The Facts on Romney's Tax Returns

Let's put the facts of Mitt Romney's tax returns out there, versus the uninformed political rhetoric.

Recently a number of new agencies have presented Romney's tax extension in a light that would make many think he was trying to either hide something or be deceptive.

I manage money for many individuals -- and plenty of those are wealthy individuals. Romney has many legacy partnerships where the final tax return from those partnerships is not available until late summer/early fall. As a result, he cannot -- even if he wanted to -- finish his tax return due to the simple fact that his partnerships do not have them completed.

The president and vice president were able to complete and release their tax returns because their investments, mostly in blind pools, had the tax information available to them.

To put an end to this controversy, I think it's important to note that it is business as usual to get an extension for anyone who invests in partnerships, which is very common where you get K-1 as opposed to a W-9.

Romney is hiding nothing -- and is indeed proud to have achieved financial success.

A lot of attention over the next several months will be paid to tax returns from people like Romney and other wealthy individuals. We all know the tax code is burdensome and difficult to understand. But what is not difficult to understand -- unless you are trying to spin the story to your political desires -- is that Mitt Romney and other wealthy people must follow the tax rules and are required to file extensions until they have the final tax information in their hands.

And those are the facts.