which holds a billionaire like warren buffett should not pay a lower tax rate than his secretary, debbie bosanek. to drive the point home, bosanek will be sitting in a place of honor with the first lady at tonight's state of the union speech. >> the president believes it is not fair, inherently not fair that those who are millionaires and billionaires pay at a lower rate than average americans who are struggling to get by. >> reporter: the issue took on new urgency as mitt romney released his tax returns. showing he earned more than $42 million over the last two years- - almost all of it from investments-- and paid more than $6 million in taxes, for an effective tax rate of 14%. romney did not mention his tax rate or the buffett rule today, but he vowed to lower taxes on the middle class, and attacked the president for using what he called "divisive" language. >> we don't demonize prosperity. we celebrate success. that the difference between our party and the president. >> reporter: many economists say it makes sense to tax the kind of investment income romney reported at a lower tax rate than t

debbie bosanek, so often spoken of and so rarely seen. buffett says he pays a lower tax rate than she does. something he calls unfair. we go to bianna golodryga in omaha tonight, with an abc news exclusive. bianna, good evening. >> reporter: david, good evening. debbie bosanek says she still feels like cinderella at the ball, given the 24 hours she's had. she spent her entire life here in omaha. and started working for warren buffett at age 17. she never thought about taxes and the rate she pays compared to her boss until the last few months. well, now, she's at the center of a nationwide debate. a hero's welcome, for a secretary thrust into the spotlight. after a whirlwind ride to stardom, that began when her famous boss, warren buffet, said he pays a lower tax rate than she does. her seat next to the first lady, for the one next to her boss. the one she's worked for for 19 years. you said you felt as if you're representing secretaries across the country yesterday. >> right. i just feel like an average citizen. so, maybe i should say i w

debbie bosanek says she still feels like cinderella at the ball. she spent her entire life here in omaha. and started working for warren buffett at age 17. she never thought about taxes and the rate she pays compared to her boss until the last few months. a hero's welcome, for a secretary thrust into the spotlight. after a whirlwind ride to stardom, that began when her famous boss, warren buffet, says he pays a lower tax rate than she does. her seat next to the first lady, for the one next to her boss. the one she's worked for for 19 years. you said you felt as if you're representing secretaries across the country yesterday. >> right. i feel like an average citizen. maybe i should say i was representing just the average citizen, who, you know, needs a voice and wants to be treated fairly in the area of taxation. >> deb is typical. >> reporter: she pays a 35.8% tax rate. while her billionaire boss pays a 17% tax rate. while her billionaire boss pays a 17% tax rate. that's why buffe the least 30% in income tax, including that money earned through inv

debbie bosanek the secretary of warren buffett, and mark kelly husband of gabrielle giffords. dickensian tire address as well as the republican response at 9:00. then we will have reaction from local members of congress on abc7 news at 11. >> mitt romney has just released his tax returns indicating he paid taxes at a rate of about 14%. he earned $42.50 million and paid $6 in taxes over the last few years. -- $6 million in taxes. nearly all of his income came from investments, taxed at a lower rate. the above continue their heated words as they prepare for the florida primary. gingrich made a couple of stops across the sunshine state today saying romney is "outrageously this honest." and romney is accusing gingrich of lobbying for freddie mac. >> new developments in the occupied d.c. movement. there is word crack down on the mcpherson square campsite may be on the way. this follows the congressional hearing about the law's being enforced. the park service's say the ban on camping will soon be enforced. sam ford is live with today's testimony. >> the national park service admitt

that's debby bosanek. >> do we want to keep our investments and everything else, like education. and medical research. a strong military and care for our veterans. because if we're serious about paying down our debt, we can't do both. the american people know what the right choice is. so do i. we need to change our tax code so that people like me and an awful lot of members of congress may our fair share of taxes. tax reform should follow the buffett rule. if you make more than a million dollars a year you should not pay less than 30% in taxes. you can call this class warfare all you want. but asking a billionaire to pay at least as much as his secretary in taxes? most americans would call that common sense. >> the president proposing that no millionaire in the united states should pay less than a 30% tax rate as many do, thanks to capital gains taxes and other loopholes. and the official republican response indiana governor mitch daniels, a man a lot of republicans had wished would have run for president slammed the president's economic policies while accusing the white house of

