Every major presidential candidate since Gerald Ford in 1976 has released a summary of their tax returns for voters and journalists to parse through. Well all except one – Donald Trump has yet to release any tax records to the public, saying that he can’t release them because he is being audited by the IRS.
Trump maintains that he will release them when he can, but until then any information about his finances, as he told George Stephanopoulos, is “None of your business.”
The web ad features flashbacks from interviews in 2012 where Trump criticizes Mitt Romney for not releasing his returns. Trump even said he was “a little bit surprised that they [the Romney campaign] weren’t better prepared,” to make the returns public.
The ad mixes the 2012 flashbacks with clips from Trump’s interview on Good Morning America today, when Stephanopoulos grilled Trump on why his returns haven’t been made public yet.
Trump’s evasion has many asking: what could Donald Trump be hiding? Here are a few possibilities.
1. He isn’t as fabulously rich as he says he is.
Throughout his campaign, Trump has said his net worth is anywhere from $8 billion to $12 billion – though many economists estimate it’s probably less than half of that, around $4.5 billion.
No IRS form will show someone’s assets, but it could certainly offer some insight into whether Trump is really the self-made billionaire he says he is.
2. He isn’t really a spectacular philanthropist
From donating to veteran’s causes to funding police charities – a big part of Trump’s self-styled persona is that he is an “ardent philanthropist.” His tax returns would show voters if that was really the case.
On the flip side, he could donate tons of money – but to groups like Planned Parenthood or other organizations that conservative Republicans find reprehensible.
3. He uses 1%-er tax-dodging tactics, like offshore banking, tax loopholes or overseas shell companies
Maybe Trump isn’t paying as much in taxes as he should be paying. In the same interview with Good Morning America, Trump nearly admitted this was the case. He said, “I fight very hard to pay as little tax as possible, and I’ve said that for the last two years… this country wastes our money.”
4. He has ties to questionable business partners
Trump hasn’t shied away from admitting that he has donated plenty of money to politicians in the past – including Hillary Clinton. As Trump says, it’s just part of being an international business mogul.
Well another part of being an international business mogul means sometimes having to make deals with less-than-favorable partners in countries where oppression is the name of the game. Trump Tower Saudi Arabia might be nice this time of year.
5. His tax residency
Donald Trump goes with New York like hot dogs go with Coney Island, right? Well what if Trump isn’t an official New York resident? After all he does spend a lot of time at his mansion in Florida – a state with no income tax. His native home of New York, by comparison, has an 8.8% income tax rate.
Of course, there is the possibility that there is absolutely nothing wrong with Trump’s taxes, and he is just withholding them to get media attention… That certainly wouldn’t be out of the ordinary.
Trump maintains that he will release them when he can, but until then any information about his finances, as he told George Stephanopoulos, is “None of your business.”
Democrats Try To Lift the Veil On Trump’s Finances
Liberal-leaning American Bridge PAC is putting pressure on Trump to release his returns – so they launched this ad in conjunction with TrumpReleaseYourReturns.com.The web ad features flashbacks from interviews in 2012 where Trump criticizes Mitt Romney for not releasing his returns. Trump even said he was “a little bit surprised that they [the Romney campaign] weren’t better prepared,” to make the returns public.
The ad mixes the 2012 flashbacks with clips from Trump’s interview on Good Morning America today, when Stephanopoulos grilled Trump on why his returns haven’t been made public yet.
Trump’s evasion has many asking: what could Donald Trump be hiding? Here are a few possibilities.
Five Things Voters Could Learn From Donald Trump’s Tax Returns
1. He isn’t as fabulously rich as he says he is.
Throughout his campaign, Trump has said his net worth is anywhere from $8 billion to $12 billion – though many economists estimate it’s probably less than half of that, around $4.5 billion.
No IRS form will show someone’s assets, but it could certainly offer some insight into whether Trump is really the self-made billionaire he says he is.
2. He isn’t really a spectacular philanthropist
From donating to veteran’s causes to funding police charities – a big part of Trump’s self-styled persona is that he is an “ardent philanthropist.” His tax returns would show voters if that was really the case.
On the flip side, he could donate tons of money – but to groups like Planned Parenthood or other organizations that conservative Republicans find reprehensible.
3. He uses 1%-er tax-dodging tactics, like offshore banking, tax loopholes or overseas shell companies
Maybe Trump isn’t paying as much in taxes as he should be paying. In the same interview with Good Morning America, Trump nearly admitted this was the case. He said, “I fight very hard to pay as little tax as possible, and I’ve said that for the last two years… this country wastes our money.”
4. He has ties to questionable business partners
Trump hasn’t shied away from admitting that he has donated plenty of money to politicians in the past – including Hillary Clinton. As Trump says, it’s just part of being an international business mogul.
Well another part of being an international business mogul means sometimes having to make deals with less-than-favorable partners in countries where oppression is the name of the game. Trump Tower Saudi Arabia might be nice this time of year.
5. His tax residency
Donald Trump goes with New York like hot dogs go with Coney Island, right? Well what if Trump isn’t an official New York resident? After all he does spend a lot of time at his mansion in Florida – a state with no income tax. His native home of New York, by comparison, has an 8.8% income tax rate.
Of course, there is the possibility that there is absolutely nothing wrong with Trump’s taxes, and he is just withholding them to get media attention… That certainly wouldn’t be out of the ordinary.