Trump: Romney lost in 2012 because of tax returns

[DonViejo]

Source: The Hill

Donald Trump said on Sunday that Mitt Romney lost the presidential race in 2012 because of his tax returns.

"He waited 'til September to give 'em, just before the election. They made him look so bad. It was so unfair," Trump said of the GOP's 2012 presidential nominee on ABC's This Week. "I actually think he didn't lose because of the 47 percent [comments]. I think he lost because of a couple of really minor items in a tax return, where he did nothing wrong. ... It is unfair."

Trump, the GOP presidential nominee, reiterated that he will release his tax returns after the Internal Revenue Service completes an audit, even though the agency has said he can make them public while an audit is underway.

Host George Stephanopoulos pushed back, saying past returns that aren't being audited could be released."Yeah, but they're all linked," Trump said. "It's called the link. If my audit's finished, that's great."

-snip-

Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/289898-trump-romney-lost-in-2012-because-of-tax-returns

[Little Star]

1. He has no intention of ever releasing them, imho.

[Matthew28]

4. He realizes that he will look really bad if he released him

He is a evil son of a gun.

[roamer65]

2. I think he's trying to hide ties to Russian Oligarchs.

George Will is probably right on the money with his assessment. He has Russian mob money behind him.

[cstanleytech]

3. Nope, I suspect its the same reason he is really running for president which

is it gets more people to talk about him because he wants his ego stroked more.

[WinkyDink]

7. Are they mutually exclusive motives?

[WinkyDink]

6. I do, too. IMO, Russia is a bigger player in this election than the hacking.

[hamsterjill]

24. I don't even know that I think Trump is actually trying to hide it.

I mean, the jerk lies all the time. But he knows most people already know that.

It's his ignorant, fervent followers that refuse to see the writing on the wall in my opinion.

And yes, I agree with another poster here, I believe Russia is actively involved in trying to get Trump elected. As former Secretary Albreight said (paraphrasing here) - that should scare everyone.

[maxsolomon]

5. Delusional re-write of history

R-Money was running against a well-liked incumbent of outstanding character and unparalleled rhetorical capabilities. The "47%" comment (which, if R-Money hadn't mangled it, was technically accurate) and the tax return kerfluffle didn't determine an otherwise close race. It wasn't that close.

R-Money lost because, in the end, America doesn't like heartless rich fucks. And that's why Trump will lose.

Is there ANYTHING Trump understands correctly?

[42bambi]

8. Tax excuse...

"He waited 'til September to give 'em, just before the election. They made him look so bad. It was so unfair,"

OK...So...Trump is not releasing his tax returns knowing this could be his Romney moment, otherwise, why use that example.

[Moonwalk]

14. Naw. His message is that evil Democrats will *unfairly* nit-pic those returns....

...and make innocent things look big and bad. That what they did to trusting, honest Romney. Trump is saying (and this is what his followers hear) "I'm not going to fall into that trap, you villains! I won't give you a chance to do to me like you did to poor Romney!" And thus, he seems maverick and smart for not revealing his tax returns.

To his base, of course. Anyone with half-a-brain can see he's trying to keep something really damaging from being revealed.

[turbinetree]

9. Hey zippy herr drumpfster-have you figured it out yet,

your going to lose if you don't release them
your going to lose if you do release them





Honk---------------for a political revolution

[C Moon]

10. Now Trump has empathy for R$? Last time I heard him (when he was at the top of the primary)...

he was calling R$ a big loser.

“The guy is a stone cold loser,” Trump added of Romney. “A choker is a choker, you see it in sports.”
“Romney’s a loser. He lost the election badly."
“He was a choker...He wasn’t going to win anyway. He would have choked the same way.”
“He’s a very jealous guy. He’s got a lot of problems...It was pathetic, but it was sad, too, to watch him."

[wordpix]

21. my thought, too. Probably has R$ in mind for a cabinet post, maybe Treasury Sec.

Wouldn't that be rich? (pun intended). Rmoney with his tax havens running the Treasury. Looney

[C Moon]

23. :O No!

[IronLionZion]

11. What's he hiding?

The fact that he's much less wealthy than he claims? Prove it Donny!

[Simeon Salus]

12. It's funny. This year's Republican nominee might lose for a similar reason.

Refusing to release his tax returns.

I say we just start saying whatever we want about his finances, because he's in no position to defend himself with facts.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

13. If Romney lost for giving them out in September, then give them out in July, DumbTrumpf ! . . nt

[Politicub]

15. In other words, "trust me"

Can't wait until Trump is forced to slither away.

