August 28th, 2012
08:40 AM ET
9 years ago

Josh Romney on dad's tax returns: 'He's paid his taxes'

(CNN) - Josh Romney, one of Mitt Romney's five sons, defended his father Monday against attacks over the presumptive GOP nominee's tax returns.

"He's paid his taxes," Josh Romney told CNN's Piers Morgan. "This is a gimmick by the Obama campaign to take the message off the economy and on to my dad's personal taxes."


soundoff (81 Responses)
  1. ST

    We are not buying words, we are buying deeds. These babies Romney should know it. We need to see his Tax Returns not to hear trust me or trust my Dad.

    August 28, 2012 09:46 am at 9:46 am |
  2. Gurgyl

    What percent? Show me Ten years of his taxes, idiot.

  3. Sandy

    Stop talking and PROVE IT!

    August 28, 2012 09:54 am at 9:54 am |
  4. mcskadittle

    really, take my word, my dad is not a crook. what does he know about his fathers taxes

    August 28, 2012 09:56 am at 9:56 am |
  5. Yonni

    Why we need to trust you Josh over our president? what is your qualification to tell us what to believe and how to behave? Of course, it is your legacy. When is you time to run for the presidency? I am sure this must be your first Campaigning.

  6. ObamaCares

    Another ?, has Josh paid his taxes?

    August 28, 2012 10:00 am at 10:00 am |
  7. rick jolie

    since obama showed his birth certificate, why doesn't rmoney show his tax returns?

    August 28, 2012 10:03 am at 10:03 am |
  8. Mitt the most secretive opportunist and a phony

    I'm sur e Mitt has discussed with his sons the truth about his taxes. Seriously, even Piers has refused to challenge and go after those that are obviously taking part in this big cover up. I agree with Lawrence O'Donnell – Mitt has something in those hidden tax reports that would disqaualify him as President and the press are doing a horrible job of going after him for this. All soft ball questions.

    August 28, 2012 10:06 am at 10:06 am |
  9. On the real

    Oh yeah, now it is all settled, Romney do not need to show his taxes. His chicken hawk son Josh has confirmed that his dad paid taxes. Duh, it is not about paying taxes, it's about betting against America.

    August 28, 2012 10:08 am at 10:08 am |
  10. S.B. Stein E.B. NJ

    He may have filed taxes, but the question is how much did he pay as a percentage and raw amount. He earns so much from dividends and capital gains. The problem is that many "average Americans" don't have the money to do that kind of investing.

  11. W.G.

    O.K. Josh , quit joshing us . If your dad was´nt guilty then like any honest
    man he wouzld show all the info everybody ´s asking him to show . Sorry , but
    your dad is what is wrong with America nowadays . Greed and lying and
    cheating have become virtue´s and it started with big business men trying
    to get away with it .

  12. DavidEnc

    Using your son verify your tax status just seems wrong to me. If you want to be president, your life becomes more public. Instead of being so obstinate, Mr. Romney should just release the taxes and move on.

  13. sonny chapman

    Middle Class America NEEDS to see Mitt's Tax Returns. Not because he did anything illegal, but so we can see for ourselves that there are TWO sets of rules in this country. One set of rules takes your Fed. Income Taxes & FICA out of each paycheck BEFORE a Wage Earner gets to see Dollar One. The other st of rules, for Romney et al, will SHOCK many in Middle Class America.

    August 28, 2012 10:17 am at 10:17 am |
  14. Marie MD

    Hey non serving the military josh, NO, it's not a gimmick. Your flip flopping dad is lying to the country just like he lied as to where he was living when running for governor.
    One year, 2010, and we are still waiting for 2011 is NOT enough!! We want to see how he got away with only paying 13% when most Americans pay an average of 28% on taxes.
    Thanks for bringing it up again just as the teaplikkklans and your cult are gathering in Florida.

    August 28, 2012 10:19 am at 10:19 am |
  15. Aurelio De Guzman

    I know everybody pays income tax. I just want to see how your dad makes the income so I can follow his ways, specially when he pays 13+% while I pay 31%.

    August 28, 2012 10:20 am at 10:20 am |
  16. Curt

    Don't think there's any doubt he paid what he " legally " had to. The question is what was his money invested in? I'am guessing a lot of his investments are not in American companies and the tax returns would show this. For someone who keeps bragging about how he will get the American economy moving, I'd be real curious to know what he has personally done to achieve this or does he just invest in what will make him more money? I'am guessing the latter. Think about it, theres a reason he does not want to show his tax returns.

