"Gee, thanks, Rick. You just saved me $24 million a year!" (Mario Anzuoni/Reuters)
Ben Smith:
An aide to Texas Gov. Rick Perry called on his main rival, former Mass. Gov Mitt Romney, to make public his tax returns today, something Romney has steadily refused to do.
"Governor Perry has always released his tax returns and Mitt Romney and the other candidates should do the same," Perry spokesman Mark Miner told POLITICO.
But Romney aide Eric Fehrnstrom said his candidate wouldn't even consider releasing them until next Spring.
Most people will assume Rick Perry is either trying to portray Mitt Romney as out-of-touch by forcing him to reveal the extent of his wealth ... or portraying him as Mormon by forcing Romney to reveal how much he contributed to his church.
But maybe the real reason is much simpler: Rick Perry could just have a morbid curiosity to learn exactly how much money his radical new tax plan would save Romney each year.