Shocker: Rangel Aide Also a Tax Cheat

We've figured out how to balance the federal budget: Make Charles Rangel and all his aides pay their taxes. Nothing like leading by example, Chuckles.

You know what they say about birds of a feather.

James Capel, a former top aide to Rep. Charles Rangel, 'fessed up in Manhattan Criminal Court to being a tax cheat yesterday -- just like his embattled boss.

Capel, who earned nearly $160,000 running Rangel's New York office before leaving the job in February, pleaded guilty to one count of failure to file a tax return and two counts of tax fraud, all misdemeanor charges.

He must fork over $42,088 in New York state back taxes and penalties and foot an additional $1,000 fine. He'll stay out of jail only providing he's paid up by his sentencing date of July 12.

In taking his plea, Capel admitted to Manhattan Criminal Court Judge Abraham Clott that he failed to file tax returns for the years 2007, 2008 and 2009. The crimes are misdemeanors because Capel was paying some taxes automatically via payroll withholding.

But according to a law-enforcement source, Capel actually hadn't filed taxes on his congressional salary since 2003, but the statute of limitations prevents authorities from going after those alleged lapses

In all, Capel saved himself a total of $25,000 in mostly municipal taxes, which were not automatically withheld from his paychecks.

And while it's odd for such small-scale tax frauds to result in criminal prosecutions, Capel had repeatedly balked at resolving the filing lapses, the source said.

Imagine how much jail time he'd be facing if he wasn't a member of the privileged elite class.

Eric Holder, Tax Deadbeat

The next time the IRS audits you, you can invoke the Eric Holder defense: Simply say you "weren't aware" you failed to pay your taxes. See how far that gets you.

US Attorney General Eric Holder and his brother failed to pay the property taxes on their childhood home in Queens, which they inherited last August after their mother died, The Post has learned.

And because their ailing mom, Miriam, was already behind on two quarterly tax bills when she succumbed to illness on Aug. 13, the charges went unpaid for more than a year -- growing to $4,146.

It wasn't until The Post confronted Holder last week about the delinquency that he and younger brother William Holder finally paid up Friday, including $73.14 in interest.

The siblings "weren't aware of the initial missed payments, which happened in the last months of their mother's life when she was battling illness," said a Holder spokesman.

The subsequent unpaid bills "occurred during a time period in which the disposition of the estate is still being resolved," said Department of Justice spokesman Matthew Miller.

Ignorance of the law is no excuse. But when you're Eric Holder, you're clearly above the law. I wonder how long he would have avoided paying taxes if the Post hadn't pointed it out to him?

Speaking of tax deadbeat pals of Obama's, his good buddy Al Sharpton still owes millions, with no sign he's ever going to pay up.

The Rev. Al Sharpton's nonprofit has vowed to clean up its tax debt, but it's unclear whether the charity's funds will be used to pay the activist's private liabilities.

The National Action Network's board of directors recently voted to approve funds "to resolve tax liens and outstanding tax issues," according to a NAN statement.

The organization had owed more than $1.1 million in payroll taxes at the end of 2009, according to the group's audited financial statements. But it's not clear how much of that debt has been paid.

Sharpton, NAN's president, owes $2.6 million in federal liens and $1.3 million in state personal and corporate liens for Rev Al Communications.

But Obama insists "the rich" need to pay more. Except where his friends are concerned.

Although Obama is an Ivy-educated citizen of the world, and president of the most powerful nation on earth, one has to wonder: Is Warren Buffett the only successful American the President knows?

"I don't need another tax cut, Warren Buffett doesn't need another tax cut," the President proudly professed to the American people.

But let's examine why that statement is so unnerving to investors hoping to see their lawmakers engage in an honest budget debate. For starters, Warren Buffett undoubtedly files one of the most unique tax returns in America, replete with tens of millions in capital gains and virtually no earned income. Judging from his tax returns in recent years, Buffett "earns" about $500,000 in salary and fees as a corporate director, but cashes out tens of millions more in capital gains and dividends stemming from his $45 billion dollar stake in Berkshire Hathaway.

As such, he pays about 17 percent of his "income" in taxes. To be sure, this rate is low, especially compared with the millions of Americans who are paying twice as much (35 percent) with virtually no deductions.

The bulk of these so-called "rich" Americans earn less than $500,000 a year before taxes, and hardly qualify as "rich" in Buffett terms, merely quite comfortable. These Americans proudly paid their taxes this week, a task that, in states like New York, means nearly 50 percent of their earned income goes to the government.

