Sen. Kerry talks about yacht flap
Sen. John Kerry said he always intended to pay taxes in Massachusetts on his $7 million yacht but conceded that he mishandled the public furor over his decision to dock the vessel in tax-free Rhode Island.
"I don't think I dealt with it fast enough, effectively enough. There's nobody to blame but myself for that," the Massachusetts Democrat told The Boston Globe for Friday's editions.
Kerry added that he did nothing legally wrong.
Kerry moved to end the controversy this week by saying he would write Massachusetts a check for about $500,000, whether he owed the money or not. He told The Associated Press that he and his wife "have always complied with tax laws."
The 2004 Democratic presidential nominee had been dogged by charges of tax evasion since the Boston Herald first reported his decision to dock the 76-foot sloop Isabel in Newport, R.I.
Kerry told the Globe it was never his intention to permanently dock the yacht in Rhode Island. He said he had not yet taken final ownership of the boat because changes were still being made by the designer, but that he could take possession within the next few days.
He said there was never any thought to avoiding sales and excise taxes in his home state, but acknowledged that he failed to get that message across to the public.
"I said to people, on ay one, we will pay all taxes, all taxes, there's no issue here," he told the newspaper.
Kerry said he had sailed the yacht a handful of times, including to the islands of Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts. He and his wife, millionaire philanthropist Theresa Heinz, own a home in Nantucket.
He said the vessel will be probably be docked permanently in Falmouth, on Cape Cod.
Massachusetts officials said Kerry was within his rights to base the vessel in Rhode Island, but they also said he would be liable for taxes if he brought the yacht to Massachusetts within six months of taking ownership.
The senator told the Globe he and his wife decided in 2006 to buy a new sailboat and signed a contract for the vessel in November 2007, stressing that it was done a time when the economy was better.
