Transparency

For the past few months the Obama campaign has called on Senator Clinton to release her tax returns going back to 2001. Team Hillary has stonewalled for the most part, saying that they will be released on or about April 15. That would be understandable if we were talking about her return for 2007, which is not due until then (unless, like many other taxpayers, she files for an extension). But what about 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006? Is it really that difficult for a staff member to Xerox the Clintons' returns?

This is not to say that their returns contain anything untoward. However, earlier this year Hillary loaned her campaign $5 million. This is not an unsignificant amount of moner and clearly more than she has earned in her six years in the Senate. So, one would have to assume that at least some of that money came from the income earned by her husband since he left office. Of course, he has every right to earn money however he sees fit. But wouldn't it be nice to know who has been paying Bill, and thus in a around about way helping to finance Hillary's campaign?

It would seem to me that Democratic primary voters ought to know just where the $5 million came from. Is Bill earning big bucks from polluters or Big Pharma or defense contractors? This is about basic transparency. It has been the norm for politicians to release their tax returns to the public. And we should not have to wait until the presidential primaries are nearly over to know just where Bill and Hill have been getting all their money.