In mid June, shortly before Mitt Romney’s foreign trip, John McCain gave an interview to PBS in which he said a curious thing. Criticizing billionaire Sheldon Adelson’s gigantic donations to GOP candidates and their Super PACs this year, he said, “Much of Mr. Adelson’s casino profits come to him through his casino in Macau.”
Pressed as to the implications, McCain continued: “Which says that, obviously, maybe in a roundabout way, foreign money is coming into an American campaign—to American political campaigns.”
This is significant because just this January the Supreme Court held that while Citizens United allows corporations and people to donate anonymously and in unlimited quantities to campaigns through Super PACs, foreign cash is strictly forbidden in American elections. Collecting campaign money from foreign nationals is actually a felony that disqualifies you from an election.
Shortly after, Mr. Romney left for a trip abroad, where he held fundraisers in London and Israel. According to reports before the events by HuffPo and Washington Post both events were intended for Americans living abroad. But as The Guardian noted Romney decided to completely blockade the Israel event from press, including U.S. press, and the transparency he’d promised around the foreign fundraisers turned into total opacity.
We don’t actually know who donated what. While Citizens United does say that no foreign cash is allowed to enter elections, it also allows Super PACs to accept money without disclosing donors through a tricky set of loopholes involving a special tax-exempt non-profit filing status. Romney will have to disclose donations to his actual campaign accepted at the foreign fundraisers, but if foreign nationals gave money to Super PACs being run by people in attendance, we’d have no idea. So while Citizens United forbids foreign money, it can’t enforce accountability on the issue.
So far Romney has resisted releasing tax returns beyond the two years required of him. In that, he’s playing by the rules. But if foreign money made its way into Super PACs, Romney would be able to break the rules and potentially never get caught. If accepting foreign cash is forbidden and disqualifies a candidate from an election, there should be some disclosure requirements to make sure groups aren’t accepting foreign cash. But there aren’t.
As for McCain’s assertion that foreign money is finding its way into the election via Sheldon Adelson’s casino in Macau, it’s a gray area at best: American corporations are allowed to donate to U.S. candidates, but what about multi-nationals like Coca-Cola, who make big chunks of their money abroad? Is Coca-Cola beholden to any foreign interests due to its international business, and does that influence its election investments? How do you separate the “domestic money” from “foreign money”?
This is probably why in his interview McCain called Citizens United “the most misguided, naive, uninformed, egregious decision of the United States Supreme Court I think in the 21st century.”
And while the focus here is on Romney, we should really be demanding accountability from all candidates. Is it possible foreign cash could have entered the coffers of Obama Super PACs? How would we know? Are we supposed to take it on faith?
If Citizens United is going to forbid foreign cash from Super PACs, it also needs to require full disclosures with no loopholes, so we can see who donated what. Otherwise why bother forbidding it?
Just another reason why the current campaign finance system is completely absurd and corrupt to the core.
August 14, 2012 at 8:39 pm, Nancy Aucella said:
Another word for Politics is CORRUPT!
August 14, 2012 at 11:13 pm, Paul Flynn said:
I once heard it said that in Latin "Poli" means many and Tic is a blood sucking parasite…poli-tics
August 15, 2012 at 4:06 am, Aaron Arm said:
You're thinking of "poly" and "tick," the latter of which isn't Latin.
August 15, 2012 at 4:06 am, George Greene said:
How exactly is it that you read a story saying 1 politician is corrupt and conclude that his opponent is also?? Another word for low-info voters is STUPID.
August 15, 2012 at 7:25 am, Patriots Bless America said:
Y'all are talking about obama, right? I just posted a document that was released showing Romney gave more to charity last year than Obama. Obama gave 1% and obama is rich. Romney gave 20%.
August 15, 2012 at 11:01 pm, Marty Townsend said:
Don't lie. Obama gave $172,130 on in come of $844,585 or 20.4% while Rmoney gave $4,020,572 on income of $20,901,075 or 19.2%.
August 20, 2012 at 5:40 am, Tom Joad said:
I don't know how much Romney tithes, but assuming he does the same as non-Mormons that means that over half his charitable givings were to the LDS church. Personally, I don't call that giving to charity, I call it giving to an activist group… Y'know, given all the money they spend in various political capacities around the country (the Prop 8 campaign in CA springs to mind). To me, that shit's as much a fraud as Romney's tax documents and your post.
