BIG NEWS. The New York Times has Trump's tax returns and wow - they absolutely eviscerate any claim that Trump has made about being rich or successful or a good businessman.
To be clear - this article is really dense and well sourced. There is a lot of historical data, going back roughly 20 years. I am going to try to hit the high points, but I encourage you to read the article itself to really take a deep dive in.
The article opens with this one-two punch:
Donald J. Trump paid $750 in federal income taxes the year he won the presidency. In his first year in the White House, he paid another $750. He had paid no income taxes at all in 10 of the previous 15 years — largely because he reported losing much more money than he made.
Donald Trump apparently made so little money (or manufactured large enough losses) that he didn't even pay taxes. He has "hundreds of millions of dollars in debt coming due that he has personally guaranteed" which is probably driving his push to have the federal government pay HIM to protect HIM and his family, thereby making the government pay his debt...eventually. Oh, and Trump may end up owing the IRS over $100 million in back payments and penalties related to a tax refund of $72.9M he claimed (possibly illegitimately) in 2010.
The tax information the NYT has pull the curtain back on Trump's blatant lies about how successful he and his businesses actually are. In fact, they consistently show losses, deficiencies and shuffling of debt and profits to make it look like he is doing better than he really is. The data they reviewed came from Trump himself and "hundreds of companies that make up his business organization, including detailed information from his first two years in office. It does not include his personal returns for 2018 or 2019."
Their analysis:
Ultimately, Mr. Trump has been more successful playing a business mogul than being one in real life.
Trump's hotels and golf courses are shockingly non-profitable. In fact, their taxes filings report "losing millions, if not tens of millions, of dollars year after year."
That is staggering, though the tax code is structured to reward developers for owning property and using loopholes for tax avoidance.
Donald Trump claims to be a billionaire with many successful hotels, golf courses and other businesses. How much did he pay in taxes? In 2017 he paid $750 while he paid significantly more to other countries where he had businesses -- $15,598 to Panama, $145,400 to India and $156,824 to the Philippines (home of strongman Duterte).
What does the future hold? The Times reports that the businesses reported more than $100 million over the last TWO YEARS prior to his run for office in June 2015. His run for office may have been a last ditch effort to revive his brand, suggesting that he wasn't as interested in winning as he was in burnishing the brand for better TV deals after he lost in 2016.
Now he faces even more danger in 2020. The New York Times reports that in 2012, Trump took a $100 MILLION DOLLAR MORTGAGE on space in Trump Tower. He took it at a straight payout. The full amount, with interest, is due in 2022. Additionally, he is "personally responsible for loans and other debts totaling $421 million, with most of it coming due within four years"
Like the Wizard of Oz, after the curtain was pulled back. Donald Trump is a scammer who is now being outed as a liar, a cheat and a grifter.
Reminder, the whole story is here.
UPDATE: Watch his pathetic dodge during a press conference HE called right when this story dropped.
UPDATE 2:
