Today in Oops: Stroger Owes $12K in Taxes

By Marcus Gilmer in News on May 13, 2009 2:00PM

Hypocrisy, Thy Name is Stroger. As Cook County Board President Todd Stroger huffed and puffed in defense of his tax repeal veto yesterday, the Sun-Times' Chris Fusco played Fletch and did a little digging. His find? That the Toddler and his wife owe $12,000 in unpaid income taxes. According to the Sun-Times:

The Internal Revenue Service slapped a $11,668.10 lien on Stroger and his wife earlier this year. The Strogers have yet to fully pay that debt, meaning the federal government could hold up a sale of the Strogers' house or other property if payment terms aren't reached...

The $11,668.10 in the lien stems from the Strogers' 2007 income tax return. It reflects what the IRS claims Stroger and his wife, Jeanine, owed the federal government as of May 19, 2008, including any monetary penalties.

The IRS filed its lien on the Strogers' property -- including their home on South Blackstone -- about nine months after coming up with the $11,668.10 figure. The lien was signed March 12 and filed at the recorder's office March 23.

Stroger spokesman Eugene Mullins issued a statement to the press that said simply, "As it relates to the matter concerning the IRS, arrangements were made by the Stroger family to settle the debt. The Office of the President will have no further comment regarding this issue." When the Sun-Times pegged Mullins down, however, he was a little more forthcoming, telling the paper, "It's a bill that him and his wife have made arrangements with the IRS on. They made arrangements with them, and they're paying it off right now. They worked out a payment plan with the IRS."

Of course, finding a politician that's a hypocrite is like shooting fish in a barrel; it's too easy. And God only knows what lurks in the closets of others on the County Board. But at a time when Stroger finds himself facing a mountain of opposition from other Commissioners and even The Daley Family, perhaps he'd better choose the words for his next radio appearance carefully.