As I’ve noted before, I oppose attacks on Mitt Romney based around his wealth. I don’t have a problem with anybody who’s been successful in business and earns money honestly. But politically speaking, there’s no doubt that his wealth is a potential vulnerability, especially during tough economic times. That’s why Romney has gone out of his way to avoid being seen as out of touch and to portray himself as a champion of the middle class. Despite his best efforts, there have been a number of moments during the campaign in which he’s made offhanded comments that have undermined this strategy — joking that he was unemployed, proposing a $10,000 bet with Rick Perry during a debate and saying there were times he’s had to worry about getting laid off. He had another one of those moments this morning.
Asked about his tax returns, Romney said his effective tax rate is close to 15 percent, and tried to explain that it was because most of his income for the last decade has been investment income. He added, “I get speaker’s fees from time to time, but not very much.” Yet Romney actually earned $374,327.62 from speaking fees in 2010 and early 2011, according to financial disclosure forms released earlier this year. That alone would put him among the top few percent of taxpayers. Of course, the point Romney was trying to make was a technical accounting one — relative to his investment income, the speaking fees aren’t very big, which drives down his effective tax rate. I get it. But statements like this are just gold to President Obama, who hopes to make Romney a poster child for his class warfare reelection strategy. A comment like this, in the middle of January, isn’t likely to be on voters’ minds in November. But if Romney continues his pattern of making such statements, it will become a huge problem should he be the nominee.
