.  With Romney’s history of voicing many sides of every issue that has confronted him, to trust without verifying would be foolish.  His failure to release his returns goes to the argument that he has something to hide and is not deserving of the votes of those who do not have something to hide and pay their fair share of taxes to support the government.  Romney must choose between taking advantage of the privilege of his wealth or earning the trust of the American people.  He cannot do both!