which you should be prepared to answer, and have confirmed by an independent examination of the relevant tax records, even if you are unwilling to release the returns themselves. And you would not get to pick the independent auditor, but instead allow a national news organization, say the Associated Press or the news organization that knows you best, the Boston Globe, pick that auditor to verify the accuracy of the information you release.
And I fully expect you to refuse, but let me frame the questions and then ask them.
In 2008 you gave John McCain 23 years of tax records to be vetted for VP. For all of those years, for 2008 and 2009, therefore a total of 25 years prior to the one year's return you released, can you answer the following questions for each year.
1. How much money did you make before charitable contributions, tax writeoffs, transfers to trust, etc?
2. How much money did you pay in federal taxes (broken out) - payroll, ordinary income tax, capital gains/carried interest?
3. Which state did you list as your residence for federal tax purposes for each of those years?
4. How much money did you pay in state income-related taxes, and to which state(s) and how much for each?
I suspect that you will be unable to release this information, because in fact the 14% effective rate you paid in 2010 may have been the highest rate, and that there may be one or more years in which you paid no federal income taxes as a result of writeoffs, charitable contributions, and transfers to trust and the like. I also suspect that you will be unwilling to disclose where your legal residence was for tax purposes during several of those years, because it conflicts with your assertions that you were eligible to run for Governor of Massachusetts.
Of course, you could simplify the problem by simply giving the American people through the media access to the same information you gave John McCain in order to be vetted for VP. Heck if you release those 23 years, we might even give you a pss on 2008 and 2009.
Because it won't matter.
Because let's be real.
What is in those tax returns would be impossible for you to defend as a candidate for President of the United States.
Just like your complete business record at Bain is impossible to defend - even if we could walk through all of the various entities inside of entities many of which were considered foreign businesses - oh, and how do those demonstrate you know how to create jobs for the American people.
One more thing, just a statement. My guess is that you have deliberately allowed a serious understatement of the wealth you and your wife have accumulated. It doesn't matter that it was done legally - you were able to do things that ordinary Americans cannot, and your lack of transparency in business affairs and personal finances demonstrates that you really aren't willing and maybe not able to defend what you have done in the public arena - perhaps because in the eyes of most voters it isn't defensible.
Peace