  17. Four and The Door

    Of course he did. He has paid about $60 million in taxes over the past 2 years. But Obama/ Biden 2012 is so pathetically weak on the real issues this is their campaign strategy. It's personal political attacks and very much along the theme of partisan politics for the Obama Administration. It is easy to see why they have actually accomplished so little in the 3 1/2 years when Americans needed so much more. Americans got it wrong in 2008 and they will get it right in 2012.
    Romney/ Ryan 2012.

  18. Anthony

    A few things we know about Mitt Romney
    1. He is a proven flip-flopper. This is not arguable. Even Republicans know this.
    2. He makes way more money than the average people.
    3. Exactly how much? We don't know. He will not release all of his tax returns, breaking a tradition that has been observed by every presidential candidate since 1968, when Romney's father was running for the White House.
    4. Romney is not legally required to release all of his tax returns, but this makes it appear that he has something to hide.
    5. The issue is not whether Romney avoids taxes illegally. Rich people can avoid taxes legally. This is what tax attorneys are for, and rich people like Romney can afford them.
    6. Most likely, his tax attorneys are so good that Romney pays embarrassingly little in taxes, relatively speaking, given his income.
    7. Romney is not stupid. He wants to get past this issue. Yet he will not release his tax returns. Perhaps there is something in his tax returns that looks so bad that he will rather take the public relation hit of not releasing them. Prince Harry will understand. No question what Harry did in Las Vegas was legal, but it looked bad.
    8. Romney wants to give people like himself another 20% tax cuts. This will not go over well with the voters if people know how relatively little Romney pays in taxes, given his income, even in a recession like this, while not creating jobs.

    August 28, 2012 10:21 am at 10:21 am |
  19. Americans for Prosperity = Billionairs for Prosperity - Theirs, not Yours

    They don't get it. I don't know of anyone who is accusing Romney of tax evasion. There are three issues at stake in his returns; what kind of financial entanglements his returns may expose, what his effective tax rate has been, and to what lengths has he gone to avoid U.S. taxes, such as moving money to known foreign tax havens or using other potential abusive schemes.

    Remember, Mitt Romney, as a member of Marriott's Board of Directors and Audit Committee, advised them to use an illegal scheme to avoid taxes. The IRS exposed the "abusive tax shelter" and it ended up costing Marriott a lot of money.

  20. John Parker

    Despite of what the Democrats are claiming about Romney's taxes, I for one, has no doubts that Romney has paid his taxes but what is more interesting to me is, how much he has paid? I do not think people are attacking him because of his success but are attacking him on this issue of what has he and others like him (rich) are doing to pay the government debt? Are the politicians in congress willing to take a pay cut or layoff some people on there staff, most likely not, It seems to me that Romney wishes to run the Government as a business that doesn't include laying off staff members and pay cuts but carries no responsibility after the fallout. Yes the American people needs to know how much he has paid and contributed to paying the national debt. It should be equal taxation throughout the classes if anyone that should be given a break it should be the ones that are trying.

  21. VtMe

    The issue is not whether he paid his taxes or even paid his legal requirement.

    It is about the nature and degree of his wealth on one hand, where it resides, and based on that how he has structured his finances and how that affects the taxes he pays and how that amount (percentage) stacks up against what middle Americans pay.

    If he were proud of the level of taxes he pays, he would be crowing the particulars from the roof tops and the RNC media machine would be running overtime with the good news.

    If he is ashamed of the level of taxes he pays, he would be doing everything in his power to cover his embarasment - delay, obfuscation, spin doctoring, changing the subject.

    The above is the common sense test that is known to every common American Citizen and it is Mitts failure to recognize and address these kinds of common sense tests that keep his campaign moribund.

  22. Charlie

    So if his son says it's true....then it must be true.

    August 28, 2012 10:24 am at 10:24 am |
  23. 1twinsfan

    The voting public wants proof.

  24. Dan E

    Again I ask...
    What principle is Mitt Romney standing by in NOT showing his tax returns? Does he have a principled argument that logically follows that he has show enough and we do not deserve any more??

    August 28, 2012 10:29 am at 10:29 am |
  25. riptin

    Robme is hiding something, there is no question about that, so we need to keep this as an issue right up to the election. It should be in the headlines everyday until then. This guy is crooked as they come, and they are scared to death. No sane individual would continue to refuse showing there taxes unless they had something to hide. KEEP THE PRESSURE ON.

1 2 3 4