So it only adds insult to injury that President Obama, rather than praising these hard-working tax-payers, demonizes them by lumping them in with the Buffett types -- billionaires who clip (bond) coupons and rake in the capital gains at a much lower 15 percent rate.

Of course these folks could always voluntarily pay more, yet never seem to.

Eric Schoenberg says to sign him up for paying higher taxes. Schoenberg, who inherited money and has a healthy portfolio from his days as an investment banker, has joined a group of other wealthy Americans called United for a Fair Economy. Their goal: Raise taxes on rich people like themselves.

Shoenberg, who now teaches a business class at Columbia University, said his income is usually "north of half a million a year." But 2009 was a bad year for investments, so his income dropped to a little over $200,000. His federal income tax bill was a little more than $2,000.

"I simply point out to people, `Do you think this is reasonable, that somebody in my circumstances should only be paying 1 percent of their income in tax?'" Schoenberg said.

Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, the top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, said he has a solution for rich people who want to pay more in taxes: Write a check to the IRS. There's nothing stopping you.

"There's still time before the filing deadline for them to give Uncle Sam some more money," Hatch said.

Don't expect them to. These hypocrites are busy finding more tax shelters. Besides, they need to save some dough so they can "invest" in Obama's re-election.

Lurch Now Qualified for Obama Cabinet Position

Where is Mama T and all her ketchup riches when you need them? What, did she kick this deadbeat out of the mansion? Well, the bad news is the failed 2004 presidential candidate, who reportedly served 14 weeks in 'Nam, owes the IRS 800 large.

The good news? He's cabinet material, baby!

The Internal Revenue Service has filed a tax lien seeking more than $800,000 from Sen. John Kerry's 2004 presidential campaign, escalating a dispute over payroll taxes that the lawmaker's office blames on faulty government paperwork.

The episode has left a candidate who fell just a few percentage points short of winning the White House trying to convince the government's tax collector that his campaign already paid the taxes and doesn't owe any more.

The IRS filed the lien in the District of Columbia earlier this year, claiming that a previous attempt to collect the money was unsuccessful. "We have made a demand for payment of this liability, but it remains unpaid," the tax filing stated.

The IRS is taking action more than a year after the campaign closed its books and sent nearly $200,000 in leftover presidential campaign money to Mr. Kerry's Senate election fund.

Most deadbeats like this would be hauled into court and then shipped off to a federal penitentiary. But Lurch is one of the beautiful people, so he's above the law.

Besides, he claims there's an error.

Sure.

"The IRS merely has a gap in their electronic records of the 2004 campaign's payroll forms," Kerry spokeswoman Whitney Smith said of the lien. "We filed these forms correctly, and we're working with the IRS to provide them any and all needed information to set the record straight.

"There's no there there; nothing to see here so move along folks, end of story," she said.

I don't think so.

HT loppyd.

People Paid By The Taxpayers Don't Pay Taxes

Jammie posted earlier about the 22 lawmakers in Georgia who are having tax problems, but that is really only the tip of the iceberg. An investigation has discovered that there at least 800 people in the metro Atlanta area who may not have paid taxes and half of them, 400, work for the city of Atlanta. It seems that if you get a paycheck funded by the taxpayers there is no need for you pay taxes.

I know when I was in the Army we used to joke that every three months we paid our salaries. Yes, military members pay taxes, so in essence they pay themselves. Apparently this doesn't extend to civilian employees who get gubmint checks.

If you thought not paying taxes is just for Obama appointees, think again. Are you beginning to see where there sense of entitlement mentality comes from?

The problem in Georgia is not just with city employees. There is at least 10% of our state legislators, 22 in total, who are also either behind or have failed to pay taxes.

The local news folks are trying to find out just who they are and no doubt some on the Obama team are looking forward eagerly so that they can fill those second and third level administration jobs.

Oh, and by the way, if you think the taxes on your active duty pay are high, wait until you retire. Boy, does Uncle Sam have a surprise for you, which is why I have a full time job.

UPDATE: The bodies are starting to hit the floor. All Dems so far. In addition to Mr Brown cited in Jammies earlier post we now have State Reps. Al Williams, Winfred Dukes and Roberta Abdul Salaam.

Williams, D-Midway, called the allegations he owed more than $42,000 in taxes "crap" and said his accountant concluded the state actually owes him $400.

Dukes, D-Albany, said he sent a check for $828.70 Thursday morning. He called it a "misunderstanding" over unearned income that wasn't reported.
Salaam, a Riverdale Democrat who owes more than $600, was not at the Legislature Thursday and could not immediately be reached for comment.

4 down 18 to go.