Romney Says He Paid at Least 13 Percent in Taxes

 The presumptive U.S. Republican presidential candidate says he has not paid less than 13 percent of his income in federal taxes during the past 10 years. 

Speaking to reporters in South Carolina, Mitt¹ Romney said he had examined his tax returns for the past decade and that he had paid "at least 13 percent" of his income every year.

Earlier this month, Senator Harry² Reid of Nevada, who leads the Democratic Party majority in the U.S. Senate, claimed that Romney had paid no taxes in some years, presumably by using tax shelters and other loopholes. Reid offered no proof to substantiate³ the allegation.

Romney on Thursday rejected Reid's claim.

"Harry Reid's charge is totally false," he said. "I'm sure waiting for Harry to put up who it was that told him what he says they told him. I don't believe it for a minute, by the way. But every year I've paid at least 13 percent, and if you add in addition the amount thatgoes to charity, why the number gets well above 20 percent."

In January, Romney released his full tax returns for 2010 and a summary of the taxes he paid in 2011. He has refused to release tax returns for other years.

The 2010 returns showed that he paid 13.9 percent of his income that year in federal taxes.

President Barack Obama, when he was running for the office in 2008, released eight years of tax returns, and has released his yearly returns while in office. They show that in 2010, Mr. Obama and his wife, Michelle, jointly⁴ paid an effective tax rate of just over 26 percent.

The Obamas earned $1.7 million in 2010, while Romney and his wife, Ann, earned more than $21.7 million that year. 

The top U.S. income tax rate is 35 percent.

1 mitt   

n.棒球手套，拳击手套，无指手套；vt.铐住，握手

参考例句：

• I gave him a baseball mitt for his birthday.为祝贺他的生日，我送给他一只棒球手套。
• Tom squeezed a mitt and a glove into the bag.汤姆把棒球手套和手套都塞进袋子里。

2 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

3 substantiate   

v.证实；证明...有根据

参考例句：

• There is little scientific evidence to substantiate the claims.这些主张几乎找不到科学依据来证实。
• These theories are used to substantiate the relationship between the phenomenons of the universe.这些学说是用来证实宇宙现象之间的关系。

4 jointly   

ad.联合地，共同地

参考例句：

• Tenants are jointly and severally liable for payment of the rent. 租金由承租人共同且分别承担。
• She owns the house jointly with her husband. 她和丈夫共同拥有这所房子。