PRESIDENT TRUMP’S AN ARTFUL DODGER
Official records show president managed to avoid paying a single cent for 11 years
DONALD Trump paid just $750 in income tax the first year he was in the White House, official documents allegedly show.
The US president is also alleged to have paid no income tax at all in 11 of 18 years, following a bombshell report in the US.
Trump is to go head-to-head with rival with Joe Biden on the first televised debate tonight ahead of the November 3 election.
Ever since announcing his intention in 2015 to run for US leader, Trump has repeatedly promised to release his records.
He has then refused, saying his tax returns are under audit – although this would not prevent him releasing them.
Biden has repeatedly provided his tax returns for public scrutiny.
The New York Times published details of Trump’s fillings which show he paid no government taxes in 11 of 18 years that were examined. According to the paper, the president “concealed records” showing “Trump’s chronic losses and years of tax avoidance”. It is claimed he reduced his bill with “questionable measures”, including a $72.8million tax refund that is the subject of an audit by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
The newspaper wrote: “Many of his signature businesses, including his golf courses, report losing large amounts of money – losses that have helped him to lower his taxes.”
Despite his losses, Trump managed to enjoy a lavish l i festyle by taking tax deductions on what most people would consider personal expenses, including residences, aircraft and $ 70,000 on a hairdresser for TV appearances.
His daughter Ivanka, while working as an employee of the Trump Organisation, appears to have received “consulting fees” that helped cut the family’s tax bill.
Alan Garten, a lawyer for the Trump Organisation, said that “most, if not all, of the facts, appear to be inaccurate” and requested the documents on which they were based. After the New York Times declined to provide the records to protect its sources, Garten took issue only with the amount of taxes Trump had paid.
He said: “Over the past decade, President Trump has paid tens of millions of dollars in personal taxes to the federal government, including paying millions in personal taxes since announcing his candidacy in 2015.”
At a White House press briefing minutes after the story was published, Trump said: “Actually I paid tax. And you’ll see that as soon as my tax returns are (released).”
While it is believed to be true that Trump’s taxes have been under audit for up to a decade, there is no law against publishing returns while under audit.
Trump added: “The IRS does not treat me well. They treat me very badly. You have people in the IRS that treat me very, very badly. But they’re under audit and when they’re not I would be proud to show you. But that’s just fake news.”