Breaking: Trump Tax Records Reveal He Could Have Avoided Paying Taxes for Nearly Two Decades

[Sunstone]

Trump Tax Records Obtained by The [New York]Times Reveal He Could Have Avoided Paying Taxes for Nearly Two Decades

Donald J. Trump declared a $916 million loss on his 1995 income tax returns, a tax deduction so substantial it could have allowed him to legally avoid paying any federal income taxes for up to 18 years, records obtained by The New York Times show.

The 1995 tax records, never before disclosed, reveal the extraordinary tax benefits that Mr. Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, derived from the financial wreckage he left behind in the early 1990s through mismanagement of three Atlantic City casinos, his ill-fated foray into the airline business and his ill-timed purchase of the Plaza Hotel in Manhattan.

The full article is quite illuminating, and is well worth the read for any open-minded person. But please don't read the full article if you're a Trump supporter: Ignorance of your candidate is the strongest reason for voting for him.

Comments?

 

[Shadow Wolf]

The statement continued: “Mr. Trump knows the tax code far better than anyone who has ever run for President and he is the only one that knows how to fix it.”

What a pompous ***. Does anyone who isn't a full time tax lawyer really understand the tax code at all?

 

[Sunstone]

What a pompous ***. Does anyone who isn't a full time tax lawyer really understand the tax code at all?

According to Trump's tax accountant, quoted in the New York Times article, Trump showed relatively little interest in the details of his taxes.

 

[tytlyf]

Of course he doesn't pay taxes...and republicans have the nerve to complain about how the corporate tax rate is the highest in the world. What you won't hear the drive-by media mention is there are so many deductibles and loop-holes that they don't pay anything. No one in the middle class has any business voting republican. Even Trumps tax plan is to give the wealthiest the biggest breaks. Because if you give corporations more money, they're going to make more jobs, not fatten their pockets....

 

[Shadow Wolf]

According to Trump's tax accountant, quoted in the New York Times article, Trump showed relatively little interest in the details of his taxes.

I read that. I honestly can't say any of it surprised me. A light being shined upon Trump that suggests he is a part of the very problem that both Conservatives and Liberals complain about, not surprised at all, since he already ships jobs overseas, rooted for the housing crisis, and has a history of stiffing lenders and investors. Should we be surprised that an immoral pig would take advantage of multiple tax loopholes to exempt him from any and all earnings for nearly two decades?
The only surprising thing is that people still support him. His entire campaign has been a theatrical charade, smoke and mirrors, and misdirection. People who talk about Clinton being a liar really need to reexamine their entire life if they think she is less honest than Trump. Objectively even, we can state Trump is way more dishonest than Hillary - and she's even a politician/lawyer of all professions. The fact that people would support a flaming misogynist who condones violence and has the support of Putin and Un, and try to somehow paint Hillary in a worse light, and also the fact that he is running with a guy who has already attacked minorities and put religious convictions above personal civil rights and liberties, it's about to the point it's becoming scary, and those who aren't seeing the bigger picture that includes a very real possibility of two Supreme Court nominations are not helping.
Very literally, this election will likely leave impacts that will last for generations. We can watch the execution of so much Conservative and religious-control crap within a generation, or we can see future generations damned to the whims of Conservative states who hate them. And not too mention sex ed, evolution, environmentalism, and sustainable/renewable energy research.

 

[suncowiam]

Guys. I'm not a Trump fan but is this really Trump's fault. This just indicates that the tax laws are broken and that anyone with a sure enough brain can take advantage of it.

Is he on record for saying things that don't match his taxes? Not that I need proven more lies from him as I know well enough, he's a good liar.

 

[fantome profane]

Guys. I'm not a Trump fan but is this really Trump's fault. This just indicates that the tax laws are broken and that anyone with a sure enough brain can take advantage of it.

Sure, I agree. As a business person he is supposed to pay as little tax as legally possible. But the problem is that Trump is running for President with a tax plan that will not only not fix this broken system, it will make it much worse. This is just one more indication that he is not on the side of the working class. He doesn't pay his taxes, and he doesn't pay his contractors. But his contractors need to pay their taxes.

 

[Twilight Hue]

Who wrote and implemented the tax code?

Who can change the tax code?

Blame them.

 

[Sonofason]

Good for Him, for taking advantage of the corrupt laws our government creates.

 

[Sonofason]

Guys. I'm not a Trump fan but is this really Trump's fault. This just indicates that the tax laws are broken and that anyone with a sure enough brain can take advantage of it.

Is he on record for saying things that don't match his taxes? Not that I need proven more lies from him as I know well enough, he's a good liar.

