The American Spectator

stu.b.con| 1.16.09 @ 7:27AM

HYPOCRITES

Bob| 1.16.09 @ 8:32AM

Instead of continuing to be the party of the anti-intellectuals, shouldn't we be getting the facts?

Here are the facts from this article:

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0109/17468_Page2.html

"payroll lawyers, accountants and tax professors, who consider Timothy Geithner’s failure to pay four years of Social Security and Medicare payroll taxes to be a fairly common mistake"

“This is a very discrete issue,” said Michael Lloyd, an employment tax lawyer at Miller & Chevalier. “If you’re not a payroll tax lawyer, you’re not immersed in this, you are probably not getting it at first blush.”

"Tax experts blame Geithner’s error on the IMF’s atypical tax arrangement. Because it’s an international organization, it’s exempt from withholding employees’ payroll taxes."

"Geithner did his own taxes in 2001 and 2002. An accountant did them in 2003 and 2004"

"In part, say accountants, that’s because the IMF’s tax process is confusing even for professional accountants. The IMF distributes a W-2 form that leaves empty the box for payroll tax obligations, a fact that likely led Geithner to assume he was free from obligation."

"Bill Gruen, an accountant who handles the filings of several United Nations, World Bank and IMF employees, said Geithner was probably confused by tax software that failed to flag the additional payroll taxes."

“It’s not automatic — even on my $4,000 software — that the program would calculate a self-employment tax,” Gruen said.

"Geithner wasn’t the only one at the IMF to botch his returns. In November 2006, the IRS announced a special settlement initiative to help U.S.-based employees and former employees of foreign embassies, foreign consular offices and international organizations resolve outstanding tax issues."

"In 2006, the IRS audited Geithner’s 2003 and 2004 returns and charged him accordingly. But Geithner didn’t pay his 2001 and 2002 back taxes until the Obama transition team that vetted him brought the oversight to his attention."

So, let's get this straight. When the oversight was brought to his attention, he paid immediately. The tax software he was using did not flag this income and neither did the accountant he used for his taxes.

When you look at the facts, it becomes clear why he's getting a bye on this. But then again, you ideologue rubes don't like to look at facts, and the uneducated Limbaugh wouldn't understand in any event.

Wake up guys, the reason Republicans and Conservatives are losing is that they are acting like the dumbest of the dumb and being small minded and vindictive.

Doug Bandow| 1.16.09 @ 9:02AM

Actually, what your comments completely ignore is the fact that the IMF reimbursed him for taxes he didn't pay. That should have been a rather big clue to someone who's so smart and fiscally savvy.

Bob| 1.16.09 @ 9:34AM

Doug, have you ever made a big salary for a large international company? I have. Your pay stub has your salary and deductions. $35K over two years means this was just $17K per year. If he got paid every two weeks like most people, this is just $650 per paycheck. When I was working, I would not have noticed that there was no withholding on that $650. Furthermore, if it was not on the W-2, I might not have caught it either. I use TurboTax to do my taxes and that would not have caught this. His accountant didn't catch this, and should have if he were any good. Have you ever read the tax code?

Being a tax lawyer is far different than being an economist or accountant and YOU should be smart enough to know that. You don't have to study the tax code to be an economist. Besides, as soon as he was notified of the problem, he paid it PLUS penalties. There was no hint of avoidance by any of his critics.

Again, please stop dumbing down conservatives with this bogus banter. Pay attention to the real issues and stop listening to Rush...

Fred Beloit| 1.16.09 @ 9:56AM

Bob cites this as a "fact":
""payroll lawyers, accountants and tax professors, who consider Timothy Geithner’s failure to pay four years of Social Security and Medicare payroll taxes to be a fairly common mistake"
Who are these lawyers, accountants, and tax professors? I could make the same "assertion" that people like this feel this is a rare and hard to understand mistake on the part of a candidate for Secretary of the Treasury.

Diamon| 1.16.09 @ 9:57AM

WRONG!! Liberals have been avoiding taxes and have had respect for those who get away with it since taxes were imposed on us. Two "respectful" people who come to mind: (fill in the blank) Kennedy and Breck-boy Edwards.

Bob| 1.16.09 @ 10:10AM

Fred, stop being so simple minded. This was in an international position. If it was domestic, it would appear on the W-2 and there would not be an issue. I did not write the article and it came from a right of center source.

When I worked international, my focus was on my job and not on my taxes. At the end of the year, I took the W-2, put it into my tax software, and paid what I owed. If it was not on the W-2, as was the case with Geithner, I would also have missed it. Remember, this was a small portion of his salary.

Please show that you have a modicum of intelligence here.

ruth| 1.16.09 @ 2:50PM

It's not that you disagree with most of the posters on this site, Bob, it's the snide, insulting manner in which you do it. Why are you so uncivil?

Ken| 1.16.09 @ 3:22PM

So, let's see... if your employee issues you a W-2 that has a blank box where your tax obligation would be, you should consider that to be a "get out of taxation" card. A very strong argument for one who would like his cheating to be viewed as a "mistake". Pah-leeese.

Stan| 1.18.09 @ 12:34PM

What he failed to file was a Schedule SE. The tax from the Schedule SE automatically goes onto the 1040, if you use tax software. Generation of the Schedule SE is automatic in tax software if you prepare a Schedule C. Preparation of the Schedule C flows from entering data from a 1099. I don't know how you can get entry of data from a W2 to go to a Schedule C. The software probably won't let you do it.

What needs to happen is to get organizations like the IMF, if they treat their employees as independent contractors, to provide them 1099's like all other independent contractors get, and not do something completely screwy (and guaranteed to totally get messed up in tax software) like providing them a W2.

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