Romney Raising Funds from Expats. Some excellent comments have been posted on the tax plight of US Expats abroad on the Wall Street Journal. Here is an opportunity to refute some arguments and perhaps open the eyes of Romney to the disastrous plight of overseas Americans. Roger has added his. I am traveling, but will add mine tonight when I get a reliable internet connection.
Here is a link to a video on the same topic.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443477104577549270328885312.html?mod=WSJ_article_comments#articleTabs%3Dvideo
I also sent a note to the Romney campaign. We’ll see if anyone answers.
I went and read the comments. Roger’s were outstanding as usual.
But some of the commenters were repeating over and over that U.S. citizens abroad are not double-taxed, there are foreign tax credits and so on and so forth and simply won’t listen to anyone who says otherwise (however gently). One person actually seemed to be saying that nothing like the Reed Amendment ever existed.
Feeling rather low today so I’m going to head out to the garden. Reading this crap makes me embarrassed (ignorance is something I can live with but failure to even reconsider one’s position in the light of new information is just beyond dumb) and fills me with despair. Forget the politicians, the American people are perfectly capable of tanking their own country all by their little selves.
@Victoria, I hear you, for some reason I’m having one of those days today, as well, where the struggle seems endless and useless, and no one but us on this site gives a sh*t. I’m sure tomorrow I’ll wake up all fired up again, but maybe you’re right, getting out into the garden might be just the thing. Weeding is strangely meditation-like for me. I hope your despair gets lifted by the smell of fertile earth, the feeling of the sun on your back, and the feeling of satisfaction that comes after doing something that’s outside and is productive!
Mitt Romney looking for donations from US Persons, London Edition
Peter Spiro’s thoughts and questions:
1. This kind of extraterritorial campaigning is becoming routine. Lots of US citizens live abroad (estimates of as many as seven million), they can vote come November, and (way more importantly) they have a lot of money. For Romney’s purposes, London is just a little east of the Hamptons!
2. I wonder if Romney will get an earful about new IRS practices regarding foreign account holders and the notorious (at least among nonresident Americans) law known as FATCA. Nonresidents have some discrete interests as such, but they don’t seem to have organized very well as a special interest group. (It would be easier if there were a First Overseas District in Congress — an approach now used by other countries, for example France, in which external citizens have their own representatives in national legislatures).
3. Why is it someone who lives in London can donate money when some people living in the US can’t? Some of the donors at tonight’s dinner may never have resided in the United States (it is possible to be a US citizen for life without ever having set foot in the US, though I doubt that would be true of the private-jet set around the table with Mitt). Bluman v. FEC presented a very plausible challenge to the ban on campaign donations by nonimmigrants in the US (brought by two very sympathetic plaintiffs – one a lawyer, one a doctor, one Republican, one Democrat, both here on long-term work visas). That was given the back of the hand by the Judge Kavanaugh, on a well-dressed but basically ipse dixit basis.
I am back from a 2 day mind clearing and perspective reminding trip around Mount Saint Helens. Mother earth still has more power than the IRS. I went ahead and posted a comment although a bit late and recommend the obvious ones.
I also was dismayed at the incomprehension and denial coming from Jimmy Thefrench. He obviously has only superficial knowledge of the situation and will not even listen or read the educated attempts to correct his views. Very disturbing to think that most “average americans” will react in the same way as him.
*For those who think Mutt Romney would make a good pres.
The NY times has a killer op Ed piece on his possible/probable tax avoidance schemes (July 31)
OK for possible pres to avoid taxes but not for minnows living offshore.
Tried to paste the link but my tablet seems incapable.
@freeatlast
Yea, Jimmy The French was a fun project. He finally fell silent after my last two long replies. 🙂 I can usually outstay the “impact deniers.” It also makes me a good graffiti buster too in my NZ community. I can paint over tags faster than the kids can put them up, and they usually tire of the game, and so I win by default. They have no staying power.