Sen. John Kerry & His “Yacht-Gate” Scandal — Hypocritical Dem Senator Skirts Paying Taxes on His $7 Million Yacht (video)
Posted By Vicki McClure Davidson on July 27, 2010
Rumored at the time to be John Kerry's new yacht - the 'Isabel,' moored at the Whangarei Harbour in New Zealand, January 2010 | Photo credit: Clare Swinney, h/t to infonews.co.nz
It’s patriotic to pay more taxes, to loosely quote VP Joe “Bite Me” Biden.
Unless you’re a millionaire Democrat in the Senate.
A millionaire Democrat in the Senate who is dodging paying his yacht sales tax, but who is more than happy to force millions of Americans to pay a huge increase in their taxes for his and Team Obama’s proposed “global warming/climate change/tax Americans to death” tax for the ill-conceived, bogus cap-and-trade debacle.
Hypocrisy, thy name is John Kerry.
I have no problem with a man who married into incredible wealth to enjoy it as he sees fit. Heck, John, buy a dozen multi-million dollar yachts and have a grand time.
But for there to be this double standard amongst elitist politicians (Democrats and RINOs) and/or other wealthy celebrities and the rest of America (that which makes up the other 99.99 percent of our nation’s population) is despicable. This is exactly what tea partiers have been decrying against government for the past year and a half.
From Boston Herald, Sen. John Kerry skips town on sails tax:
Sen. John Kerry, who has repeatedly voted to raise taxes while in Congress, dodged a whopping six-figure state tax bill on his new multimillion-dollar yacht by mooring her in Newport, R.I.
Isabel – Kerry’s luxe, 76-foot New Zealand-built Friendship sloop with an Edwardian-style, glossy varnished teak interior, two VIP main cabins and a pilothouse fitted with a wet bar and cold wine storage – was designed by Rhode Island boat designer Ted Fontaine.
But instead of berthing the vessel in Nantucket, where the senator summers with the missus, Teresa Heinz, Isabel’s hailing port is listed as “Newport” on her stern.
Could the reason be that the Ocean State repealed its Boat Sales and Use Tax back in 1993, making the tiny state to the south a haven – like the Cayman Islands, Bermuda and Nassau – for tax-skirting luxury yacht owners?
Cash-strapped Massachusetts still collects a 6.25 percent sales tax and an annual excise tax on yachts. Sources say Isabel sold for something in the neighborhood of $7 million, meaning Kerry saved approximately $437,500 in sales tax and an annual excise tax of about $70,000.
The senior senator’s chief of staff David Wade denied the old salt was berthing his boat out of state to avoid ponying up to the commonwealth.
“The boat was designed by and purchased from a company in Rhode Island, and it’s based in Newport at the Newport Shipyard for long-term maintenance, upkeep and charter purposes, not tax reasons,” Wade told the Track.
And state Department of Revenue spokesguy Bob Bliss confirmed the senator “is under no obligation to pay the commonwealth sales tax.”
But back in 2006, then-gubernatorial candidate Christy Mihos took some flack for avoiding some $23,000 in Bay State sales tax and $1,320 in local excise taxes by berthing his motor yacht in Rhode Island. But Mihos paid just $475,000 for his 36-foot vessel Ashley and readily admitted that he used the boat at his West Yarmouth summer home.
However, according to Bliss, if Kerry berths the Isabel in Massachusetts waters within six months of purchasing the boat, there’s a “presumption of use” and the Heinz-Kerrys would have to walk the plank and pony up to the Bay State. After six months, should the boat change its berth to, say, Nantucket, then it’s up to the state to go after them for the taxes, Bliss added.
From NewsMax, Sen. Kerry Snaps Over Yacht Tax Scandal:
Sen. John Kerry on Monday snapped at reporters and tried to dodge questions about his new $7 million, 76-foot yacht.
On Friday, the Boston Herald reported that the Massachusetts Democrat had berthed his yacht Isabel in Rhode Island and suggested he was seeking to avoid paying about $437,000 in sales tax and an annual excise tax of around $70,000 that would be levied if he berthed the vessel in Massachusetts.
Rhode Island has no sales tax on yachts.
Following his first public appearance since the story broke, Kerry tried to dash off to his SUV but was intercepted by reporters who asked about the yacht controversy.
“Wait a minute. Let’s get this straight,” Kerry snapped. “I’ve said consistently we’ll pay our taxes. We’ve always paid our taxes. It’s not an issue, period!”
Kerry said he docked the yacht in Rhode Island so it could have work done and that he would eventually move it to Massachusetts.
Fox News political editor Joe Battenfeld then noted that Kerry’s yacht, which he bought in March, had been spotted in Nantucket, Mass., where the senator summers with his wife Teresa Heinz. That would make Kerry liable for the sales tax.
Battenfeld asked Kerry point-blank if he had berthed the vessel in Massachusetts.
“That depends upon who owns it, Joe,” Kerry said, then told his driver, “Can I get out of here, please,” before he slammed the SUV’s door and drove off.
Kerry may have had in mind that the yacht is actually owned by a corporation in Pittsburgh, Teresa’s hometown.
But Fox News noted that it is “unclear how that would get Kerry off the hook for those taxes.”
MyFoxBoston News: Sen. John Kerry & His Yacht Tax Scandal
Commentary from Rush Limbaugh on Kerry’s growing “Yacht-gate” scandal:
John Kerry… went out and bought a 70-foot sailboat and docks it in Rhode Island to avoid paying taxes in Massachusetts. It’s a foreign-made yacht, did not buy American, and he docked it in Rhode Island to avoid paying taxes. He’s going to save about a half million dollars in taxes on this thing by docking it in Rhode Island rather than in Massachusetts, which is where one of his wife’s many homes is.
