The NYT obtains, publishes decades of Trump tax return data
Emily Tamkin writes: The New York Times has obtained years of President Donald Trump's tax return data, covering not just the president but his companies. The president famously broke precedent by not making this information available to the public, but the Times has. The paper found that, for 11 of the 18 years its reporters examined, the president paid no federal income taxes. In 2017, the year he became president, he paid just $750. He achieved this by declaring losses and claiming tax deductions on, for example, aircraft and hairstyling. One such measure, a $72.9 million tax refund, is under audit by the Internal Revenue Service. The Times has said it will publish more related to Trump's taxes. It remains to be seen whether this, like so many prior scandals, will bounce off the president or infuriate voters, the majority of whom pay more in taxes than the president. Trump has dismissed the reporting as "fake news."
