10 things you need to know today: September 22, 2012

The front page of Mitt and Ann Romney&#039;s 2011 tax return

(Image credit: AP Photo/Romney Campaign)

last updated 8 January 2015

1. MITT ROMNEY RELEASES 2011 TAX RETURN

Mitt Romney released his 2011 tax return and posted it online Friday, triggering a mad media dash to see what was inside. Romney and his wife, Ann, paid $1.95 million in taxes on investment income of $13.7 million last year (a significant dip from his 2010 haul of $20 million). The GOP presidential nominee made his fortune running private equity firm Bain Capital from 1984 to 1999 (or 2001, depending on whom you ask), so his earnings now come from money he has invested. That means he paid a lower tax rate — 14.1 percent — than workers pay on ordinary income from a paycheck. [The Week]

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The State Department on Friday announced that it would remove Mujahedeen Khalq (MEK), an Iranian opposition group, from the U.S.'s list of terrorist organizations. The decision was the result of a years-long public relations campaign by MEK, which enlisted a long list of American politicians and former military and intelligence officers to argue its case. MEK had orchestrated several terrorist attacks in Iran in the 1970s and 1980s, killing several Americans, and was once allied with the regime of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. However, the group is not believed to have carried out any terrorist attacks in recent years. The State Department's change of heart came after MEK completed the transfer of 3,000 of its members from Camp Ashraf, a camp in Iraq that has been a magnet for violence, to a U.S. base near Baghdad. [The New York Times]

Republican vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan on Friday was repeatedly booed at an event in New Orleans hosted by the American Association of Retired Persons. Boos rained down on the congressman from Wisconsin when he reiterated Mitt Romney's pledge to overturn President Obama's overhaul of the health care system. "I had a feeling there would be mixed reactions, so let me get into it," Ryan responded. He was later jeered when he accused Obama of robbing Medicare of $716 billion to pay for ObamaCare, and also when he touted the Republican ticket's plan to augment Medicare with a voucher for private insurance. Obama spoke to the AARP attendees earlier in the day via satellite, and by all accounts enjoyed a warmer reception. [Wall Street Journal]

In August, the unemployment rate rose in 26 states, but most states showed a lower rate than a year ago, the federal government reported Friday. Nevada has the highest unemployment rate, at 12.1 percent. Rhode Island (10.7 percent) and California (10.6 percent) had the second- and third-highest rates. Friday's report "will be closely analyzed for its potential impact on the presidential campaign," especially in several key swing states. [USA Today]

Violent protests in Pakistan over the anti-Islam film Innocence of Muslims erupted Friday and have left at least 19 people dead. A television station employee died from gunshot wounds during a protest in the northwestern city of Peshawar, and "far bigger protests in the southern port of Karachi, Pakistan's largest city, left between 12 and 14 people dead, Pakistani news media reported." Protesters also attacked and burned two movie theaters in Peshawar, and the government cut off cell-phone service in major cities, forcing many to flock to Twitter to communicate. [The New York Times]

Col. Deborah Liddick was named the commander of the U.S. Air Force's training program at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas on Friday, "a nod to the pervasive problem of sexual assault on the base, where dozens of female recruits say they were preyed upon by their instructors." In July, an instructor at the base was sentenced to 20 years in prison after being convicted of raping one recruit and attempting to rape several others. [Christian Science Monitor]

The Space Shuttle Endeavor glided over California landmarks like the Golden Gate Bridge and the state capitol in Sacramento on Friday, before landing in Los Angeles on its final flight. The shuttle will be housed at a United Airlines hangar at LAX airport until Oct. 12, when it will begin a two-day celebratory trek through the city's streets to the California Science Center, where it will be open to viewing by the public beginning Oct. 30. [Los Angeles Times]

The ridiculously popular YouTube video by South Korean rapper Park Jae-sang, or PSY, has become the most liked clip on the video-sharing site. PSY's "Gangnam Style" has been liked more than 2.2 million times, smashing the previous Guinness record of 1,575,979 likes, held by LMFAO'S "Party Rock Anthem." PSY's video has more than 220 million views, which still pales in comparison to the most-viewed video ever: Justin Bieber's "Baby," which YouTubers have watched more than 780 million times. [ABC News]

A 22-year-old ex-military member peacefully surrendered to the police after a six-hour standoff in which he took a hostage in a Pittsburgh office building. While Klein Michael Thaxton made no demands, police say the negotiation process was hindered by social media, as Thaxton kept publishing emotional, semi-coherent Facebook posts throughout the incident. The hostage was released unharmed. [USA Today]

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