Bushes Pay Taxes on $923,807 Income

WASHINGTON — The federal tax bill for President Bush and his wife: $221,635. That's how much the Bushes owed on their adjusted gross income of $923,807 for the year 2007, according to a joint return released Friday. The Bushes have paid $203,894 so far, which means they'll need to break out the checkbook _ they owe the government $17,741.

Their income total includes a $150,000 advance received by Laura Bush for the children's book she co-authored with her daughter, Jenna.

Last year, the president and Mrs. Bush paid $186,378 in federal taxes on their income of $765,801.

Bush's salary as president is about $400,000.

Almost 29 percent of the Bushes' income comes from interest on investments. The largest share of that interest was paid out from one place, The Lone Star Trust, according to the return released by the White House.

The White House also reported that Vice President Dick Cheney and his wife, Lynne, had an adjusted gross income of $3.04 million in 2007.

The Cheneys owed $602,651 in federal taxes on that income. They have paid $466,165 through withholdings and estimated tax payments, and will pay the remaining $136,486 upon filing their tax return.

The Cheneys' income includes the vice president's salary and a pension he gets as a former director of Union Pacific Corp. It also includes Lynne Cheney's book royalty income, a salary from her work at the American Enterprise Institute and a pension she gets as a former director of Reader's Digest.

The vice president's salary is about $212,000.

Mrs. Bush donated all net proceeds from her book advance to Teach for America and The New Teacher Project, according to the White House.

The Bushes contributed $165,660 to churches and charitable organizations, including the volunteer fire department in Crawford, Texas, where they own a ranch. The Cheneys donated $166,547 to charity in 2007, the White House said.

Comments

[UNCLEJOE]

It seems logical to me that taxes should be based on a sliding scale from zero to at least 50% on annual income; a family of four with an income of $50,000 or less should be tax free since inflation is a hidden tax that hurts consumer families living on an annual of $50,000 or less is an unfair ratio compared to those living on an income of One million annual income or more.
Inflation, like raises in 'cost of living' in SS and VA pensions, should be factored into the tax system, since inflation is caused artificially as exemplified by the FED Chairman Berneke pumping in $240 Billion fiat paper to bail out the corrupt failing FED banks even after retired FED Chairman Allen Greenspan orchestrated the Sub-Prime home loan scam prior to 2005, for which Greenspan should be indicted for high crimes.
Somewhere between $50,000 and ad infinitum incomes, taxes should be scaled incrementally from Zero to 50% at lest, and any secretive hidden incomes in foreign banks or refrigerators or mattresses, when discovered should be confiscated at 110% as a penalty with a prison term.
The IRS tax fraud investigators needs to be expanded to track down the Cheneys, Bushs and Congressmen and the consortiums benefiting from war profits, for that is where the predominant tax frauds take place who are usually overlooked.

[loki]

if we lied about our income like this, we would be in jail. Being filthy rich gets you all kinds of fringe benefits. People give you thousands of dollars worth of gifts. You dont have to pay taxes on the bulk of your income as long as you pay a little bit. And you will never get in trouble even if you murder people.

[loki]

I would like it if they paid taxes on the millions they have in Euros and other foreign investments. Or how about a multi million dollar properties in south America? You know Bush didnt buy that ranch on 900k a year.

[realitytrumpsbull]

Could we have that whole part one time slow where Dick Cheney pulled a paycheck from Halliburton while in public office up until, what was it, 2006, something like that?

[Quaoar]

How much tax did Bush pay on his secret Cayman Islands account that he didn't tell the IRS about?

[bmermaid]

Hilarious! Most of thier fortune has never & will never see the light of day in the USA. It goes straight from the Saudis & other oil interests, directly into off-shore accounts.
The 923 thousand is chump change to them, and they're laughing all the way to the (Swiss) bank.

[shaggles]

2 thought's occur: 1) I would have thought Bush made a lot more money than that. 2)$150K advance for a children's book?

[dontomas]

I am the only person commenting because it was a foregone conclusion that these families rake it in, always have, always will. Despite their vast wealth, I would not trade my modest life for one second of theirs.