August 10, 2012

"It's Jon Huntsman Sr, right Harry?"

Kos points the finger.

Or should I not have blogged this? Should Kos be getting traffic for dropping this rumor? How is what he's doing different from what Reid did? We shouldn't be feeding off rumors like this...

Sorry. I know I don't need to post this. It's silly for me to say "Or should I not have blogged this?," since obviously I haven't hit "publish."

Yet.

ADDED: Huntsman denies it, but says Romney should release more tax records.
This matters, because Huntsman is a longtime backer of Romney — he has long been close to Romney; he supported his early campaigns; he was the national finance chairman of Romney’s 2008 presidential campaign; and he has raised a lot of money for him over the years. (He backed his own son in the latest GOP primary.)

47 comments:

chickelit said...

Kos actually wrote: Sure, the evidence is circumstantial, but still pretty solid, wouldn't you say?

Such Sullivanistic reasoning was used to convict Palin of birth fraud. Just sayin'

Matt Sablan said...

A Huntsman family member or political aid or some sort already debunked it, per Hot Air.

Matt Sablan said...

The Daily Kos, though, is pretty much a very sad place that pushes any thinly sourced, or even unsourced, rumor in their desperation for hits and validation.

Methadras said...

Huntsman is also a Republican and a Mormon (like Harry Reid

Harry Reid is neither in name, nor in spirit. Harry Reid is a moron that needs to get his ass beat to a pulp for his mere existence.

edutcher said...

Wait at least until the rumor's hit Puffington or Salon.

Nonapod said...

Here's an interesting article I found about the acrimony between Huntsman Jr and Romney.

wyo sis said...

What a nasty slur on Huntsman Sr. He's an admirable man so I suppose that puts him in a bad place with the left. Why not use him for cover. He has all the right qualities to fit the narrative. He's rich, conservative, a Mormon, and has a good reputation. Bringing him down to Harry Reid's level would be soooooo delicious.

dbp said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
dbp said...

Wow! Kos must be either an idiot or very confident his readers are idiots.

A friend of a friend worked at Bain as late as 2004--so that is two of the last 10 years. All of this sets-aside the question of how a fellow director at Bain would know what Romney does on his personal income tax forms.

jamie said...

So a blogger floats a theory? I guess the right would NEVER engage in that. Just ask the birthers out there.

Matt Sablan said...

Birthers are given the very little respect they deserve. Harry Reid has not been laughed out of the senate.

cold pizza said...

IIRC, the whole "birther" thing was started by Hilary! supporters on the left. -cp

cold pizza said...

I always get Hilary! confused with Hilarity!

chickelit said...

jamie said...So a blogger floats a theory? I guess the right would NEVER engage in that. Just ask the birthers out there.

Rumors of faked births and unpaid taxes by Candidates differ from rumors of falling short of a Constitutional requirement. I'll only grant you that all are rumors.

Seriously, if Romney hadn't paid taxes, don't you think the IRS would be after him? Especially under this administration? The Kossacks just want Romney's tax returns to belittle him for his charitable contributions.

Matt Sablan said...

I would have just kicked Harry Reid once and laughed a bit at him. Then the Super PAC decided Romney killed a woman. This is part and parcel of their political strategy for this race, complete and utter baseless slander. At least in 2008, both sides pretended to like each other enough not to call each other murderers.

Reid needs to be shamed out of public life, then the people in the Super PAC. Frankly, for the most part, The Daily Kos is kind of shamed out of public life, which is why it needed HuffPo and BuzzFeed to come into being to push its smears.

lemondog said...

What prevents the IRS from checking its own records and taking appropriate action?

Geoff Matthews said...

I think the tax charge is that Romney hasn't paid taxes legally. It plays on this notion that the rich can avoid paying taxes (which may be true for all I know).
Colour me skeptical, since Romney's income stream seems to be the type that is subjected to taxes.
However, one theory that was floated was that he donated to liberal charities, such as Planned Parenthood, and he doesn't want to reveal that. That could be true, and about as embarressing as Obama claiming on his college application that he was born in Kenya.

Andy said...

Just so we're all clear, whenever there might be any news that Obama doesn't want to talk about, an Obama supporter is going to float something about Romney's taxes and that will suck up all the attention for however long is necessary.

Romney knows this. Romney knows he is going to be trolled about his taxes whenever the democrats want, until the election. He knows he will be attacked by the moderats in the debates about it.

And he is still keeping them a secret. It's clearly hurting Romney. Maybe the next rumor will be that he took the Swiss Amnesty.

I wish American politics were different, for a million reasons. And Romney's hidden taxes, in the grand scheme of things, is less important than other issues. But this country is now working to serve the interests of the rich at the expense of the non-rich, and Romney is a perfect example of this.

The theory about how this is coming from a Huntsman is positively Shakespearian.

Left Bank of the Charles said...

If Mitt Romney was able to legally avoid paying taxes for an entire decade, he's my personal hero.

Roger J. said...

Given Mr Romney's personal fortune, IO suspect he has the very best tax lawyers that he can afford. Given his public persona I also suspect he is squeaky clean. As noted, given the administration's use of the IRS, if the IRS had something on Mr Romney, they would have taken action (unless, of course, they are waiting until October--nahhh--couldnt happen)

Michael K said...

