Was Trump’s Tax Loss Trump’s Tax Loss?
It may have been a case of being more lucky than shrewd
By Andrew C. McCarthy — October 17, 2016
So much has happened in the last week, it seems like eons have passed since Donald Trump’s leaked tax-return information was all the rage. The big story was a few pages of the mogul’s 1995 state income-tax returns, which showed a gargantuan loss of $916 million.
As a tax story, the revelation was less than met the eye.
It seemed like a big deal to the Clinton camp because the Left worships the state and defines patriotism as paying the progressive income tax. Tax avoidance is therefore treasonous, at least when accomplished by well-to-do Republicans. In the real world beyond partisan narrative, of course, there is no shortage of moneyed Democrats, and they aren’t exactly tripping over themselves to “pay their fair share.” Recall, for example, John Kerry, then-senator from Massachusetts, dodging a tidy half-million bucks in excise taxes by docking his $7 million yacht on the Rhode Island side of the border, rather than in a harbor near one of his Bay State homes. But when rich Republicans are caught in the act, as Trump was, we hear about how they are betraying our troops in battle, putting welfare programs in jeopardy, and denying the “quality” education our public schools so skillfully provide.
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http://www.nationalreview.com/node/441129/print
