Donald Trump is many things – US president, burger enthusiast, and imparter of potentially fatal medical advice – but if there’s one thing he’s not, it’s honest.
Trump’s treats the truth a little like how Melania treats Trump: she’s aware of his existence, but prefers not to acknowledge it.
Oh, I wasn’t joking about that; she does not like the guy.
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The one thing the US President has constantly been accused of lying about are his tax returns, something he has denied over and over again.
Before Trump announced his candidacy for president, he repeatedly promised to release his tax records in 2011, 2014, and 2015.
Then, during his presidential campaign, Trump said he would release his records after they were “worked on.”
Once he became president, however, Trump claimed that because his tax returns were being audited, he could not make them public.
Except no law actually prevents tax returns from being released due to an audit.
Trump later said that voters were not interested in his returns and that “there’s nothing to learn from them”, adding that his tax records are “none of your business”.
Well, thanks to a report from the New York Times (NYT), we now know why Trump was so desperate to keep his tax returns from the public.
Paid No Income Tax in 11 of the Past 18 Years
Now, if you’re a self-proclaimed billionaire like Trump, paying your taxes should be no big deal.
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But an NYT analysis of Trump’s personal and business tax returns for the last 20 years showed that the US President has paid no income taxes in 11 of the past 18 years.
Moreover, Trump paid just US$750 (S$1,032) in income taxes in both 2016 and 2017, reported NYT.
To give you an idea of how measly a sum this is, let’s compare him to past presidents.
Trump may be the wealthiest US president in history, but he has reportedly paid less taxes than other recent presidents.
Both Barack Obama and George W. Bush each regularly paid more than $100,000 in taxes a year, and sometimes more, while in office.
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So how has Trump managed to pay so little?
Well, according to NYT, Trump reported incurring huge losses which helped him lower his taxes, including claiming that he lost millions of dollars from his golf courses.
In Massive Debt
And it’s about to get worse for the 74-year-old, as he’s in hundreds of millions in debt, which will be due in the coming years.
According to Bloomberg, Trump’s revenue from the reality show “The Apprentice” and from licensing deals is depleting.
Several years ago, Trump also sold all the stocks that could have saved him from his impending financial ruin.
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NYT reported that over US$300 million in loans will come due within the next four years.
Questionable Tax Deductions
In addition to his alleged tax evasion and debt, Trump has written off some questionable deductions.
For one, Trump took tax deductions on personal expenses, including $70,000 in hairstyling for television.
The NYT report also alleges that Trump has been using “consultancy fees” as a way to pay his children, as he deducted US$26 million in “consulting fees” as a business expense between 2010 and 2018.
His daughter, Ivanka Trump, has reported consulting income that matched the figures on Trump’s tax returns.
Trump’s Response
So, what is Trump’s response to these claims?
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Well, you can probably guess:
At a press conference on Sunday (27 Sep), Trump said the report is “totally fake news,” and added “I pay a lot”, but didn’t say what for.
As for his tax records, Trump said: “They’re under audit and when they’re not, I would be proud to show you”.
In 2050, dear reader, when Trump is 104 and the coronavirus outbreak has finally ended, you can bet that the US president will be repeating the same old sentence all over again.
Read Also: Twitter User Got Legal Letters from Xiaxue’s Lawyers & Proceeded to Tweet About It 2 Months Later
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Would you be jailed for being half-naked in public? Well, the answer will shock you. Seriously. Watch this to the end and you'll understand:
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