Politics

Romney thinks he pays about a 15 percent tax rate

Will Rahn Senior Editor
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After hedging on the issue during Monday’s Fox News debate, Mitt Romney now says he will release his tax returns later this year, and estimates the rate at which he pays to be about 15 percent.

“What’s the effective rate I’ve been paying? It’s probably closer to the 15 percent rate than anything,” the former Massachusetts Governor said Tuesday, according to The Washington Post. “My last 10 years, I’ve — my income comes overwhelmingly from some investments made in the past, whether ordinary income or earned annually. I got a little bit of income from my book, but I gave that all away.”

Romney added that he had received “speaker’s fees from time to time, but not very much.” According to a disclosure filing in August, however, Romney received $362,000 in speaking fees between February 2010 and February 2011.

In what is likely a preview of attacks to come should Romney secure the Republican nomination, Democratic Party communications director Brad Woodhouse quickly used the wealthy former Bain Capital CEO’s comments to portray him as “out of touch” with normal Americans.

“Now we know why @MittRomney opposes the Buffet [sic] Rule,” Woodhouse tweeted, referring to President Obama’s plan to raise taxes on higher-income earners. “He only pays 15% in taxes on his income. Most middle class wage earners pay more.”

Woodhouse noted in a previous tweet that then-Senator Obama released his tax returns in March 2008. He also said that only Romney would think $362,000 in speaker’s fees is “not very much.”

“Perhaps Romney could be more out of touch but it wld be hard,” he tweeted.

A spokesperson for the Romney campaign did not immediately respond to The Daily Caller’s request for comment.

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