Author Topic: Trump and Taxes  (Read 2749 times)

Ben

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Trump and Taxes
« on: September 27, 2020, 07:08:17 PM »
So, now it looks like Trump is the bad guy for having a good team of CPAs who followed the law (as well as using a tax law gift courtesy of Obama).

https://twitchy.com/gregp-3534/2020/09/27/the-nyt-confirms-president-trump-was-telling-the-truth-about-being-under-audit/
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WLJ

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #1 on: September 27, 2020, 07:11:31 PM »
IMPEACH HIM!
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Fly320s

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #2 on: September 27, 2020, 07:14:52 PM »
Maybe this will finally prod the democrats to vote for a flat tax or the Fair Tax.   =D :rofl:
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Perd Hapley

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #3 on: September 27, 2020, 10:14:18 PM »
I just want a candidate who makes money the old-fashioned way - Ukrainian energy sector sinecures and sex trafficking.
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just Warren

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #4 on: September 27, 2020, 10:32:27 PM »
Ukrainian Energy Sector Sinecures and Sex Trafficking.

Not the best set of rules but it was one of the more interesting table-top RPGs to come out in the mid-2000s.
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WLJ

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"Sometimes I think the surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that none of it has tried to contact us".
- Calvin and Hobbes

Perd Hapley

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #6 on: September 27, 2020, 11:25:54 PM »
Not the best set of rules but it was one of the more interesting table-top RPGs to come out in the mid-2000s.

 :lol:
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just Warren

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #7 on: September 28, 2020, 12:59:22 AM »
We got him!

https://twitchy.com/dougp-3137/2020/09/27/our-media-is-a-joke-cnns-brian-stelter-thinks-the-ny-times-trump-tax-story-is-finally-the-real-deal-spoiler-alert/

I'm amused that they think this is going to change enough minds to cost Trump the election.

How many people hate the IRS and love to see someone get over on them? More than those who want people to pay "their fair share" I'm guessing.
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MikeB

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #8 on: September 28, 2020, 08:31:19 AM »
This is what every business does. Whether corporations or sole proprietorship. This is why it’s always ridiculous when Dems go on about raising taxes on corporations and business. Corporations don’t pay taxes, they either find write-offs, take losses or pass on the tax burden to customers. Or a combination of all three.

The write-offs are built into tax law and generally supported by the same Dems crowing about corporations not paying their fair share. Unfortunately there are enough uneducated voters that the arguments work for them with a lot of voters.

Very wealthy people have many of the same options or other ways to avoid taxes that business do. No matter what it’s stupid to pay extra taxes when you have legal options to ‘avoid’ them.

Ron

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #9 on: September 28, 2020, 08:34:37 AM »
Nothing illegal, no Russians, talk about burying the lead.
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Ron

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #10 on: September 28, 2020, 08:53:55 AM »
Legally avoiding taxes is every patriots duty.
For the invisible things of him since the creation of the world are clearly seen, being perceived through the things that are made, even his everlasting power and divinity, that they may be without excuse. Because knowing God, they didn’t glorify him as God, and didn’t give thanks, but became vain in their reasoning, and their senseless heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools.

Ben

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #11 on: September 28, 2020, 09:27:43 AM »
Maybe something for Trump to use when Biden brings up taxes tomorrow night:

https://twitchy.com/samj-3930/2020/09/28/unlike-biden-trump-didnt-profit-from-his-office-jeff-carlsons-list-of-what-trumps-tax-returns-really-show-is-so-bad-for-dems/

I'm pretty sure that Trump is losing a boatload of money being President vs running his companies.
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DittoHead

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #12 on: September 28, 2020, 09:36:16 AM »
I'm pretty sure that Trump is losing a boatload of money being President vs running his companies.

If he wasn't paying any taxes then he wasn't making a boatload of money before being President either (on paper anyway  ;)).
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Ben

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #13 on: September 28, 2020, 09:41:39 AM »
If he wasn't paying any taxes then he wasn't making a boatload of money before being President either (on paper anyway  ;)).

