The sleuths at the
Shortly after Jeb Bush left the Florida governor’s office in 2007, he established his own firm, Jeb Bush & Associates, designed to maximize his earning potential as one of the country’s more prominent politicians.
Tax returns disclosed this week by the Republican’s presidential campaign revealed that the business not only made him rich but also provided a steady income for his wife and one of his sons. [snip]
The returns show that the company set up a generous and well-funded pension plan now rare in corporate America, allowing Bush to take large tax deductions while he and his wife built up their retirement portfolio.
They also illustrate how Bush — who has touted his business experience on the campaign trail — relied on his public persona and political connections to rapidly increase his net worth. [snip]
Although Bush presented the release of 33 years of tax returns this week as evidence of his transparency, a review of the filings shows that more than a third of his company’s income was from sources that his campaign has largely declined to disclose.
Bush’s small firm paid more than $2 million in wages over seven years. A large share of that money appears to have gone to his youngest son, Jeb Bush Jr., 31, who worked as a management consultant. The tax records indicate that Bush’s wife, Columba Bush, was collecting an annual salary that averaged about $31,500 — totaling more than $220,000 over seven years.
The position she held at the firm is unclear. Bush did not mention his wife’s role during his tax-document release this week. His campaign declined to provide any information about her duties. A campaign official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss Columba Bush’s position, called her a “true partner in work and life” who “contributed significantly to the firm’s success.” (our emphasis)The article goes into Jeb!'s relationship with defunct bankster Lehman Brothers, but many of Jeb!'s company's clients are not disclosed. (Hmmm.) But, oh, what a sweet, sweet retirement plan Jeb! set up:
From its inception, Jeb Bush & Associates made large contributions to retirement plans for its employees. From 2007 to 2013, the company put nearly $2.4 million into a pension plan and a 401(k) plan, money that it was then able to deduct from its taxes. That’s more than the $2 million it spent on wages during the same time period.
A large share of the retirement contributions went to a defined-benefit plan for just two employees, according to records the firm filed with the Labor Department.
The campaign declined to say which family members participate in the plan. (=cough= Jeb! and Jeb!'s wife =cough=) (our emphasis and throat-clearing)As you reflect on all of this (and there's much more in the article), please keep in mind Jeb! wants to eliminate the Federal minimum wage and (like brother Dumbya) privatize Social Security (i.e., run it like a casino). After all, he's got his! That's just about all you need to know about this clueless, pampered elitist and the plutocrat party he wants to represent.
