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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsEconomist Daniel Reck on why the Trump tax returns matter
Not that I think many here doubt that, but these are good explanations from someone who knows what they're talking about.
Link to tweet
Unrolled thread: https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1310506379459866624.html
Here is a thread about the bad takes I am seeing on Twitter about the Trump tax story. If your gut reaction is nihilistic, cynical, or dismissive, I am going to try to change your mind.
BAD TAKE 1: this is all 100% legal, the rich have loopholes. We cant diagnose evasion conclusively from the return alone, but the reporting describes some super suspicious activity. Three things jump out:
1) He is in protracted litigation with auditors that could saddle him with >$70 million in taxes. This is over a dubious loss carryforward that he probably wasnt allowed to claim.
2) >$20 million in consulting fees apparently paid to his kids. This is a common tactic to dodge estate/gift taxes, but paying higher than market salaries is illegal. Especially telling: some of his business partners apparently had no idea their business was hiring consultants.
3) a large number of personal expenses claimed as business expenses. Flights, hairstyling, you name it. Also commonly done, but not legal.
Honorable mention: the reporting about the Seven Springs estate looks pretty fishy as well.
Anyway, these really dont look legal, these look like Trump violating the tax code and daring the IRS to enter into years of litigation to do anything about it, which in one instance theyve actually done.
(There is some old-fashioned legal tax avoidance going on too though!)
BAD TAKE 2: hes either the worlds worst businessman or the worlds worst tax cheat.
This one Im forgiving of because this is where I was myself before the new reporting. But after reading all this, the inescapable conclusion is that its BOTH.
Ok he may or may not be the worlds worst tax cheat. But the activity above makes it plain he is trying every trick in the book to cheat.
So, is he actually making huge profits and just claiming all these losses to dodge taxes?
Well, he is also saddled with at least $400 million in debt, up to $1 billion by some others reporting. Some particularly huge loans come due in 2020 and he is making zero payment on the principle. Thats not something youre a prospering businessman.
So both things must be true: he violated tax law repeatedly and his businesses are failing. Its no longer either/or, not with what we know now.
BAD TAKE 3: We knew all of this already.
No, we simply didnt. To use an old metaphor, we were stumbling around in the dark feeling out little pieces of the giant elephant in prior reporting, but now were seeing the whole elephant. We hadnt even seen all the pieces before.
(Ok its not a perfect metaphor because there is even more beyond the tax returns that we still dont know. We will probably never see the entire big picture, but further investigation by journalists or prosecutors could reveal a lot.)
BAD TAKE 4: this doesnt matter.
This take is always bad because we the people get to decide whether it matters with our votes and our speech. But also, think about what a potential future Biden administration (*knocks on wood*) can do with this story.
This reporting created more public attention to tax avoidance and evasion by the rich in one day than we have ever had. It is a roadmap of ways the wealthy aggressively minimize their taxes. Democrats can and should leverage this story to level the tax playing field for everyone.
In summary: This really is news. Hes a terrible businessman, but he also seems to have actually cheated. And it matters. We can do something about it. The first thing we can do about it is go and vote.
My notifications are going nuts so a few corrections:
1) the loans are due in 2022 according to the Times story, not 2020
2) "principal" not "principle." Embarrassing.
3) Left out some words in the tweet about debt as well, I think you can work out what I meant.
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Economist Daniel Reck on why the Trump tax returns matter (Original Post)
muriel_volestrangler
Sep 2020
OP
go biblical on their bible thumping asses. render unto Caesar what is his. INVEST in america.
pansypoo53219
Sep 2020
#3
stillcool
(32,626 posts)1. Cynical and dismissive right here...
hadn't thought of how this could shine a light on the written by the rich, for the rich tax codes. Seems to be a lot of stuff swirling and coalescing...l
Cha
(297,524 posts)2. Rt!
pansypoo53219
(20,987 posts)3. go biblical on their bible thumping asses. render unto Caesar what is his. INVEST in america.