"
I wish American politics were different, for a million reasons. "

Hatboy wishes a few more people agreed with him. Instead of the 2% that does.

Lewis Wetzel said...

Geoff Matthews wrote:
I think the tax charge is that Romney hasn't paid taxes legally.

But Markos Moulitsas wrote
And if anyone knows the machinations Bain used to evade taxes for itself and its partners, well, it would be the guy in charge of the firm's finances.

Tax evasion is a crime.

Matt Sablan said...

Romney should not give out his tax returns; before, I would have said yes. But now?

Hell no. You don't get to win politics with slander and innuendo. Accusing Romney of being a bully, a wimp, a murderer and a tax cheat has shown me that any attempts at working across the aisle are in error.

Until Democrats in the Senate and House grow up, there is no reason to give in to their demands, on any thing. I'm moderate; I think Simpson-Bowles... Bowls? Whatever, is a decent starting point for conversation.

But, sorry. We can't negotiate with people like Reid and Pelosi who think slander is an acceptable political tactic if it causes enough shame to make my opponent crack.

Michael said...

Being a partner in a firm does not give one access to the tax filings of another partner. Only uninformed lefties would fall for something so patently absurd.

On the other hand, it would be good to know if our president gamed the system at Columbia using a foreign student status to gain entry or receive discounted tuition. This isn't birther stuff, but rather more like the liberties Warren took with her ethnicity.

Andy said...

Jon Huntsman Sr., longtime Romney backer, calls on him to release tax returns

Matt Sablan said...

Greg Sargent thinks that the most important thing isn't the complete discrediting of another rumor, but rather, that, as most people, Huntsman thinks it would be easier on Romney to give in to people lying about him?

Sargent is an idiot.

Matt Sablan said...

Really, the headline should be: "Daily Kos, Reid rumor further discredited." I wonder when else "public sentiment" will mean people reveal documents. I know, for a fact, that a few hundred dead Mexican civilians, a dead Border Agent, and public sentiment aren't enough to force the government to release related documents. So, I'm sure as hell suspicious when people say public furor is enough to force a candidate for office to release documents.

test said...

Michael K said...

I wish American politics were different, for a million reasons. "

Hatboy wishes a few more people agreed with him. Instead of the 2% that does


Good one!

Andy said...

You realize Obama won the last election?

Michael Haz said...

How is what you are doing any different than what Reid and Kos did?

Roger J. said...

AndyR--indeed Mr Obama won the last election--thereby validating PT Barnum's observation about the public.

And a corollary--since Mr Obama did win the last election, there isnt much evidence that America is racist is there--How else could a half black mman possibly win in racist America?

shiloh said...

This blog's speculation re: the v-p pick notwithstanding, 90% of political blogs is half rumor er nonsense.

And re: Althouse being hypocritically self-righteous, It's déjà vu all over again!

Apologies to Yogi ...

>

btw, another day of mitten distractions = Obama is winning!

machine said...

Ah yes, the purple band-aids were so honorable...

Roger J. said...

At Shilo: 90% of political blogs is half rumor er nonsense

in this I am in full agreement with shilo. Imo the blogosphere incorporates mostly the second standard deviation on the left and right (I am on the right but in the second standard deviation). Yet to be heard is what the 67% have to say which we will find out in November.

Revenant said...

So now we've moved from baseless rumor to baseless speculation about baseless rumor.

There's still time left for a baseless conjecture about the reasons for the baseless speculation about the baseless rumor, though. :)

Roger J. said...

Rev: but if we couldnt do that, blogs would cease to exist!

shiloh said...

Interesting one rumor ending ie mittens v-p pick will spur more rumors about Romney's tax returns ...

As said v-p will be asked how many tax returns he had to reveal in the vetting process and then asked why Romney shouldn't reveal the same amount ?!?

Again, oh what a tangles web mittens weaves!

chickelit said...

Shilho shrieked: Again, oh what a tangles web mittens weaves!

Mittens are by nature webbed, you idiot. Unlike your guy Obama, Romney doesn't give people the finger and even if he did we'd never see it.

chickelit said...

BTW, Shilho: I see that your gloves are fully articulated, unlike your comments.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

"Seriously, if Romney hadn't paid taxes, don't you think the IRS would be after him? Especially under this administration? The Kossacks just want Romney's tax returns to belittle him for his charitable contributions."


THIS.

Rabel said...

"Sorry. I know I don't need to post this."

The Honey Badger is gone, but the Badger Honey keeps on rockin'.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

Shame! Shame! Shame!

Matt Sablan said...

I'm guessing Kos floated this to try and coincide with the rumor a different Huntsman would speak at the Dem convention.

Neat coordination, that.

wyo sis said...

"You realize Obama won the last election?"

Yeah we looked around and saw the complete devastation and suddenly it hit us.

Aha! Obama.

Andy has such a miserable little weezened up thinking process it had to be said even though it's a given.

gk1 said...

I actually think its three sources providing of Harry's "proof". Me. Myself and I.

jr565 said...

Hey ANdy, why isn't Harry Reid releasing HIS tax records, and why aren't libs pinging him for his hypocricy?

Michael K said...

"Blogger Andy R. said...

You realize Obama won the last election?"

I can't improve on the comment that we see the results all around us.