Posted on 04/14/2006 12:58:39 PM PDT by Hoodat
President Bush reported adjusted gross income of $735,180 for last year, on which he paid $187,768 in federal taxes, according to the president's return released Friday by the White House.
The White House also released the 2005 tax return filed by Vice President Dick Cheney and his wife, Lynne. According to the return, the Cheneys have overpaid their taxes this year and are entitled to a refund of about $1.9 million. Their adjusted gross income was about $8.82 million.
In 2004, the president and first lady Laura Bush reported $784,219 in adjusted gross income and paid $207,307 in federal income taxes.
On their 2005 return the Bushes listed as income his presidential salary — about $400,000 — and investment income from trusts that hold their assets.
The couple contributed $75,560 to churches and charitable organizations, about $2,200 less than last year. Those included the American Red Cross and the Salvation Army's funds for hurricane relief in the United States and earthquake aid in Pakistan; Martha's Table, which provides food and services to the underprivileged in the Washington area; the Archdiocese of New Orleans Catholic Charities; and the Mississippi Food Network.
The Bushes paid $26,172 in state property taxes on their ranch near Crawford, Texas, up about $4,000 from the year before.
The Cheneys reported adjusted gross income of nearly $8.82 million, which was largely the result of exercising stock options that had been set aside in 2001 for charity.
The Cheneys donated just under $6.87 million to charity from the stock options and royalties from Mrs. Cheney's books. That left about $1.9 million in income on which the Cheney's owed $529,636 in taxes.
Over the year, the Cheneys paid $2,468,566 in taxes through withholding and estimated tax payments. As a result, the Cheneys are entitled to a refund of $1,938,930.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Which will never see the light of day in the MSM
"I can't wait to hear the complaints about this."
My only problem with this is that I'd be kicking my Accountant's @ss around the block if I had a $1.9 million dollar "refund." Those dollars SHOULD have been in my pocket and at my disposal for re-investment and growth all year long, and not been an interest-free LOAN to the Government!!! (My personal beef; but it works at ALL income levels from an income like Mr. Cheney's to an income like mine...you don't make money and get ahead by giving your money to the Government to use all year. Plant your OWN Money Tree, People!)
Anyone that gets a refund is a fool, IMHO and that includes Mr. Cheney (and I secretly loooove him.)
Hire ME to handle your money, Mr. Cheney! You'll NEVER see a tax refund again, My Love. :)
Or you could say the Cheney's gave the American taxpayer a $1.9 million interest-free loan.
Now THAT deserves impeachment hearings. /sarcasm
Every quarter, $crew that. No money is due until the end of the year. I've even heard it suggested (by another Freeper) that the due date be about a week before election day. That way people know exactly what they are paying in taxes and can take it out on those responsible before they forget.
Oh and revolution is reform, only a bit more dramatic.
Actually, Cheney should be mad at his "financial guy"...for not having that over 1 million dollar refund working for HIM, instead of the government...
At least that is always why I have been told not to be excited about getting a refund.
Your reasons for wanting that to happen, is the very reason it will NEVER happen!!
Really. Some DUers are actually complaining he gave a large chunk of his income to charity, and the rest are wondering why he didn't hit the 50% of AGI cap on deductions.
And five minutes on google told me that the reason. Basically, when he was appointed, to avoid the charge he could benefit from the exercise of Halliburton stock options, he pledged to donate any profit from the exercise of those options to charity; and the trust that administered the agreement in turn agreed to pay any extra tax liability that arose from the 50% AGI limit.
So the Cheneys just tried to ensure that, if they ended up donating more than 50% of their income to charity as a result of an agreement they entered into to avoid a appearance of conflict of interest, they wouldn't have to pay the government a million bucks or so of the remaining income as a result of giving several millions of dollars to medical research and education.
Takes a special kind of person to criticize someone else for outstanding generosity.
Umm, Mr. Cheney (hat in hand) . . . Well, I've been a loyal supporter, actually a big fan of yours, and, well, I was just wondering . . .
Remember the Clintons used underwear deduction? lol
If Tax Deductions were the "BIG THING" the reason that they can "Hate" Cheney, I have a cure
"FAIR TAX" everyone pays!
TT
From #5:
In most cases, you can't contribute more than 50 percent of your adjusted gross income in a tax year, meaning if your AGI is $30,000 you can only deduct gifts up to $15,000 on a return. You can carry forward any excess. Katrina tax legislation removes both of these charitable-giving restrictions on gifts made between Aug. 28 and Dec. 31. The best part for donors able to give substantial amounts is that the limits aren't restricted to Katrina-connected donations. They are removed for any gift, regardless of the receiving organization's designated cause. So if you made substantial donations in the latter part of 2005, make sure you take the full deduction.
What did Fat Ted pay to the Feds and the Gay State? Guess we'll never know.
"The Cheneys donated just under $6.87 million to charity "
That says enough.
Why liberals feel its O.K. for the State to steal people's money under the guise of "Income Taxes" is beyond me.
I think if you're going to give $6 million of your $8 million income to charity, making sure you only pay tax on the $2m remaining is fair enough. Here on FR, we give them kudos for their generosity. The DUers are carping at how they made sure they had enough left not to go bankrupt.
Good idea. The day before election day.
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