Tag

#taxes

2 incidents

Updated April 15, 2019 Corruption & Self-Dealing
Major Abuse of Power

Tax Cuts and Jobs Act: $1.5 Trillion Cut Favoring Corporations and the Wealthy

The TCJA was passed through the budget reconciliation process with no Democratic votes; the process required the individual tax cuts to expire (via budget rules) while making the corporate rate cut permanent. Trump claimed the cut would generate economic growth sufficient to pay for itself — a prediction rejected by the CBO, the JCT, and most economists. The $1.9 trillion corporate stock buyback surge in 2018 documented that the primary immediate effect was share buybacks rather than business investment or wage growth. The Trump family directly benefited from the pass-through deduction. Trump signed it into law and called it 'one of the great Christmas gifts to middle-income people.'

Sources
4
taxesTCJAcorporationsinequalityfirst-term
Updated September 29, 2020 Corruption & Self-Dealing
Major Abuse of Power

Tax Returns Investigation: $1 Billion in Losses, Tax Avoidance Schemes Documented

The 2019 NYT investigation used IRS data from 1985-1994, finding Trump declared $1.17 billion in losses — an average of $117 million per year — largely from casino and real estate failures. The losses were so large that Trump paid no income tax in eight of the ten years. The 2020 investigation of complete tax returns found Trump paid $750 in federal income taxes in 2016 and $750 in 2017 through aggressive deductions, carried-forward losses, and tax credits. Trump had for decades refused to release his tax returns, claiming he was under IRS audit. He remained the only presidential candidate in modern history to refuse release until his returns were eventually obtained by courts after litigation.

Sources
4
taxesbusiness-lossestax-avoidancepre-presidencycorruption