By Tom Ozimek
December 30, 2022 Updated: January 3, 2023
Former President Donald Trump and
his wife Melania reported negative income in four of the six years covered by
the couple’s joint tax returns that were released on Dec. 30, 2022, by the
Democrat-controlled House Ways and Means Committee.
While the committee had earlier published a report and some documents that revealed details about the
Trumps’ income and taxes paid, the panel made the full set of tax documents
public on Dec. 30.
The complete assortment of tax return documents,
which cover the years 2015 to 2020, consists of more than 2,700 pages of
individual returns for the Trumps and more than 3,000 pages for the former
president’s businesses.
Key information found in the tax returns includes the fact
that the Trumps reported negative income in four of the six years covered by
the documentation and paid about $1.8 million in taxes.
The release of the documents prompted a sharp rebuke from
Trump, who warned that the move sets a dangerous precedent.
“The Democrats should have never done it, the supreme court
should have never approved it, and it’s going to lead to horrible things for so
many people,” Trump said in a statement to media outlets.
‘Power
to Embarrass, Harrass, or Destroy Americans’
When the Democrat-led panel earlier released preliminary
information about the Trumps’ tax returns, Rep. Kevin Brady (R-Texas), the
top Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee, opposed the move and
argued that the information contained in such disclosures could be spun by
political foes.
“It’s the power to embarrass, harass, or destroy Americans
through disclosure of their tax returns,” Brady said moments before the
committee went into a closed session for a vote.
“After nearly half a century, the political enemies list is
back in Washington, D.C., and we worry this will unleash a cycle of political
retribution in Congress.”
Trump, in his Dec. 30 remarks, struck a similar tone,
warning that the move would stoke political divisions and that it could fuel a
tit-for-tat.
“The great USA divide will now grow far worse. The radical,
left Democrats have weaponized everything, but remember, that is a dangerous
two-way street!” Trump said.
“The ‘Trump’ tax returns once again show how proudly
successful I have been and how I have been able to use depreciation and various
other tax deductions as an incentive for creating thousands of jobs and
magnificent structures and enterprises.”
Roger Stone, a longtime Trump ally, took to Twitter prior to the release of the documents to say he
expects the tax returns to show that the former president made a lot of money
but, thanks to loopholes in the tax laws, didn’t pay much in the way of taxes.
“I predict that Donald Trump’s tax returns are going to show
that he made a lot of money, but didn’t pay a lot of taxes because he took
advantage of all of the loopholes in the tax laws passed by the very people who
are releasing his tax returns,” Stone wrote. “This makes him smart, not dumb.”
The tax returns do, indeed, support that view.
Trump
Tax Return Details
The documents (pdf) indicate that Trump’s businesses at times reported
significant losses on tax returns, which can be used to offset tax liabilities.
For instance, Trump’s 2020 business tax filing shows that
DJT Holdings, a holding company for numerous Trump investments, reported an
income loss of $40.5 million.
Some of Trump’s businesses lost money, such as the Trump
National Golf Club ($1.37 million) and Trump Old Post Office ($23 million).
Others made money, such as Trump National Golf Club Washington D.C. ($2.6
million) and Golf Club of Jupiter ($874,890).
When various eligible deductions were added, such as roughly
$1.1 million in rent and $3.2 million in depreciation, another $19 million in
negative income was added, bringing the total so-called ordinary business
income for that year to negative $59.9 million.
Many of Trump’s real estate businesses, including golf
courses, lost money in 2020 amid the pandemic, the documents show, which
explains why he ended up being able to slim his tax bill.
In 2020, Trump reported a loss of $4.8 million and paid no
federal taxes.
The ability to offset tax liabilities by business operating
expenses is also why, in three of the six years covered by the returns—2015,
2016, and 2017—Trump reported an income tax liability of just $750.
Overall, Trump’s adjusted gross income was negative $53.2
million for the six-year period covered by the tax returns.
His total federal tax liability over the six-year
period—which includes self-employment and household employment taxes—was $4.4
million.
The slimmed-down “net tax” figure came to $1.8 million.
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