The pressure on Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney to release his tax returns intensified Wednesday when one of his biggest supporters urged him to release them.
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has campaigned with Mr. Romney and endorsed him last year after announcing that he would not be running for president himself. Now Mr. Christie is advising the former Massachusetts governor to release his tax statements.
The controversy regarding Mr. Romney’s wealth and income taxes heated up this week when rival Republican candidate Newt Gingrich called on him to release his tax returns. On Sunday Mr. Gingrich announced that he would be releasing his own tax returns on Thursday, and urged Mr. Romney to do the same.
During the nationally televised presidential debate Monday night, Texas Governor Rick Perry joined in the criticism of the front running candidate, and stated that his own tax filings have always been available to the public during his term as governor.
When pressed by Fox News moderators Monday, Mr. Romney stated that he will consider releasing his tax returns in April. The following day though, Mr. Romney set off an outcry of criticism from the media and Mr. Gingrich when he told reporters that he pays an income tax rate of “probably 15 percent.” That would be a lower tax rate compared to middle class workers, but only because Mr. Romney pays taxes based on capital gains investment tax rates, not actual personal income tax rates.
During an appearance on MSNBC Wednesday, Governor Christie called on his favorite Republican presidential candidate to release his tax returns ahead of his proposed April release date.
“I’ve released all my tax returns, and I did it during the campaign,” said Mr. Christie Wednesday. “And I think that’s the right way to go, and that’s what I would tell Gov. Romney to do. Let’s get all the facts out there, see what the tax returns say, and then I think everybody will know the story’s probably much ado about nothing.”
The Federal Election Commission requires candidates to file personal financial disclosure statements, essentially giving an estimated broad range of their personal assets and liabilities prior to qualifying to run in an election. In August, Mr. Romney’s financial disclosure to the FEC showed his net worth to be between $190 and 250 million.
However, with the release of the 28 minute “King of Bain” movie last week, a pro Newt Gingrich Super PAC attempted to characterize Mr. Romney as an elitist investment capitalist who profited greatly from his time at Bain Capital by firing middle class workers and forcing businesses and factories to go bankrupt.
Mr. Romney and his campaign team called the attacks “completely false,” however, it reinforced public perception of Mr. Romney being an wealthy businessman who is out of touch with the voters he is currently courting, especially in South Carolina where the unemployment rate is currently 9.9 percent.
Now with essentially all of his rival Republican candidates and his biggest supporter in Governor Christie calling upon him to release his tax returns, Mr. Romney is surely feeling the pressure to do so.
Mr. Christie’s urging comes on the same day that Mr. Gingrich announced that pays a personal income tax rate at 31 percent. The former House speaker again challenged Mr. Romney on Wednesday to release his tax returns during a press conference in South Carolina.
