Rep. John R. Carter (R-Texas) is all a Twitter over his newly introduced “Rangel Rule,” which would forgive all U.S. taxpayers from IRS penalties and interest.
Never mind that it’s a tongue and cheek proposal – how else is the minority party supposed to have fun?
Riding a bus on his way to the Republican weekend retreat Thursday afternoon, Carter Twittered: “Seems our Rangel Rule really stirred things up! It's just the start.”
To explain: Carter has proposed a bill that would give U.S. taxpayers a break from IRS penalties and interest on back taxes. It’s a snarky take on the controversy over Ways and Means Chairman Charles Rangel’s (D-N.Y.) tax problems.
Carter says the bill is all about putting a spotlight on Rangel, who paid back taxes on a vacation property but has not yet paid the penalties on those taxes. For an hour Wednesday, Carter and two colleagues went on the House floor to discuss the bill.
And like a growing number of lawmakers, Carter is his putting his random thoughts on politics on his Twitter feed.
Bill co-sponsor Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) read the bill on the House floor. “There seems to be one set of laws for one set of people and a set of exemptions for other folks that are very well and very highly connected,” he said.
Enjoying the humor – and realizing that their bill was going nowhere – King also noted that new Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, who went through his own mini tax scandal, could also take advantage of the bill.
Quoting Scooby Doo, Rep. Lynn Westmoreland (R-Ga.) said “there has been some Rut-ros lately what’s been going on here. Because this most open, honest ethical Congress has hit several Rut-ros and this is just one of them.”
Carter is clearly trying to tweak the chairman a bit and he obviously gets the joke. In a video on YouTube that he is linking to from Twitter, he said: “It is funny because the title of what we would ask you write on your tax for any penalties and interest is exercise the ‘Rangel Rule’ so that brings humor to the whole story.”
Watch it here.
Rangel’s office isn’t joking around on this one.
"This legislation is unnecessary. All taxpayers currently receive equal treatment under the law," Rangel spokesman Emile Milne said.
The Rangel Rule Act of 2009 (HR 735) was introduced Thursday and promptly referred to the House Ways and Means Committee. No word on whether the chairman will take up the bill.
