US Politics Feature: Why Romney's Tax Returns Could Decide an Election
Thursday, July 12, 2012 at 11:43Vice President Joe Biden, in a speech on Tuesday, calls on Republican Presidential candidate to release his tax returns
What Democrats are looking for is an issue for Obama to embarrass Romney in October debates.
The Obama team will have watched over and over again Romney's performance in the Republican primary encounters, and they must have noticed his discomfort and indecision when Gingrich went after him over the tax returns. Romney was visibly on the defensive when Gingrich goaded him, and his response of publishing only one year's accounts has allowed Democrats to picture a similar scene in October.
Some commentators might regard this interest in Romney's tax returns as irrelevant or misguided, compared to important matters like the economy. But what both campaigns need is a surprise wedge issue. The longer Mitt Romney allows the perception to fester that he is hiding something about his wealth, the greater the chance that he will hand the Democrats the "buzz" they need to prevail on Election Day.