Obama campaign adviser Robert Gibbs said that the American people still “deserve to know a lot more about Mitt Romney’s finances” after the Republican candidate released his 2011 tax returns and his effective tax rates for the years 1990-2009 in an appearance on “Fox News Sunday.”
“He gave his accountant 20 years and the American people two,” Gibbs said to host Chris Wallace. “Chris, what’s he hiding? Why does he have corporations in Bermuda? Investments in the Caymans? Why is somebody who says they’re going to get tough on China investing in the Chinese state oil companies and banks in China?”
Gibbs stressed that Americans deserve to know more, particularly given the lack of specifics in Romney’s tax plan. “I think the American people deserve to know a lot more about Mitt Romney’s finances because he hasn’t been straight with the American people about those finances. And he hasn’t been straight with the American people about what’s going to happen with their taxes. Middle class families as a result of the promises MItt Romney made are gonna see their taxes go up while he’s gonna cut taxes for people just like him.”
Gibbs also mentioned the fact that Romney deferred some charitable deductions in order to keep his effective rate for 2011 above 13 percent. “And I do think it’s rich and special in many ways that Mitt Romney had to manipulate his tax rate by not taking all the deductions he was eligible for — something he said that while ago would disqualify him from being president.”
