For Obama's VP, Charity Begins At Home

Obama's Vice Presidential running mate, Senator Joe Biden, really believes in charity. The Democratic candidate released his tax papers last Friday to prove it.

From 1998 through 2007, Biden earned a total of $2,450,042, averaging $245,000 a year. Of that amount, he gave $3,690 to charity.

Not bad... that's about 2% of his income, and that's supposed to be the average that each household manages to donate each year.

Oh, wait a minute... that's three thousand dollars donated to charity, over the last ten years combined.

To take Biden’s 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 — still a bit more than the Bidens gave.

To take Biden’s 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 — a figure Biden surpassed by nearly $200.

Looking at the ten-year total of Biden’s 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 — just below what Biden actually contributed.

Let us never forget that no less a figure than Howard Dean, the Chairman of the Democratic Party, said this on May 22, 2005's episode of Meet The Press during an interview with the late Tim Russert:

I will use whatever position I have in order to root out hypocrisy. I'm not going to be lectured as a Democrat--we've got some pretty strong moral values in my party, and maybe we ought to do a better job standing up and fighting for them. Our moral values, in contradiction to the Republicans', is we don't think kids ought to go to bed hungry at night.

Now I understand why Joe Biden's party remain so determined to raise taxes, election after election... the motivation triggering their thinking is on display for all to see:

"How else would the poor and hungry ever get any charitable support?"