Lol, I did not use a personal server for my government emails. Yeah, yeah, it was that darn video that caused the riot in Bengazi...and on and on. Clinton is the liar, a disgusting liar.

 

[Sonofason]

Anyone who is still going to vote for Trump at this point isn't going to change their mind.

I'm one of them. Never Clinton...never a democrat...never a liberal.

 

[fantome profane]

Who wrote and implemented the tax code?

Who can change the tax code?

Blame them.

Don't blame them, vote them out of office.

 

[sun rise]

Who wrote and implemented the tax code?

Who can change the tax code?

Blame them.

Both parties, but more so Republicans, are bought-and-paid-for by the wealthy and write tax laws accordingly. Special interest groups line up campaign contributions and superPACs and expect a quid pro quo. Donald Trump was honest about that

Donald Trump bragged Thursday night that he could buy politicians — even the ones sharing the stage with him at a Republican presidential debate.

Trump was asked about something he said in a previous interview: “When you give, they do whatever the hell you want them to do.”

“You’d better believe it,” Trump said. “If I ask them, if I need them, you know, most of the people on this stage I’ve given to, just so you understand, a lot of money.”

I'm not sure whether the Donald Trumps of the world are more to blame because they buy politicians or the politicians who allow themselves to be bough or the system which is set up so that corruption is allowed.

But I do know that it will change only when enough people decide it has to change and act accordingly.

 

[Rick O'Shez]

Tax avoidance is the norm for people in "big business", so this shouldn't come as any surprise.

 

[idav]

Who wrote and implemented the tax code?

Who can change the tax code?

Blame them.

The rich control the laws and Republicans who want to continue helping the rich will just make matters worse. The democratic platform looks like it will help the poor while trumps plan benefits the rich more.
http://www.diffen.com/difference/Trump-vs-Clinton-Tax-Plan
Of course none of that matters if the house and senate won't be on board.

Sure, I agree. As a business person he is supposed to pay as little tax as legally possible. But the problem is that Trump is running for President with a tax plan that will not only not fix this broken system, it will make it much worse. This is just one more indication that he is not on the side of the working class. He doesn't pay his taxes, and he doesn't pay his contractors. But his contractors need to pay their taxes.

QFT

 

[idav]

Tax avoidance is the norm for people in "big business", so this shouldn't come as any surprise.

What surprises me more are people who are not rich who would choose to cater to the elite.

 

[suncowiam]

Sure, I agree. As a business person he is supposed to pay as little tax as legally possible. But the problem is that Trump is running for President with a tax plan that will not only not fix this broken system, it will make it much worse. This is just one more indication that he is not on the side of the working class. He doesn't pay his taxes, and he doesn't pay his contractors. But his contractors need to pay their taxes.

Personally, I don't think that's the problem with Trump. You put him at a negotiation table and I think he has good experience to win it. That's just his strengths. However, I don't think he is fit to be a leader. His style is too devisive and does not preach unity or team. He's a business person, an excellent sales person but he's no team captain or mentor. People do not aspire, learn, or gain strength from his leadership.

 

[sun rise]

Tax avoidance is the norm for people in "big business", so this shouldn't come as any surprise.

In this case it sounds like a capital loss carryover which I also have been benefiting from due to stock losses but no where even close to the level Donald operates on. I was just lucky enough (or unlucky enough due to a loss) to be able to use that provision. But I'd give it up in a heartbeat for a simple tax code with no deductions for anything and no gimmicks.

 

[Acim]

The carryover thing is new to me.
The loss strikes me as so astronomical I can't relate to it.
His wages for the year are equally surprising to me (around $6,000).

Article noted that he did not authorize the release which strikes me as interesting. It's out in public domain now, but could mean trouble for whoever is determined to initially release it.
Much of the article is not noting the loss as problem for Trump and more of an issue with tax code. But of course it has to be spun at some point(s) as 'problem with Donald' otherwise the Times wouldn't be the Times.
The idea that any information raises more questions than it answers is predictable. Which is why I can understand the reason not to release, but also understand it mostly as something attorneys advise against. I realize that doesn't sit well with the Left, but IMO it's similar to how Hillary attorneys advised her to handle the emails in ways that everyone on the Right finds questionable, if not unethical, while the Left sees it as 'no big deal' and recognizes that releasing all of them would be treated as raising more questions than answering them.

It'll be funny to see how Hillary supporters spin this and milk it in ways that are not yet known to us.

 

[Rick O'Shez]

What surprises me more are people who are not rich who would choose to cater to the elite.

Maybe it's a class thing?