August 20, 2012 at 6:07 am, Marty Townsend said:
It's not really a voluntary donation. He is required to tithe to the LDS or risk losing his membership or at least his position and standing in the church.
August 20, 2012 at 7:21 am, Tom Joad said:
Fair enough, but doesn't that still count as an exemption as long as your church does charitable work? (Somebody's gonna have to explain that to me as I've never actually been a member of /any/ church, lol.)
August 20, 2012 at 9:48 am, Patriots Bless America said:
Mr. Townsend, I don't always receive notifications, but I received one this morning. First of all, don't call me a liar b/c I have better things to do with my time than insult other people's intelligence. Secondly, Romney gave his entire inheritance, which was substantial to charity. Obama has his brother and family living in squander in Kenya even though the issue can be easily resolved, after all, he's rich, right? The Romney's aren't the only Christian's required to tithe so don't place yourselves above the rest of us. Have a good day!
August 20, 2012 at 2:55 pm, Marty Townsend said:
I call them as I see them. The numbers are for 2010. If Rmoney has other years tax returns that show he gave a higher percentage to charity, then he should show them. An article in Free Inquiry estimates that the Mormon church gives 0.7% of its income to charities, by contrast the United Methodist Church gives 29%.
August 20, 2012 at 3:08 pm, Patriots Bless America said:
How exactly will Romney's tax returns help millions of people find jobs? Apparently we are suppose to be more outraged by what Mitt Romney does with his money than what oabama does with ours. I call them as I see them, now go ask obana for his birth certificate and college transcripts. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XW0Y4s4GScw
August 20, 2012 at 3:26 pm, Tom Joad said:
Dude, if you could learn basic rules of grammar or even spelling I might take your opinion a tad more seriously. As it stands, your apparent inability to form a cogent argument makes me just want to dismiss it altogether.
August 20, 2012 at 3:36 pm, Patriots Bless America said:
That's Ma'am to ya, and if you can't figure it out, why respond?
August 20, 2012 at 4:09 pm, Marty Townsend said:
Barack Obama has released both the short form and long form of his birth certificate and both have been authenticated by the State of Hawaii, Mittens has released a COPY of his short form. No other President has ever been asked for or produced such documentation of his birth (maybe there's something different about him, a little too tan?). His college transcripts are not 'sealed', they are protected by the same privacy laws as all transcripts. Nor have any President or candidate EVER produced college transcripts. Rmoney is asking us to trust him with our tax dollars, yet he doesn't trust us to show his returns. What is he hiding? Possibly he received amnesty for his Swiss bank accounts. In 2008-2009 the IRS offered amnesty to Americans who paid back taxes and divulged their overseas holdings in Swiss banks. Amnesty does not mean that he wasn't guilty of felony tax evasion, just that the IRS declined to prosecute.
August 20, 2012 at 5:24 pm, Patriots Bless America said:
Truth be known, there are different stories being told. Romney has said time and again that "October 15 is the deadline for the IRS on an extension" and that he would release the tax returns shortly thereafter. And please, if you want me to be respectful toward you, then I ask that you not refer to Gov. Romney as Mittens since I find it personally offensive. Thank you.
August 21, 2012 at 4:28 pm, Tom Joad said:
Uhh Because you have a gender neutral handle and I don't know you so I don't have any way of knowing what you look like. Further, considering the use of the title of "ma'am" is a sign of respect, I don't plan on using it. Y'know, considering you haven't shown me the respect of even addressing my arguments. Gotta give respect to get it and all that.
August 22, 2012 at 12:48 pm, Patriots Bless America said:
@Joad, I had no idea your posts were directed to me. I thought they were directed toward Mr. Townsend.
August 22, 2012 at 12:50 pm, Patriots Bless America said:
http://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/18-congregations/41-new-study-shows-trends-in-tithing-and-donating
August 22, 2012 at 12:51 pm, Patriots Bless America said:
@Townsend, your statement about what church gives more charity is incorrect. See post above.
