The Gov shares one key value
with his big money backers — they don’t like taxes. Some of Arnold’s
billionaire contributors have been identified by a U.S. Senate probe as evading U.S. tax laws.
The Senate Permanent Investigations Sub-committee found that
entertainment mogul Haim Saban, NY Jets owner Robert Wood Johnson IV,
and Texas tycoons Charles and Sam Wyly shielded billions in income from
the IRS through the type of offshore tax scams that cheat the American
taxpayer out of $70 billion annually. That’s 7 cents of every tax
dollar paid by the rest of us.
This Saturday Schwarzenegger bragged about Saban’s endorsement of his
gubernatorial campaign. Saban had already contributed $31,200 to the
Gov’s accounts. The Wyly family forked over $22,000 from Dallas. Woody
Johnson hosted a big Central park fundraiser in New York for
Schwarzenegger, while Jets co-owner and Woody’s bro’, Christopher
Johnson, kicked in 10 grand to Arnold’s committees.
"Our investigation blows the lid off tax haven abuses that use sham
trusts, shell corporations and fake economic transactions to hide the
fact that U.S. citizens are controlling offshore assets… and dodging
taxes," Senator Carl Levin said, as the panel released its findings
last week.
Billionaires like Saban, Johnson and the Wylys pay for a say in
politics and for friends like Schwarzenegger. If the Gov were serious
about tax relief for those who need it, he would target closing billions in tax loopholes in California enjoyed by his billionaire backers and friends.
