U.S. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has released records showing he will pay $6.2 million in taxes on a total income of more than $42 million over the past two years.
His campaign said that makes for a tax rate of 13.9 percent in 2010 and an expected rate of 15.4 percent in 2011.
Most all of the income came from investments.
The records show Romney also gave nearly $3 million to charitable causes and the Mormon Church, of which he is a member.
Romney, a former governor of the northeastern state of Massachusetts and a venture capitalist, has been attacked by his rivals as a wealthy businessman who plundered companies and cut jobs.
He has been facing increasing pressure to release his tax returns as the race to become the Republican nominee to oppose President Barack Obama in the November U.S. election moves closer to key primary states, including Florida, which is scheduled to vote on January 31.
Romney's main Republican rival, Newt Gingrich, also has released his tax figures, saying he paid nearly $1 million last year on income of $3.1 million -- a rate of about 31 percent.
Romney defended his record in a debate with the other Republican candidates on January 23 in Tampa.
"In the 1970s, [Gingrich] came to Washington. I went to work in my first job in the 1970s at the bottom level of a consulting firm," Romney said. "In the 1990s, [Gingrich] had to resign in disgrace from his job as [House] speaker. I had the opportunity to go off and run the Olympic Winter Games [in Salt Lake City, Utah]. In the 15 years after he left the speakership, [Gingrich] has been working as an influence peddler in Washington."
Gingrich attempted to deflect the attack, saying that what he called “trivial politics” were diverting the Republican debate from real issues such as the economy.
"I'm not going to spend the evening trying to chase Governor Romney's misinformation. I will have a site at Newt.org by tomorrow morning. We'll list everything," Gingrich said. "He just said at least four things that are false. I don't want to waste the time on them."
Romney finished second to Gingrich in the South Carolina primary on January 21.
compiled from agency reports
His campaign said that makes for a tax rate of 13.9 percent in 2010 and an expected rate of 15.4 percent in 2011.
Most all of the income came from investments.
The records show Romney also gave nearly $3 million to charitable causes and the Mormon Church, of which he is a member.
Romney, a former governor of the northeastern state of Massachusetts and a venture capitalist, has been attacked by his rivals as a wealthy businessman who plundered companies and cut jobs.
He has been facing increasing pressure to release his tax returns as the race to become the Republican nominee to oppose President Barack Obama in the November U.S. election moves closer to key primary states, including Florida, which is scheduled to vote on January 31.
Romney's main Republican rival, Newt Gingrich, also has released his tax figures, saying he paid nearly $1 million last year on income of $3.1 million -- a rate of about 31 percent.
Romney defended his record in a debate with the other Republican candidates on January 23 in Tampa.
"In the 1970s, [Gingrich] came to Washington. I went to work in my first job in the 1970s at the bottom level of a consulting firm," Romney said. "In the 1990s, [Gingrich] had to resign in disgrace from his job as [House] speaker. I had the opportunity to go off and run the Olympic Winter Games [in Salt Lake City, Utah]. In the 15 years after he left the speakership, [Gingrich] has been working as an influence peddler in Washington."
Gingrich attempted to deflect the attack, saying that what he called “trivial politics” were diverting the Republican debate from real issues such as the economy.
"I'm not going to spend the evening trying to chase Governor Romney's misinformation. I will have a site at Newt.org by tomorrow morning. We'll list everything," Gingrich said. "He just said at least four things that are false. I don't want to waste the time on them."
Romney finished second to Gingrich in the South Carolina primary on January 21.
compiled from agency reports