August 22, 2012 at 2:57 pm, Marty Townsend said:
The question was about how much each church spent on charity. The article you posted was about how much is given to churches. Not the same thing.
August 22, 2012 at 3:13 pm, Patriots Bless America said:
I didn't re-read your question, my bad. So where is your source of information coming from? Can you post it? Thank you.
August 22, 2012 at 4:15 pm, Marty Townsend said:
http://www.secularhumanism.org/index.php?section=fi&page=cragun_32_4
August 25, 2012 at 11:08 pm, Linda Brown said:
According to Ann Romney, they give 20% to their church.
August 26, 2012 at 12:05 am, Marty Townsend said:
Don't lie. She said 10%. Let them try to make their own excuses, they're not much better at it than you are. http://www.addictinginfo.org/2012/08/23/ann-romney-destroys-her-husbands-newest-tax-excuse-video/
August 26, 2012 at 12:17 am, Linda Brown said:
Sorry about that Marty. You are correct. I thought she said 20% when I watched one of her interviews. I rewatched the vid and she did say 10%.
August 26, 2012 at 3:06 am, Patriots Bless America said:
Mr. Townsend, again, I did not get your notification, but just saw LB replied on this link and to my surprise, there has been some activity here. I know there was some information floating around that did state "charity" given was @ 20% and I didn't get that information from watching TV or video, it was in print. I'll look over the link and video. Thank you.
August 26, 2012 at 9:08 am, Patriots Bless America said:
Since this has become a topic of Mr. Townsend's concern, the exact percentage on tax record is 16.4% or $7 Million. The Huffington Post saw and confirmed they saw tax returns. The source of my information is http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/24/mitt-romney-tax-return_n_1228447.html
August 26, 2012 at 9:12 am, Patriots Bless America said:
Marty Townsend Biden gave $369.00 and obama gave 1% which comes out to $10K. Fox News low balled the percentage to 15%. $7 Million and liberal's label Romney greedy, but psychiatrist's have labeled liberal's with having a mental disorder. http://nation.foxnews.com/mitt-romney/2012/01/24/whos-greedy-obama-gave-1-charity-romney-gave-15
August 26, 2012 at 1:25 pm, Marty Townsend said:
Patriots Bless America There is only ONE year we have tax returns for both candidates 2010. Don't lie. Obama gave $172,130 on income of $844,585 or 20.4% while Rmoney gave $4,020,572 on income of $20,901,075 or 19.2%. http://www.taxhistory.org/www/website.nsf/web/presidentialtaxreturns
That's what you get when you rely on Fox 'News' for your information. Your brain atrophies and your IQ drops. http://rt.com/usa/news/conservative-ideologies-science-group-477/
August 26, 2012 at 2:50 pm, Patriots Bless America said:
Mr. Townsend, don't you ever call me a liar. I supplied the sources of information. So the bottom line is that you want to establish that obama gave a whopping amount of charity, is that right? Charity begins at home Mr. Townsend. If obama is such a nice guy, why did his poor brother call Dinesh D'Souza to ask for a $1,000 to help him pay for medical bills? You really believe that obama gave $172k in charity? Call those folks liars, you'll be closer to the truth. I'm done here! Have a nice day!
August 26, 2012 at 3:05 pm, Marty Townsend said:
The ONLY year of tax returns that Rmoney has released is 2010 (and that was not complete). I repeat : Obama gave $172,130 on income of $844,585 or 20.4% while Rmoney gave $4,020,572 on income of $20,901,075 or 19.2%. You obviously have a problem with reading comprehension as the sites you reference don't say what you think they said. You can not argue about other years charitable donations when Rmoney won't release his tax returns.
August 26, 2012 at 3:15 pm, Patriots Bless America said:
Mr. Townsend, again, I supplied two sources for my information. I find your obsession about other people's money to be B-O-R-I-N-G. I informed you in my last post that I am done here. Please respect my wishes. Thank you!
August 26, 2012 at 3:27 pm, Marty Townsend said:
Please go away. I will not allow you to post false and derogatory information here without rebuttal. Rmoney is asking the American people to trust him with their tax money. They deserve to see his tax returns. I had to show more years of my tax returns to buy a house, he doesn't think he should have to show them to be elected President?