her name is debbie bosanek. you may not know her. but she's secretary to the third-richest man in the world, warren buffett. why is she there? the billionaire has said she illustrates why the tax code is so unfair to america's workers. he says, he pays a lower tax rate than she does. which brings us to abc's jake tapper. and, jake, the president will almost certainly bring all of this up tonight. >> reporter: absolutely. he will put it in terms of tax fairness. republicans will talk about class warfare. campaign 2012, in my ways, tonight, begins. preparing for his third state of the union address, president obama this afternoon took a leisurely stroll along the white house colonnade. >> may have a few touch-ups left. >> reporter: he was asked how he feels about the speech he'll give to the nation in just a few hours. >> not bad. >> reporter: he may have seemed serene. but white house officials, trying to build excitement in a west wing kind of way, put out this behind-the-scenes video with shots of his speech writers working with the

the person at that speech, very important to making this case is debbie bosanek, if that's how you pronounce it, warren buffet's secretary getting a tax rate higher than her boss, warren buffet, the billionaire and going to make the case she is an example of an unfair society she has to get a different tax rate. it's the same day mitt romney released his tax returns, wolf. this is an important contrast, sort of subtle. he's make this case over and over throughout the speech, he stands for a fairer society where people like her will get a fairer shake if you stick with him as president into the future versus the republican party, who might not back the middle class in the same way, wolf. every time he mentioned the inequality of the tax system in the united states, he won't mention mitt romney but that will be the subliminal message and wants people to remember mitt romney and his tax returns just released was paying annual 14% for income, mostly dividends, capital gains interest, still, 14%, not 25 or 30%. dana bash is there inside the chamber. that was an electric moment when congresswoman

and a woman named debbie bosanek, the longtime secretary to warren buffett. you have heard about the buffett rule. somehow the president will flesh that out tonight and talk about a minimum tax on those who earn $1 million or more in the u.s.. >> and gabrielle giffords on the screen now. the last time we saw her, she did not look quite like this. she has a new hairstyle. the other day she informed the nation this would be her last event. she is resigning after tonight. if you think back to that awful day in tucson, and arizona, what a story she has to tell. her young sidekick was widely credited with saving her life. he was 20 at the time. he is going on to a very bright future. speaker boehner has a number of guests from the other side. >> he certainly is try to make a point tonight. he has invited business leaders and officials directly connected to the keystone pipeline. he says they have been hurt by the president's decision not to move ahead with the pipeline. we do know the president will talk about u.s. energy production tonight. he will not talk about

the person at that speech, very important to making this case is debbie bosanek, if that's how you pronounce it, warren buffet's secretary getting a tax rate higher than her boss, warren buffet, the billionaire and going to make the case she is an example of an unfair society she has to get a different tax rate. it's the same day mitt romney released his tax returns, wolf. this is an important contrast, sort of subtle. he's make this case over and over throughout the speech, he stands for a fairer society where people like her will get a fairer shake if you stick with him as president into the future versus the republican party, who might not back the middle class in the same way, wolf. every time he mentioned the inequality of the tax system in the united states, he won't mention mitt romney but that will be the subliminal message and wants people to remember mitt romney and his tax returns just released was paying annual 14% for income, mostly dividends, capital gains interest, still, 14%, not 25 or 30%. dana bash is there inside the chamber. that was an electric moment when congresswoman

. >>> now to billionaire warren buffett and his secretary, debbie bosanek. she's in the spotlight for paying a higher tax rate than he does. now she's speaking out about it for the first time. bianna golodryga travelled to omaha and sat down with them both. >> good morning, robin. she still feels like cinderella at the ball after this experience. the president significangled het the state of the union address. eric cantor says she'll be one of the defining moments of the 2012 election. up until then she never gave much thought about her tax rate. today, she says she's representing average citizens who want a voice and want to be treated fairly in the area of taxes. >> right now, warren buffett pays a lower tax rate than his secretary. >> reporter: just hours after her moment in the spotlight, debbie was back at her job. >> she goes away for a couple of days, nothing happened. >> reporter: what happened yesterday? >> i waited for her to come back. >> reporter: she's been his secretary for 19 years. now she's gaining stardom of her own as the face of tax inequ

debbie bosanek, the mayor of san antonio tx, the husband of gabrielle giffords. capt. mark kelly. and bruce cochran of the linconlnton furniture company. >> you're seeing a lot of economic themes with warren buffett. she is going to illustrate a point that the president is going to make about taxes. warren buffett says it is not fair that his secretary pays a higher rate than he does. she is the face of that. i think captain mark kelly, the husband of gabrielle giffords, i think when the camera pans on him, that is a very solemn moment. it is a time to reflect on gabrielle giffords and what happened to her and her struggle. but also going back to buy partisanship and working together -- to bipartisanship and working together. >> we are expecting our first pictures of about a 35 eastern. we will watch as much as we can of the arrival of the motorcades comment the senate, which we making a journey across the capitol, at the arrival of the diplomatic corps, and the other invited guests. i am going to show you the list of guests from speaker gainer. >> it does have been a little more