Not Quite Disclosure
The Grey Lady has a good idea, but then misses the point completely.
The initial financial disclosure required of the presidential candidates is already shedding light on important questions of wherewithal looming beyond the glare of televised debate. As voters sort through the crowd, which includes 10 millionaires, they should find their finances useful in sizing up the contenders and whom and what they actually work for....
[Q]uestions about ... candidates' financial decisions—none necessarily nefarious—undoubtedly will arise. Several of the candidates are taking 45-day extensions before filing.
Even then, these election commission reports are more limited than the ultimate disclosure candidates should make by releasing their tax returns. This higher standard has been the tradition — though not a requirement—in past campaigns, but thus far only one of the major candidates, Senator Barack Obama, has released his return. Like other candidates who are senators, Hillary Clinton already files public financial reports in the Capitol. But these are not as definitive as tax returns, which should be part of real disclosure.
Barack and Michelle Obama had indeed released their complete 2006 federal tax return, including statements, but the current occupant of the Oval Office has issued for years tax returns so devoid of explanatory statements as to be well nigh useless.
Labels: Bush, Campaign finance, financial disclosure, Obama