August 26, 2012 at 3:33 pm, Patriots Bless America said:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGnsIsrUbYY&feature=player_embedded
August 26, 2012 at 3:35 pm, Marty Townsend said:
Very credible source! lol
August 15, 2012 at 6:07 am, 120815 – Get Your Money Out! « The Hyper Report said:
[...] Let’s see… Paul Ryan, against his principles in order to save his principles, Voted YES on TARP Voted YES on $15B bailout for GM and Chrysler. Voted YES on making the PATRIOT Act, which really is unpatriotic, permanent. and Voted NO on getting US troops out of Iraq. Sounds like a perfect match for Ole Goldman-Sachs Romney. Who, if true, should face disqualification for foreign contributions to his Presidential campaign. [...]
August 15, 2012 at 2:32 pm, Cathy Magee said:
romney's charity is his church.
August 16, 2012 at 7:17 am, Nick Riley said:
Ron Paul all the way.
August 16, 2012 at 1:47 pm, James Potts said:
Well, Romney and the Super PACs have been accepting contributions from the Adelson family – the partiarch of which owns an offshore and I believe online casino in Macau – that is foreign funds no how well laundered, probably through his offshore accounts, and into Romney's offshore accounts – so they both get full face value of the cash. Man, the refusal to show tax returns was pretty disrespectful, his "I'm developing my own plan" insulting, and now the revelation that he is using foreign money to try to buy this election – He deserves to be disqualified, arrested and tried for election fraud, and every other violation we can find; which, a court can order full disclosure of finances. Not only will he be tried and likely convicted, but we'll all get to see what he's been hiding and know that he shouldn't ever have even thrown his hat into this ring.
August 16, 2012 at 7:13 pm, Pamela Faber said:
"Man, the refusal to show tax returns was pretty disrespectful"
Maybe take a class in reading comprehension. The article very clearly states that Romney has released the required years of tax returns.
Were your panties all in a bunch when John Kerry didn't release his wife's tax returns when HE ran for President?
If only Obama's Presidency was as transparent as your ridiculously misguided 'facts'.
August 16, 2012 at 8:01 pm, Gail Kramer La Barbera said:
well said Pamela
August 20, 2012 at 5:17 am, Randall E. Winn said:
Pamela Faber "Required" by whom?
Lord Rawmoney is interviewing for a job. His ONLY qualification is his ability to make money (…he modestly declines to discuss his failed governorship of Massachusetts.) He REFUSES to disclose how he made that money. Therefore he fails the interview.
P.S. we both know he has some shady tax schemes going on. Otherwise how could he have a $100 million 401k?
August 20, 2012 at 10:05 am, Patriots Bless America said:
Worried about someone else's tax returns instead of job creation? Typical liberal thinking, smh.
August 20, 2012 at 10:22 am, Patriots Bless America said:
http://news.yahoo.com/obama-dream-act-lite-runs-more-trouble-nebraska-175716587.html
August 19, 2012 at 1:42 am, Al Frisby said:
Patriots Bless America is listening to too much Fox News!
August 20, 2012 at 10:03 am, Patriots Bless America said:
Mr. Frisby, you have your wife, you have no right to comment about what other women are saying or doing.
August 20, 2012 at 10:45 am, Patriots Bless America said:
So you are not a fan of Fox News; will Newsweek work for ya? http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2012/08/19/shocking-newsweek-cover-hit-road-barack-why-we-need-new-president
August 20, 2012 at 10:47 am, Patriots Bless America said:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2012/08/19/niall-ferguson-on-why-barack-obama-needs-to-go.html
August 22, 2012 at 6:58 pm, James Hines said:
Great Question!!! Sadly, it will only produce more echoes of Al Gore… "No Legal Controlling Authority !" :-/
August 22, 2012 at 7:17 pm, Steven Huff said:
I hope he did so Ron Paul can get the GOP nomination.
August 22, 2012 at 7:18 pm, Allen Andrews said:
What were those Chinese names with Clinton and Gore? At least they got secrets for their cash.
October 21, 2012 at 4:04 pm, Robert A Racine Jr said:
It is a very good possibility if he did after all being sneaky and all.
October 30, 2012 at 3:03 pm, Osama Bin Laden donates! - Page 2 said:
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