Yes, Senator Joe Biden who's been in Washington for over 30 years gives on average per year, .0015% of his adjusted gross income to charity. What a freakin schmuck!!! Last Friday, Sen. Joseph Biden, the Democratic candidate for vice president, released his tax returns for the years 1998 to 2007. The returns revealed that in one year, 1999, Biden and his wife Jill gave $120 to charity out of an adjusted gross income of $210,979. In 2005, out of an adjusted gross income of $321,379, the Bidens gave $380. In nine out of the ten years for which tax returns were released, the Bidens gave less than $400 to charity; in the tenth year, 2007, when Biden was running for president, they gave $995 out of an adjusted gross income of $319,853. Here is a chart of the Bidensâ giving for the years covered by the tax returns: Adjusted Gross Income Charity 1998 $215,432 $195 1999 $210,797 $120 2000 $219,953 $360 2001 $220,712 $360 2002 $227,811 $260 2003 $231,375 $260 2004 $234,271 $380 2005 $321,379 $380 2006 $248,459 $380 2007 $319,853 $995 Total $2,450,042 $3,690 To take Bidenâs worst year, 1999, one percent of his adjusted gross income would have been $2,100. One half of one percent would have been $1,050. One quarter of one percent would have been $525. One eighth of one percent would have been $262. And one sixteenth of one percent would have been $131 â still a bit more than the Bidens gave. To take Bidenâs best year, 2007, one percent of his adjusted gross income would have been $3,190. One half of one percent would have been $1,595. One quarter of one percent would have been $797 â a figure Biden surpassed by nearly $200. Looking at the ten-year total of Bidenâs giving, one percent would have been $24,500. One half of one percent would have been $12,250. One quarter of one percent would have been $6,125. And one eighth of one percent would have been $3,062 â just below what Biden actually contributed. âThe average American household gives about two percent of adjusted gross income,â says Arthur Brooks, the Syracuse University scholar, soon to take over as head of the American Enterprise Institute, who has done extensive research on American giving. âOn average, [Biden] is not giving more than one tenth as much as the average American household, and that is evidence that he doesnât share charitable values with the average American.â A spokesman for Biden, David Wade, says the figures on Bidenâs tax return do not reflect the true extent of his giving. âThe charitable contributions claimed by the Bidens on their tax returns are not the sum of their annual contributions to charity,â Wade said in a statement to NRO. âLike most regular churchgoers, they contribute to their church, and they also contribute to their favorite causes with their time as well as their checkbooks, whether itâs [Jill] Bidenâs volunteer work with military families or the Biden breast-health initiative, or the way in which the family pitched in driving supplies to the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina, or the ways Sen. Biden has supported charities that help women, police, and veterans.â Wade also suggests that Biden, who is famous for being the least wealthy member of the U.S. Senate, simply doesnât have piles of money to give. âLike a lot of families that put three kids through college and have an aging parent move in with them, the Bidens arenât divorced from the realities of everyday life,â Wade says. Still, Wade continues, âfinding ways to give back is important to them.â So far, at least, Bidenâs tax returns have attracted little attention. On Saturday, the Washington Post published a 468-word story on the subject, the main point of which was that the release of Bidenâs returns was an effort by the Obama campaign to pressure the McCain campaign to release Sarah Palinâs returns. After a few brief paragraphs on Biden, the rest of the story concerned Palin, reporting that âprogressive groupsâ are eager to find out whether Palin âskirted tax obligationsâ on the per diem payments she received from the Alaska state government. The story made no mention of Bidenâs charitable giving. But for people who have studied the impressive generosity of the American public, there is news in Bidenâs returns. âIâm not going to say heâs a bad guy,â says Arthur Brooks. âMy only point is that his values are not typical American values when it comes to charitable giving. Americans in general are very generous.â
I've always found the idea of linking an amount of charitable giving to one's morality or character and using it as a scorecard repulsive. Many people use it to show off their supposed morality and it ultimately comes off as artificial. There are so many tyrants in history who were paragons of piety that it is sickening. Let them be judged on their good deeds and their actions and less on their balance sheets. From what I've read, Biden was a part time teacher. Perhaps the value of the time he devoted to that should be counted in the tally. Or do Americans consider being a teacher a less moral job than being let's say an investment banker simply because it pays less? The innuendo and oblique character assassination and defamation being engaged in by stories such as these is the truly uncharitable bit that should be commented on. It is interesting that for someone who studies charity so much the one who comes off as the least charitable person in this article if you really think about it is Mr. Brooks. I wonder if Mr.Brooks is aware of the irony and hypocrisy of his situation. Should we be charitable and give him the benefit of the doubt as well as all those other people who say similar things?
Sounds reasonable. Contrast that with Cheney, who in 2001 signed an legal agreement which forced his trust to make a charitable contribution, and so in 2005 gave an amazing $6.87 miliion and took advantage of the Katrina Emergency Tax Relief Act (KETRA), donating it to a charity which had no connection to Katrina whatsoever (his heart hospital) thereby reaping free care for years while also reaping a massive charitable deduction for it. He's the "honorable" one?
I think the point here is that Biden has been out lecturing us that it is our patriotic duty to pay higher taxes. I for one find it highly insulting for a POS who has done nothing but be a career pol his entire life to call me unpatriotic over tax policy. Then it turns out Sen. Sanctimonious gives less in charitable contributions than my cleaning lady. I think it is very fair to point that out and draw any inference you choose from it.
Yeah, what a dirtbag Cheney is. He gave $6.8 million to a hospital. You really are amazing. You find a way to demonize Cheney for giving away money to a hospital. Oh yeah, "his heart hospital." What an outrage, he supported a hospital that saved his life. Fucking bastard. (Of course, you know a retired VP gets free care courtesy of the government.) At least we know we won't have to deal with the outrage of Biden or Obama recklessly donating money to charitable organizations. All they know is take.
You know what I'm wondering is why Biden's net worth is only $100K? I mean, what's this guy doing with his money? Better, what does it say about his ability to manage money? OldTrader
Not quite, AAA, you missed the "legally required" part. Cheney had to donate because he was legally required to sign an agreement to disburse the proceeds from his stock options in 2001 two days before he took office. Naturally he did this in the most dirtbaggery method possible. Not to worry, though, he was still receiving million dollar deferred Halliburton payments right into his vice-presidency. If he had voluntarily donated, and not screwed the taxpayer with his "Katrina" dodge, that would be one thing. But he did not voluntarily donate, he was required to. I can't speak for Biden, but I do know that when your spouse isn't sitting on a hundred million in assets and you're paying to put your kid through school it's more difficult to make charitable donations. I'm not sure why he wouldn't write off his church donations as well as the cost to take the train to DC every day, and he didn't ask for reimbursement either. I'm kind of hoping he's cheap, though, as I want someone who's cheap in office.