bripat9643
Diamond Member
- Apr 1, 2011
- 170,163
- 47,312
The IRS will make you pay if you embarass them:
Why Trump tap dances on tax returns
Donald Trump has reason to be reluctant to release his tax returns. In a New York Times piece about Ben Rhodes, President Obama’s deputy national security adviser, Rhodes cynically explains that today’s journalism consists of young people whom he flat-out describes as ignorant. “The average reporter we talk to is 27 years old,” Rhodes said, “and their only reporting experience consists of being around political campaigns. That’s a sea change. They literally know nothing.”
What do 27-year-old reporters know about how wealthy big-business people file their taxes? In the real world, moguls like Donald Trump hire accountants and tax attorneys to file what are known as “aggressive” returns – seeking every possible deduction, exclusion, tax break or deferral.
Given this, Donald Trump is likely audited nearly every year, with the IRS settling with him on some of these issues, often for less than the IRS initially claimed he owed. If Trump releases his taxes now, the IRS – to avoid embarrassment or public criticism that they are giving a rich guy a break – might be reluctant to negotiate down from what they initially argued he owes. Therefore, Trump is likely telling the truth that his attorneys advised him not to release his tax returns until after the audit had been settled.
Donald Trump has reason to be reluctant to release his tax returns. In a New York Times piece about Ben Rhodes, President Obama’s deputy national security adviser, Rhodes cynically explains that today’s journalism consists of young people whom he flat-out describes as ignorant. “The average reporter we talk to is 27 years old,” Rhodes said, “and their only reporting experience consists of being around political campaigns. That’s a sea change. They literally know nothing.”
What do 27-year-old reporters know about how wealthy big-business people file their taxes? In the real world, moguls like Donald Trump hire accountants and tax attorneys to file what are known as “aggressive” returns – seeking every possible deduction, exclusion, tax break or deferral.
Given this, Donald Trump is likely audited nearly every year, with the IRS settling with him on some of these issues, often for less than the IRS initially claimed he owed. If Trump releases his taxes now, the IRS – to avoid embarrassment or public criticism that they are giving a rich guy a break – might be reluctant to negotiate down from what they initially argued he owes. Therefore, Trump is likely telling the truth that his attorneys advised him not to release his tax returns until after the audit had been settled.
