Why not release Bill and Hillary's tax returns?

I would like to be able to support Hillary.
Can some one explain why she will not release her and Bill's tax returns now? If there is nothing to hide what is the big deal? She says she will release them if she is the nominee, so why not a few months earlier? Why not let us see where the 5 Million came from? Don't we need to know from who and how she earns her money?  
Can't candidates get around $2,300 dollar limit if the would be donor can just hire the candidate as a consultant and give them or the their spouse millions?
Why not just be transparent? What is the down side?
I tried to asks on Hillary's website but the moderators seem to feel this question violates their rules.

Thanks for you help here!

Thanks for the help! I really appreciate you all taking some time to answer the question. I am not there yet. I understand the blue collar argument but everyone knows the Clinton's have lots of money because of the 5 million in cash. I'd hope some one would say that she and Bill were consulting to Raytheon or someone who would hurt her in the primary, but would be OK in the general. But no one said gave me a plausible innocent explanation so I have to be scared it could be something that would kill us in the general. On the "Obama's got something to hide too" thread : I do want to validate as much as possible that our nominee does not have something that will come out after our convention. I will join anyone calling for the release of a known, extant, relevant, non private (not medical for example) document from either side. But Bill and Hillary's tax returns are the only such documents I am aware of.



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Re: Why not release (none / 0)

Um...that would work, but your full of shit


by chicagogene on Sun Feb 17, 2008 at 08:28:51 AM EST

Re: Why not release (none / 0)

His net worth is known to be a tiny fraction of theirs. Considering that's widely known, I find your point that Obama would turn their high incone into some sort of talking point a thin execuse for withholding their returns.


by beanbagz on Sun Feb 17, 2008 at 08:54:32 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Why not release Bill and Hillary's tax returns (none / 0)

Good question.  And why did she say she would only after she was nominated?:


Hillary Clinton claims she's battle-tested, but she won't let the public test her tax returns. While Barack Obama has released his into the clutches of the forensic accounting crowd, she's steadfastly refused to make hers available. The only financial disclosure she's made is the obligatory filing that is similar to what members of Congress have to produce, but which has far less detail than the actual tax returns would provide.

In fact, the disclosure documents are essentially a shield, revealing only "income sources and investment holdings in broad financial categories" notes ABC News. They disclose "...only a fraction of the information available on tax returns."

Truth is, she's following in the footsteps of her joint-filing spouse. According to ABC, "Since 1984, only one major presidential candidate -- Bill Clinton in 1992 -- has refused to release the tax forms he sent to the Internal Revenue Service."

[...]

The question at hand is why Senator Clinton is allowing this to remain a political issue, and encouraging us to savor the hidden treasures -- questionable sources of income, wily tax moves, inappropriate pantsuit deductions -- rather than swiftly removing it from the table by taking those suckers out of the vault?

Does her refusal entitle us to think the worse? I believe it does, given that her campaign is masterful at calculation, that it must have done the strategic arithmetic and decided that the heat they're taking for non-disclosure is less hellish than the alternative. After all, as ABC pointed out, "Only tax forms would reveal whether a wealthy candidate -- many of the 2008 candidates are multimillionaires -- have used loopholes to duck taxes."

Senator Clinton's position is symptomatic of a deeply troubling, imbricated pattern of her campaign: selectively playing-by-the-rules, while universally claiming the high ground as both moral leader and political victim.

Adam Hanft - Why Won't Hillary Clinton Release Her Tax Returns? Huffington Post 13 Feb 08


by Shaun Appleby on Sun Feb 17, 2008 at 08:34:13 AM EST

Re: Why not release Bill and Hillary's tax returns (none / 0)

See, to me that's the queston, to me.  I mean, she's agreed to released them.  We're now just arguing re:  when.

