Romney’s self-made fortune exemplifies ‘American dream’

In nearly every election, candidates are asked to release their tax information to ensure their integrity.

This year, the candidate who has received the most flak for his tax information is Mitt Romney, who released his 2010 and 2011 documents last week.

During the last two years, Romney is expected to pay $6.2 million in taxes on his $42.5 million income, which turns out to be 13.9 percent and 15.4 percent in 2010 and 2011, respectively. These rates are just a few percentage points higher than the average American and more than 10 percent lower than what other millionaires pay.

Romney insists he has not evaded taxes and has said he earned every cent of his income.  He said he did not inherit his money and is very proud of his success.

Most politicians are incredibly wealthy, and many have probably avoided paying the taxes that most citizens believe they really should. Just like most of these politicians, Romney surely received some tax breaks.

But despite what people think of Romney because of his stance on issues or his religious views, he should be admired for being a hard-worker who got all of his money through his own accords. Many politicians come from "old money" and inherit their millions; Romney, however, is a self-made millionaire.

Instead of bashing Romney for not paying as much in taxes as many believe he should, perhaps Americans should consider that it is not Romney evading taxes, but our flawed tax system that allows wealthy individuals to pay such a small portion of taxes.

Middle-income Americans usually end up suffering the most when loopholes are put into motion for the wealthiest in our country to avoid paying their fair share.

On the other hand, as many proud Americans would agree, our country is based on a free-enterprise system and each and every citizen has the right to be successful. 

Maybe we should, instead, applaud the hard work of diligent businesspeople who have the ambition and intelligence to create the successful enterprises that have made this country so great.