Now, people are upset about this. I mean, this is typical. The hypocrisy on the left is documentable each and every day. He should volunteer to pay the tax; it’s the patriotic thing to do. Democrats ought to move to where it is the most expensive for them to live in accordance with tax law. But that’s just a classic illustration of the ruling class. All these laws are for everybody else, not for them. They’re exempt from their own rules. They are exempt from their own regulations. Let’s not forget that John Kerry, the haughty John Kerry who again I remind you served in Vietnam, had a Cayman Island bank account to avoid taxes, and he’s one of the biggest tax increasers in Washington. It’s just typical.
Now, the story the press has been given this week from David Wade (“The boat was designed by and purchased from a company in Rhode Island, and it’s based in Newport at the Newport Shipyard for long-term maintenance, upkeep and charter purposes, not tax reasons,” Wade told the Track) about Kerry’s yacht doesn’t quite jive with this New Zealand article, posted at InfoNews.co.nz in January 2010… US Politician & Skull & Bonesman, John Kerry, Seen In Whangarei:
On December the 31st the Northern Advocate reported that US politician, and Skull and Bonesman, John Kerry, had been seen in casual attire in Whangarei on Tuesday at the town basin, inspecting a multi-million dollar boat, built in Whangarei.
The 22.8-metre yacht, which bears the name ‘Isabel’, (of ‘Newport,’) was built by Friendship Yachts on Port Rd and will be ready to leave the country at the end of January, according to the Northern Advocate, which reported that “details about its cost and owners are under wraps.”
There was a greying, forty-something man on board the ‘Isabel’ today and when asked if it was John Kerry’s boat he denied it – in an American accent, of course.
From Right Pundits, John Kerry’s Yacht: A Symbol Of Hypocrisy?:
Senator John Kerry’s yacht “Isabel” is moored in Rhode Island. This wouldn’t be a big deal except for the fact that John Kerry is a Senator from Massachusetts. I know what you you’re thinking, it’s a free country so Kerry should be able to stash his yacht anywhere he chooses. True, but this story isn’t about the freedom to do as you please, it’s about those who impose rules and regulations on the rest of us, skirting those same rules and regulations.
In 1993 Rhode Island abolished its Boat Sales and Use Tax making it a target for anyone wishing to escape high taxation for the purchase and use of a luxury yacht like Senator Kerry’s. Yacht owners in Massachusetts like Mr. Kerry are charged sales tax and an annual excise tax. According to a story in the Boston Herald, “Isabel” sold for $7 million dollars so Mr. Kerry escaped nearly $450,000 dollars in sales tax and a yearly $70,000 excise tax bill.
Massachusetts, like most other states in the Union, is hurting for money. John Kerry’s yacht could conceivably bring in some much needed income to the Commonwealth. But being the man of Massachusetts that he is, John Kerry will leave “Isabel” safely in Rhode Island where she will not be subject to the high tax policies in Kerry’s Massachusetts.
Never mind the sheer hypocrisy of using such a blatant loophole to escape the very thing that you personally have voted for time and time again. John Kerry never met a tax increase he didn’t like. He’s also never met a luxury yacht he didn’t like.
Kerry’s Chief of Staff says that the boat is being kept in Rhode Island for long term maintenance, upkeep and for charter purposes. He says it has nothing to do with taxes. I suppose Senator Kerry’s yacht couldn’t get the proper maintenance, upkeep or be used for charter in Massachusetts. You know, since it’s so far away from the ocean and all.
From Doug Powers, Michelle Malkin, John Kerry Gets a Long Face When Reporters Confront Him About Taxes on the SS Rhode Island:
Several reporters caught up to John Kerry and asked him about keeping his newest yacht in Rhode Island instead of Massachusetts — a move that just by happenstance allows Thurston and Lovey to avoid a $500,000 Bay State luxury tax.
[...]
For the record, Kerry shouldn’t just fess up and pay the extra Massachusetts tax. Kerry should admit that the exorbitantly high taxation he helps promote chases people away to other states — states bright enough to realize that lower taxes collected from more taxpayers, including wealthy out-of-staters like John Kerry who are running from the results of their own policies — is a boon to private businesses not to mention the government coffers.
To members of Congress: Stop overspending, stop raising taxes, and stop making laws that you don’t expect yourself or your wealthy cronies to follow. Most of America is in a shambles, scared about losing their homes and their jobs. No wonder the press is finally turning on you wastrels.
About the author
Sen. John Kerry & His ?Yacht-Gate? Scandal ? Hypocritical Dem ……
Just like a liberal. Expect the unwashed masses to pay for their entitlement programs and the global warming tax but don’t expect to have to pay their own taxes. Kerry is a disgrace. He should have paid those taxes immediately. I heard about this on Levin’s show last week. His wife is probably worth billions and he can afford the taxes. but even if he can’t afford them too bad. That never stopped Democrats from raising taxes & making the middle class shoulder the burden of their welfare programs.
______________FLASH !_________________
Michelle Obama rents 30 rooms in 5 * hotel in Spain for her and 1 daughter.
Leaving hubby on his birthday.
Vacations, vacations, vacations.
My Lord their job must be so, so, so hard.
Hypocrites, no, I don’t see any, do you ?
Yep, must be nice. Especially since, as the O says, he and Michelle have soooo much in common with us struggling folks. Yeperoo, I find it sooo trying to have to fly overseas on somebody else’s dime with my entourage and security taking up the other 29 rooms. (sigh!)
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