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Politics : Liberalism: Do You Agree We've Had Enough of It? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (57625)	1/14/2009 10:00:44 PM
From: longnshort	3 Recommendations Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 224759

such as an early-withdrawal penalty from a retirement plan, an improper small-business deduction, a charitable-contribution deduction for ineligible items, and the expensing of utility costs that went for personal use. Other tax issues also surfaced during the vetting, including the fact Mr. Geithner used his child's time at overnight camps in 2001, 2004 and 2005 to calculate dependent-care tax deductions. Sleepaway camps don't qualify." that's not an innocent mistake, I knew that stuff years ago and I'm not a guy who should head the IRS, what a partisan hack you are. You should be ashamed of yourself

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (57625)	1/14/2009 10:05:27 PM
From: longnshort	2 Recommendations Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 224759

Geithner Accepted IMF Reimbursement for Taxes He Didn't Pay National Review Online ^ \| 1/14/09 \| Byron York article.nationalreview.com Although it has been dismissed by some observers as a “hiccup” in an otherwise smooth confirmation process, treasury secretary-designate Timothy Geithner’s failure to pay self-employment taxes during the years he worked at the International Monetary Fund is causing some Republicans on Capitol Hill to ask serious questions about his actions. First among those questions is why he accepted payment from the IMF as restitution for taxes that he had not, in fact, paid. Documents released by the Senate Finance Committee strongly suggest that Geithner knew, or should have known, what he was doing when he did not pay self-employment taxes in 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004. After his failure to pay was discovered, first by the IRS and later during the vetting process, Geithner paid the federal government a total of $42,702 in taxes and interest. The IMF did not withhold state and federal income taxes or self-employment taxes — Social Security and Medicare — from its employees’ paychecks. But the IMF took great care to explain to those employees, in detail and frequently, what their tax responsibilities were. First, each employee was given the IMF Employee Tax Manual. Then, employees were given quarterly wage statements for the specific purpose of calculating taxes. Then, they were given year-end wage statements. And then, each IMF employee was required to file what was known as an Annual Tax Allowance Request. Geithner received all those documents. The tax allowance has turned out to be a key part of the Geithner situation. This is how it worked. IMF employees were expected to pay their taxes out of their own money. But the IMF then gave them an extra allowance, known as a “gross-up,” to cover those tax payments. This was done in the Annual Tax Allowance Request, in which the employee filled out some basic information — marital status, dependent children, etc. — and the IMF then estimated the amount of taxes the employee would owe and gave the employee a corresponding allowance. At the end of the tax allowance form were the words, “I hereby certify that all the information contained herein is true to the best of my knowledge and belief and that I will pay the taxes for which I have received tax allowance payments from the Fund.” Geithner signed the form. He accepted the allowance payment. He didn’t pay the tax. For several years in a row. According to an analysis released by the Senate Finance Committee, Geithner “wrote contemporaneous checks to the IRS and the State of Maryland for estimated [income] tax payments” that jibed exactly with his IMF statements. But he didn’t write checks for the self-employment tax allowance. Then, according to the committee analysis, “he filled out, signed and submitted an annual tax allowance request worksheet with the IMF that states, ‘I wish to apply for tax allowance of U.S. Federal and State income taxes and the difference between the “self-employed” and “employed” obligation of the U.S. Social Security tax which I will pay on my Fund income.” In a conversation today with sources on Capitol Hill who are familiar with the situation, I asked, “Was Geithner made whole for tax payments that he didn’t make?” “Yes,” one source answered. “He was getting the money. He was being paid a tax allowance to pay him for tax payments that he should have made but had not.” Geithner paid his 2003 and 2004 obligations after an IRS audit. He paid his 2001 and 2002 obligations after he was nominated to be treasury secretary. The Obama transition team argues that Geithner simply slipped up, saying Tuesday that Gieithner “mistakenly had not paid self-employment taxes” for the years in question. In a closed-door meeting with Senate Finance Committee members on Tuesday, Geithner explained his failure to pay the self-employment taxes as an oversight. In the days before his confirmation hearing, senators are going to want to know more about how that happened.

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (57625)	1/14/2009 11:21:35 PM
From: Little Joe	2 Recommendations Respond to of 224759

I don't for a minute believe that this was an innocent mistake. It is clear that he was advised by the employer about the tax liability. He was even reimbursed for taxes he never paid. Let's face it he just tried to get away with it. As I have said many times on many threads on SI both parties are crooked. Obama is no different than Bush in the integrity department. I would be embarrassed to shake eith of their hands. Time for a third party. Little joe

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (57625)	1/15/2009 10:33:04 AM
From: DizzyG	4 Recommendations Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 224759

I'm not buying the "innocent mistake" argument, Kenneth... This person is being nominated to head up the Treasury department. So what does the Treasury Department do? The basic functions of the Department of the Treasury include: * Managing federal finances; * Collecting taxes, duties and monies paid to and due to the U.S. and paying all bills of the U.S.; * Producing all postage stamps, currency, and coinage; * Managing government accounts and the United States public debt; * Supervising national banks and thrift institutions; * Advising on domestic and international financial, monetary, economic, trade and tax policy - fiscal policy being the sum of these, and the ultimate responsibility of Congress. * Enforcing Federal finance and tax laws; * Investigating and prosecuting tax evaders, counterfeiters, forgers, smugglers, illicit spirits distillers, and gun law violators. en.wikipedia.org If this guy is as sharp as you and Obama claim, he would not have made this "innocent mistake". Sell the party line somewhere else, Kenneth... Diz-

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (57625)	1/15/2009 12:10:01 PM
From: DizzyG	5 Recommendations Respond to of 224759

Again, you always leave out the best part, Kenneth... From your article: Timothy Geithner, whose nomination as Treasury secretary has been delayed by his past failure to pay taxes, was repeatedly advised in writing by the International Monetary Fund that he would be responsible for any Social Security and Medicare taxes he owed on income he earned at the IMF between 2001 and 2004. And this is the candidate that Obama wants to put in charge of the IRS? LOL! Diz-