[Historic NY]

16. IRS already called baloney on his audit excuses.

http://www.politico.com/story/2016/02/donald-trump-irs-audit-experts-219889

[groundloop]

17. tRump expects Americans to trust someone who's being audited by the IRS

[mercuryblues]

18. given a pass

Once again trump misses and is not called on it.

Romney did not lose because he released his tax returns. Romney released his 2010 returns after he took a beating in the S. Carolina primary. He went on to win the nomination.

He also released a 2011 estimate of taxes that said he would be paying about 3.2 million on his income of 21 million dollars. A 15.4% tax rate. When he finally released his taxes after a lot of pressure, it was revealed he paid 1.9 million on almost 14 million income, about a 14% tax rate. Which led to questions about the yuuuge gap between the estimate and actual taxes.

Romney refused to release any other taxes. It was rumored that he paid 0% in the previous decade. It was also rumored that because he knew he was going to run, he cleaned up his tax returns to show the public. I would love to see his returns this year, complete with the amendments he most likely made after he lost the election.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2012-10-29/romney-avoids-taxes-via-loophole-cutting-mormon-donations

[7962]

19. Well, if it was a 3 tiered flat tax, this would never be an issue

If they're paying lower rates because of deductions, well thats the damn system; its not illegal.
Get rid of all that and lower the rates and youd get more tax money
I'll ALWAYS prefer a sales tax because so many people get away with paying WAY less than they should. Half my friends are in that group. They are "stated income" earners, which means they pay taxes on what they SAY they earned.
But it will never happen. And we'll just keep on with the same system even if the Dems take Congress. Sure, they may mess with rates, but that just makes people work a little harder to deduct more.

[wordpix]

20. "It's called the link" whaaaa?

OK, Trumple, whatever you say

[Skittles]

22. "it's so unfair" - GAWD

rich fucking ASSHOLES like Donald Fucking Trump have ZERO CLUE what UNFAIRNESS really means

[kimbutgar]

25. If he has nothing to hide he should realize them

He demanded Obama realize his birth certificate ( which Obama did) every American needs to see his finances if he wants to be POTUS. Unless he knows there would be q donfluct if interest with a certain foreign country which can compromise and blackmail to do their bidding.

Every time I chalkenge a Cheeto supporter who calls Hillary a liar I going back at them with "where are the Cheetos tax returns what is he is he hiding by not realeasing them? Obama and Hillary both did why not Cheeto?

[harrose]

26. No, Romney lost because he's a slimy, reprehensible, criminal Rethug...

... just like Trump.

[MichiganVote]

27. "Past returns that aren't being audited"...so how many ARE being audited??

[TexasBushwhacker]

28. So he's saying Romney would have won if he hadn't

released his returns at all? I think Trump is wrong. Romney's tax returns just proved what everyone already suspect; that his tax rate was much lower than people who work for wages. And I think the hamfisted 47% comment was damaging.

[Rex]

29. So Trump is now an expert on RMoney's tax returns!?

Is there anything this man does not know? At some point in his life, he must have run across SOMETHING he did not know about.

Did nobody ever tell Donald NO as a child? I am seriously thinking he was allowed to do whatever he wanted to and never got in trouble for anything he did.

[The Second Stone]

30. He's going to blame and IRS audit for losing and is setting that up as

an excuse. There is no way his audit will be done before election day and he knows it.

And the IRS doesn't block the release of a return that is being audited. And it's not like the public will point out errors that the auditor would not see. Errors aren't really a problem. Fraud is.

He never intended to win. And he's too far along to back out. The GOP are spineless in their own elections. They never should have let Trump into the race without returns. Never had a field of 16 major candidates, never should have had secret coded racist messaging for half a century.

The republicans are toast and done.

[truthisfreedom]

31. Umm, Mr Trump, your point being?

[JHB]

32. I can see how Crazy Marmalade might think that...

In the 47% video, Romney blithely called half of America lazy moochers. If there was any doubt he meant it, after he lost he let loose with that "people who just want stuff" line.

But on the Trump scale of insulting whole groups, Romney was a piker, a little blip unworthy of notice. Must have been the tax returns, then.

Off the top of my head, I recall Romney trying to claim that wasn't what he meant, but was that correct? I want to say that Trump would at his mistake was not doubling-down on the claim, but I don't recall whether Mittens or his surrogates tried to do that.