NY Times: Trump Paid Little or No Income Taxes
2020-09-29
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1The New York Times published a detailed report Sunday about the tax records of U.S. President Donald Trump.
2The report said that Trump paid only $750 in federal income taxes in 2016, the year he won the presidency.
3In 2017, his first year in office, he also paid $750 in federal income taxes.
4The story said that he paid no income taxes at all in 10 of the 15 years before he won the presidency.
5The newspaper said the information came from more than 20 years of tax documents that were given to its reporters from "sources with legal access."
6The paper said it would not share the documents so as to protect its sources.
7Alan Garten is a lawyer for the Trump Organization, the group of businesses owned or controlled by Trump.
8Garten said that "most, if not all, of the facts appear to be inaccurate" and asked for the documents on which they were based.
9When the newspaper refused, he said, "Over the past decade, President Trump has paid tens of millions of dollars in personal taxes to the federal government, including paying millions in personal taxes since announcing his candidacy in 2015."
10Shortly after the Times report appeared in publication, the president denounced the story as false during a Sunday press conference at the White House.
11He said, "I've paid a lot, and I paid a lot in state income taxes, too."
12Traditionally, U.S. presidential candidates have shared their tax records with the public.
13But for nearly four years, Trump has refused to do so.
14He has said that he will release his tax returns when they are no longer under investigation by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the federal agency responsible for collecting taxes.
15Trump and his lawyers have fought several attempts by Democratic Party lawmakers and New York state officials to study his tax records.
16Former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic candidate for president, published his income tax returns on his campaign's website.
17They show that he and his wife Jill paid $93,229 in federal income tax in 2016.
18The Bidens paid $3.7 million in 2017 and $1.5 million in 2018.
19Between 2005 and 2007, the Times said Trump "paid substantial federal income taxes for the first time in his life: a total of $70.1 million."
20The taxes were based on his earnings from the television show The Apprentice and licensing deals.
21However, Trump then claimed his businesses were losing money.
22In 2010, he received $72.9 million from the federal government and another $21.2 million from local and state governments.
23The money is now subjected to investigation by the IRS.
24The Times also said Trump used money from his businesses to pay for his family's living expenses.
25Between 2010 and 2018, he also wrote off some $26 million in unexplained "consulting fees" as a business expense.
26The tax records did not identify who received the money.
27Trump's two sons, Eric and Trump, Junior, are said to operate the Trump family businesses, but their father is still the major owner of the Trump Organization.
28Since 2016, the Times reported that foreign governments, business groups and people have spent large amount of money at the president's properties.
29Overseas projects in the Philippines, India, Azerbaijan and Turkey also brought millions to the Trump Organization.
30In 2017, while the president only paid $750 in U.S. federal income taxes, he and his businesses paid $15,598 in taxes to Panama, $145,400 to India and $156,824 to the Philippines.
31The tax records also show that Trump's business has lost more than $315 million from his golf courses since 2000.
32And a hotel near the White House, opened in 2016, has lost more than $55 million.
33The Times noted that Trump is responsible for paying back $421 million in loans to banks within four years and $100 million for the loan on the Trump Tower in New York by 2022.
34All of this will come at the time when many hotels, golf courses and office buildings are struggling to earn profits during the coronavirus health crisis.
35And if the IRS denied his appeal, Trump would have to pay an additional $100 million to the government.
36Trump and Biden are making final preparations for the first presidential debate.
37They will meet in Ohio Tuesday night.
38Reporter Chris Wallace will chair the debate.
39Wallace has listed several issues as possible subjects for the candidates to discuss.
40The New York Times report, however, will direct more attention to Trump, his taxes and businesses.
41I'm Jonathan Evans.
