Trump’s Financial Disclosure Shows How He Avoids Taxes
Trump tries to equate tax dodging with seeking lower taxes. Note the subtle twisting of reality to suit his situation when he says ‘everyone does it.” Sure, most people do seek to pay the lowest legal taxes that they owe, however most don’t lie, seek shelters, dodges, and scams to avoid their fair share.
This is exactly why voters need to see his tax returns - he’s applying for the biggest job this country offers, the one that requires the most responsibility and transparency. When I was hired for a job that involved the treasuries department, I went through a background check that included everything but an anal probe. Don’t you think that if he wants us to hire him as president with our votes that he should show us his tax returns at minimum, especially with his past history of dealing with known mafia figures?
Take Trump National Golf Club in Westchester County, New York. Trump wrote in his financial disclosure that the club was worth more than $50 million, even though Trump’s own attorneys say it’s worth only $9 million. Trump has earned the ire of county administrators who accuse him of trying to pay less in taxes on the property than he should.
“Look, everybody is looking to pay less in taxes. Personally, I would hope that anybody that is representing our country as president of the United States would also be willing to pay their own fair share of taxes on properties and on whatever it is on their income,” said town supervisor Dana Levenberg to ABC News. “That’s really, in my opinion, what makes America great, is everybody pitching in and doing their part.”
His attorneys had previously valued the golf course at an absurdly low $1.35 million, before ABC News’ reporting on the course, according to a subsequent update. Trump spent $8 million to buy the property and a further $45 million to build the golf course and facilities on the property grounds, and then received a 55 percent reduction in the club’s official value, minimizing his tax burden even more.
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