Cornel West Attacked from Left as Democrats Fear Candidacy Could Hurt Biden

The left-wing outlet Daily Beast reported Thursday that Green Party presidential candidate Cornel West owes over $500,000 in back taxes as worry mounts that his candidacy could hurt President Joe Biden’s reelection chances.

On Thursday, the outlet’s William Bredderman, a senior researcher, highlighted West’s decades of advocation for higher taxes on the wealthy before citing documents that purportedly show $543,778.78 in tax liens: 

But materials filed in Mercer County, New Jersey, where West owns a home in the upper-crust college town of Princeton, and in Los Angeles—the location of his personal attorney’s office—reveal a second, secret motif to his hugely lucrative professional life: a failure to pay his own taxes.

The following is a breakdown of liens against West that the IRS has not released, “meaning they remain open, or have only been repaid inside the last 30 days,” according to the Daily Beast: 

• 2005: $77,803.42, $62,367.69

• 2014: $98,818.25

• 2015: $82,369.14

• 2016: $136,916.26

• 2017: $85,477.02

In response, West said he and his sibling had “ asked [his] accountant to respond to these charges some of which are not true.” 

West had also paid off previous liens, according to the outlet, including one for $724,397.26 in 2006 that had accumulated over multiple years and another for $34,069.93 in 2008. 

The article comes as liberals worry West could detract from Biden, the leading Democrat candidate, in a general election, in essence helping a Republican. 

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) laid out these exact concerns recently to the Hill: 

I think he has a very long record of service and academic thought leadership … I think just right now, given the Electoral College, it’s very difficult to square the very real threat of a Republican presidency … [with] the risk of giving up the very small margin of electoral votes needed to ensure that President Biden wins.

Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA) offered a similar sentiment. 

“The stakes are too high this year, especially if Trump is the nominee,” he told the Hill. “I think everybody, including the most progressive elements of our country, need to protect our democracy by stopping Donald Trump and supporting Joe Biden.”