1The New York Times published a detailed report Sunday about the tax records of U.S. President Donald Trump. The report said that Trump paid only $750 in federal income taxes in 2016, the year he won the presidency. In 2017, his first year in office, he also paid $750 in federal income taxes. The story said that he paid no income taxes at all in 10 of the 15 years before he won the presidency. 2The newspaper said the information came from more than 20 years of tax documents that were given to its reporters from "sources with legal access." The paper said it would not share the documents so as to protect its sources. 3Alan Garten is a lawyer for the Trump Organization, the group of businesses owned or controlled by Trump. Garten said that "most, if not all, of the facts appear to be inaccurate" and asked for the documents on which they were based. When the newspaper refused, he said, "Over the past decade, President Trump has paid tens of millions of dollars in personal taxes to the federal government, including paying millions in personal taxes since announcing his candidacy in 2015." 4Shortly after the Times report appeared in publication, the president denounced the story as false during a Sunday press conference at the White House. He said, "I've paid a lot, and I paid a lot in state income taxes, too." 5Traditionally, U.S. presidential candidates have shared their tax records with the public. But for nearly four years, Trump has refused to do so. He has said that he will release his tax returns when they are no longer under investigation by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the federal agency responsible for collecting taxes. 6Trump and his lawyers have fought several attempts by Democratic Party lawmakers and New York state officials to study his tax records. 7Former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic candidate for president, published his income tax returns on his campaign's website. They show that he and his wife Jill paid $93,229 in federal income tax in 2016. The Bidens paid $3.7 million in 2017 and $1.5 million in 2018. 8"Questionable measures" to reduce taxes 9Between 2005 and 2007, the Times said Trump "paid substantial federal income taxes for the first time in his life: a total of $70.1 million." The taxes were based on his earnings from the television show The Apprentice and licensing deals. 10However, Trump then claimed his businesses were losing money. In 2010, he received $72.9 million from the federal government and another $21.2 million from local and state governments. The money is now subjected to investigation by the IRS. 11The Times also said Trump used money from his businesses to pay for his family's living expenses. Between 2010 and 2018, he also wrote off some $26 million in unexplained "consulting fees" as a business expense. The tax records did not identify who received the money. 12The president and his business 13Trump's two sons, Eric and Trump, Junior, are said to operate the Trump family businesses, but their father is still the major owner of the Trump Organization. 14Since 2016, the Times reported that foreign governments, business groups and people have spent large amount of money at the president's properties. Overseas projects in the Philippines, India, Azerbaijan and Turkey also brought millions to the Trump Organization. 15In 2017, while the president only paid $750 in U.S. federal income taxes, he and his businesses paid $15,598 in taxes to Panama, $145,400 to India and $156,824 to the Philippines. 16Financial pressure to come 17The tax records also show that Trump's business has lost more than $315 million from his golf courses since 2000. And a hotel near the White House, opened in 2016, has lost more than $55 million. 18The Times noted that Trump is responsible for paying back $421 million in loans to banks within four years and $100 million for the loan on the Trump Tower in New York by 2022. 19All of this will come at the time when many hotels, golf courses and office buildings are struggling to earn profits during the coronavirus health crisis. And if the IRS denied his appeal, Trump would have to pay an additional $100 million to the government. 20Subjects for debate 21Trump and Biden are making final preparations for the first presidential debate. They will meet in Ohio Tuesday night. 22Reporter Chris Wallace will chair the debate. Wallace has listed several issues as possible subjects for the candidates to discuss. The New York Times report, however, will direct more attention to Trump, his taxes and businesses. 23I'm Jonathan Evans. 24Hai Do wrote this story for Learning English based on The New York Times report. George Grow was the editor. 25_______________________________________________________________ 26Words in This Story 27source - n. a person that gives information 28access - n. a way of being able to use or getting something 29inaccurate - adj. not correct or exact 30decade - n. a period of 10 years 31license - v. to permit the use of a name or property through an official agreement 32expense - n. an amount of money that is needed to pay for something 33fee - n. the amount of money that is paid for work done 34golf course - n. a large area of land that is set up for the game of golf