Well, sure, but that "on paper" applies to anyone who has the deductions available and fully uses the tax code. :)
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Ben

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #14 on: September 28, 2020, 11:46:15 AM »
Thread veer, but holy crap - I went to the Pennsylvania Treasury account mentioned here and scrolled through their tweets. That's some serious partisan activism going on in a government agency. Maybe state govs don't take that stuff as seriously as fed.gov.

https://twitchy.com/samj-3930/2020/09/28/now-that-we-know-even-more-about-nyts-story-on-trumps-tax-return-patreasury-might-want-to-delete-their-smug-tweet/
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MechAg94

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #15 on: September 28, 2020, 12:01:27 PM »
I hope someone is looking at all the tax shelters Biden has voted for in his career.  Certainly it could be said that he has approved of all of it. 
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just Warren

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #16 on: September 28, 2020, 01:31:20 PM »
In the NYT article itself it says Trump paid 5.2M in taxes over two years. So the $750 only thing is a straight up lie.

Also in this one it turns out the NYT admits to having access to employee compensation records and tax returns.

Those are private individuals, and this is a massive invasion of their privacy.

The Times and the relevant staffers should be prosecuted for this.
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K Frame

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #17 on: September 28, 2020, 01:45:18 PM »
Who didn't see this coming?

Nancy Pelosi is raising the nationals security spectre due to Trump's debt load...

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/09/28/trumps-reported-massive-debt-load-raises-national-security-question-pelosi-says.html
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DittoHead

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #18 on: September 28, 2020, 04:00:42 PM »
The Times and the relevant staffers should be prosecuted for this.
What law have the NYT & staff broken here?
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kgbsquirrel

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #19 on: September 28, 2020, 04:36:37 PM »
What law have the NYT & staff broken here?
Privacy Act of 1974 and possibly HIPAA.

zxcvbob

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #20 on: September 28, 2020, 04:45:06 PM »
Privacy Act of 1974 and possibly HIPAA.

Yes, and GDPR if any of them are EU citizens.
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DittoHead

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #21 on: September 28, 2020, 05:58:16 PM »
Privacy Act of 1974 and possibly HIPAA.

I doubt it.
There are certainly laws that could be used prosecute someone who leaked these records to the NYT. Going after NYT itself is a lot harder.

There was plenty of discussion of this when other bits of Trump's tax info have been leaked/published and what I recall from my reading then is that there is potentially something in the IRS code but there was also a reasonable 1st amendment challenge if it came to that. Nothing ever did come of those, but maybe like the Logan Act someone will finally give it a try.
https://surlysubgroup.com/2017/03/15/did-rachel-maddow-break-the-law-trumptaxreturns/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/10/02/the-new-york-times-risked-legal-trouble-to-publish-donald-trumps-tax-return/
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just Warren

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #22 on: September 28, 2020, 06:17:04 PM »
If the looked at 1000s of records that means a number of employees were given access to private information. How is that not a crime?
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Perd Hapley

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #23 on: September 28, 2020, 06:32:10 PM »
Quote
Because most media will breeze over it, it’s important to pause and note the criminal illegality of this story. It is a federal crime for any federal, state, or local government employee to release a tax return without the consent of the taxpayer. Ditto for tax lawyers, CPAs, enrolled agents, and other tax professionals. Interestingly, it’s also illegal to print or publish tax returns or information from them. Section 7213 of the Internal Revenue Code prescribes that each violation here is a felony punishable by $5,000 and/or five years in federal prison, plus the cost of prosecution. Federal employees so convicted are to lose their jobs.

Trump enjoys the same protection of federal tax law that any John Q. Public has. Someone should go to jail for releasing his tax returns. Speaking as an enrolled agent who has prepared taxes as a side hustle for nearly two decades, this cavalier attitude toward tax return custody is appalling to me. The president ought to have some conversations today with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Attorney General William Barr about prosecuting the New York Times for its possible tax felonies.

https://thefederalist.com/2020/09/28/new-york-times-trump-tax-return-bombshell-is-a-joke/
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RoadKingLarry

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Re: Trump and Taxes
« Reply #24 on: September 28, 2020, 06:34:11 PM »
I think it pretty well falls under the same rules that classified info does. If the publisher didn't acquire the info illegally first hand, i.e. "someone" who might have illegally acquire the info gave it to them freely then they can publish without violation of the law.
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