Given the implications of her lending $5 M (and perhaps, possibly, more in the future) there are campaign finance issues at stake here and that is an issue.


by ChrisR on Sun Feb 17, 2008 at 09:32:28 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Why not release Bill and Hillary's tax returns (none / 0)

Her response was to bring up Rezko, which has nothing to do with it.  She donated $5M to her campaign, right?  Obama has released his tax returns, right?  She's ducking the question.  And why would she agree to release them after she's nominated but not before?  You can always tell when there is something going on with her on one of these transparency issues.  There is nothing here?  Terrific, glad you cleared that up.


by Shaun Appleby on Sun Feb 17, 2008 at 09:45:32 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Why not release Bill and Hillary's tax returns (none / 0)

How much effort is it to link her to her husband, for pity's sake.  I thought this was meant to be the 'two for one' co-presidency.


by Shaun Appleby on Sun Feb 17, 2008 at 09:46:30 AM EST

Something to Hide (none / 0)

I think it's obvious, they are very smart people and they wouldn't hide something unless they knew it would damage the campaign or else they would do it to prove our transparent they are.

This is a clue everyone!!  Wake up.  they are hiding many things they don't want us to know.

Just think about what they will hide from us in the Whitehouse.


by A from Phoenix on Sun Feb 17, 2008 at 12:46:37 PM EST

Why not release Obama's Rezko correspondence? (none / 0)

"I would like to be able to support Hillary.
Can some one explain why she will not release her and Bill's tax returns now? If there is nothing to hide what is the big deal?"--graham poor

Gosh we share the same perspective! I would like to be able to support Obama. Can someone explain to me why Obama will not release all his correspondence relating to his dealings with Rezko? If there is nothing to hide what is the big deal?

If the Federal U.S. prosecutor, Patrick Fitzgerald has any information about Obama and Rezko, will Obama authorize him to release this information? For the good of the country and the high office of the president, Obama must convince us he is above board. Release all Rezko correspondence now Mr. Obama.

We really, really need confirmation that should Obama be the next President that he is above board and transparent and plays by the rules. If he destroyed all his Rezko correspondence going back to his days as a lawyer working for this indicted business man, will he authorize his law firm and Mr. Rezko himself to release all documents relating to their dealings? Will Obama also release any documents he has that explains how his wife secured a six figure job via Chicago patronage. Will his wife's former hospital ties affect his healthcare policy? We really need to know these things as citizens, we are entitled to have these answers.


by superetendar on Sun Feb 17, 2008 at 12:59:58 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Why not release Obama's Rezko correspondence? (none / 0)

Thanks for the response, but let me ask: Is there a document that Obama is with holding that has info that you want? Like his state campaign financing records from that period? Or are you saying there are known e-mail records Obama has with held and that aren't sealed because of ongoing legal cases? If so I agree with you and would join you in a call to release the document. (If you would join me on the tax returns!)

Otherwise this is slightly off topic. We can't ask our candidates to disprove any negative we may imagine.  For example that Obama didn't do some illegal deal with Resko or his distant cousin Dick Cheney or the Pope. It's the same as asking Hillary to come clean about Vince Foster's death
To be extra explicit these are BOTH unfair and McCarthy like things to ask. A question that  attacks someones character and for which there exists no answer that can undo that damage.

While requesting release of extant documents relating to election financing is fair and does no  damage if there is nothing to hide or an explanation for why the request is refused.

So the questions remains: What is the big deal why not just release them to and shut Obama up?


by graham poor on Mon Feb 18, 2008 at 01:41:26 AM EST
[ Parent ]

I think (none / 0)

The person above who talked about the disparity between Obama and the Clinton's incomes is on the right track.

Also, remember the WSJ article that talked about Bill supposedly winding up his relationship with Ron Burkle's fund. It may be that this has already happened and that they've made $20,000,000+ as has been reported. Not only will this create an opening for the media and the GOP to go back into the Clinton's finances, not to mention the source of these funds (Dubai etc), but it will be kind of tough going into blue collar type town with news of a $20,000,000 windfall all over the front page.


by highgrade on Sun Feb 17, 2008 at 01:53:35 PM EST


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