Mitt Romney has money to burn thanks to his super low taxes.
News that presumptive GOP front-runner and possible automaton, Mitt Romney, only pays an effective 15% tax rate proves one thing and one thing only: Obama’s job-killing taxes and burdensome regulations are stifling our Galtian overlords and sending them straight to the poor house.
Kevin Drum chuckles:
Did Romney really make up his mind on this literally overnight? Because in last night’s debate he sure didn’t sound very certain that he was going to do this. This is, perhaps, the only time that Romney has panicked during the campaign. If he’d made up his mind a little earlier and a little more deliberately, he could have had a much smoother answer last night. “I do plan to release my tax return for the previous year, as other presidential candidates have done, and my accountants tell me it will be ready to file in late March or April. As soon as it’s complete, I’ll make copies available to the press.”
Instead we got last night’s Palinesque gobbledygook. Very weird. Greg Sargent takes a crack here at figuring out what this all means for Romney’s chances in November.
Transparency is a good thing. Getting Romney to buckle like this is even better. Still, I doubt revelations of his wealth or his low tax rate or his utter lack of a personality will hurt him. It’s too late for that. Even a beating in South Carolina won’t necessarily set him back in Florida and beyond.
As Nate Silver points out virtually every national poll sets Romney head and shoulders above the rest of the field. Republicans are going with the “electable” candidate, not the one they love, not the one that they think will do the best job in office (though to survey the line-up of candidates, especially after Huntsman’s departure, is to cast your eyes on a field of incompetence.)
I’m giving Obama strong odds in 2012. Unless the economy tanks, Romney is going to be extremely vulnerable in the general election. If he had the same record but a warmer personality I’d be less certain. As it stands…he’s just deeply unlikable. Andrew Sullivan has been calling him “creepy” lately, an apt description of the man. His handle on the truth is also rather disturbing. Forgivable things for the American electorate, true, but not for someone who we don’t want to go have a beer with.
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