Posted on 10/05/2016 8:07:31 AM PDT by Kaslin
What would you think of an individual or a company that earned a pre-tax profit of $29.9 million in one year, paid nothing in taxes and still received a $3.5 million refund?
Am I speaking of Donald Trump? No, it is The New York Times Company. Forbes magazine studied the newspaper's 2014 annual report, in which the company explained: "The effective tax rate for 2014 was favorably affected by approximately $21.1 million for the reversal of reserves for uncertain tax positions due to the lapse of applicable statutes of limitations."
In other words the Times took advantage of tax laws that only good tax attorneys understand and in doing so was no different than Donald Trump. The Times, which obtained Trump's supposedly confidential tax returns, made a big deal out of the Republican presidential candidate's use of loopholes to avoid paying taxes.
Democrats are trying to make this part of their "fair share" scenario when, in fact, they are making the argument Republicans have been making for years for tax reform, which Trump has promised to do if he's elected president.
The federal government is taking in record amounts of tax revenue, but is approaching a $20 trillion debt. The problem, noted Ronald Reagan, is not that the American people are taxed too little, but that their government spends too much.
No one is saying that Trump's deductions were illegal, but that doesn't matter to Democrats. As a Wall Street Journal editorial noted on Monday, "The left is committed to defeating Mr. Trump by whatever means possible, as many believe this end justifies any means, much as progressives have justified the Edward Snowden leaks despite the damage to national security."
What would you think of an individual or a company that earned a pre-tax profit of $29.9 million in one year, paid nothing in taxes and still received a $3.5 million refund?
Am I speaking of Donald Trump? No, it is The New York Times Company. Forbes magazine studied the newspaper's 2014 annual report, in which the company explained: "The effective tax rate for 2014 was favorably affected by approximately $21.1 million for the reversal of reserves for uncertain tax positions due to the lapse of applicable statutes of limitations."
In other words the Times took advantage of tax laws that only good tax attorneys understand and in doing so was no different than Donald Trump. The Times, which obtained Trump's supposedly confidential tax returns, made a big deal out of the Republican presidential candidate's use of loopholes to avoid paying taxes.
Democrats are trying to make this part of their "fair share" scenario when, in fact, they are making the argument Republicans have been making for years for tax reform, which Trump has promised to do if he's elected president.
The federal government is taking in record amounts of tax revenue, but is approaching a $20 trillion debt. The problem, noted Ronald Reagan, is not that the American people are taxed too little, but that their government spends too much.
No one is saying that Trump's deductions were illegal, but that doesn't matter to Democrats. As a Wall Street Journal editorial noted on Monday, "The left is committed to defeating Mr. Trump by whatever means possible, as many believe this end justifies any means, much as progressives have justified the Edward Snowden leaks despite the damage to national security."
Leaking sealed or private documents is not a new strategy for Democrats. When Barack Obama was a candidate in the Democratic Senate primary in Illinois, the sealed divorce papers of his opponent, Jack Ryan, were shamelessly used to help defeat the "family values" Republican. Had that dirty trick not been used, Obama might never have been a senator, much less president.
Does anyone expect an IRS or Justice Department investigation into who leaked Trump's tax records? Unlikely. FBI Director James Comey's refusal to recommend prosecution of Hillary Clinton for her deliberate mishandling of classified information seems to prove that the Obama administration is little more than an arm of her presidential campaign.
The left's narrative -- stated and implied -- is that everything government does is good, and so it is only right that taxpayers pay increasing amounts of taxes no matter how irresponsible government is in spending them. In this thinking, government has replaced God and taxes have replaced the collection plate, which at least amasses voluntary contributions.
Politicians mostly like the tax code the way it is because they can tweak it in exchange for campaign contributions from lobbyists. For the rest of us, the tax code is a foreign language impossible for most to understand. Even the IRS doesn't fully understand it. If you call the IRS for advice and the advice they give you is wrong, you can still be subject to penalties and interest.
Republicans in high tax states and at the federal level should use the left's "smoking gun" on Trump's taxes as a weapon to demand tax reform. Flat and fair taxes have been suggested. Anything is better than the current system. Real tax reform would ensure that Trump paid some taxes, though they would likely be lower for him than for everyone else who pays them.
After that, maybe the conversation can shift to the real problem: government spending.
In my lifetime, the tax laws have always been screwy and one of the FIRST things they teach you in Business School is to take every advantage of them. That is part of what separates successful businesses from the 67% that fail in their first year. It would be malfeasance on the part of any businessman to fail to take every legal advantage he can, and for a publicly traded company to voluntarily pay excess tax could be a criminal act and subject to shareholder legal recourse.
Eric Trump gave an interview last night & the comments were that he “owned” the panel (Wolf, Dana?, & someone else). Dana got on Trump’s taxes and was determined to make Eric say if Trump had actually paid taxes. Eric made a mistake IMO, and said he has seen the tax return & she was on him about that like white on rice. He demurred somewhat ... it got very uncomfortable before the video cut off. Eric did do very well until the tax issue came up.
In my opinion, what should be said is that DJT has paid whatever taxes he OWES. If he can arrange his businesses to avoid taxes and does not OWE any, then he pays none. I noticed Eric started qualifying what he was saying with business/corporate vs personal .... I think the end of that interview is going to return to haunt him.
Bottom line, the Trump team needs to figure a way to silence this mess once and for all ... Kaine brought it up AGAIN last night as did the CNN panel .... big distraction & since they keep harping on it, trying to imply Trump is a deadbeat or dishonest or is doing something illegal if he “paid no taxes” and eventually, as with most things “Dem”, if they say it often enough, the sheeple start believing it.
I think he can silence them easily....
1. Why are the Clintons redoing 4 years of returns for their foundation?
2. Why didn’t they disclose millions on their returns?
3. Show the world your speeches to Wall St?
4. Show us the donor lists?
5. Unseal the documents for Jeffery Epstein’s trial?
6. Show obama’s school transcripts?
7. Show obama’s financial aid paperwork?
8. Show obama’s voting records while in Illinois senate?
9. Show the video the LA Times has of obama at the event for Khalidi?
10. Where was she on Sept 11, 2012?
11. Where was obama on Sept 11, 2012?
12. What were they doing on the night of Sept 11, 2012?
13. Produce the 33k emails that you said have been deleted...
Then silence them he should.
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