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Post Politics Trump paid $38 million in income taxes in 2005, the White House says By Philip Rucker and Drew Harwell March 14 at 9:31 PM President Trump at the White House on March 13. (Michael Reynolds/European Pressphoto Agency)President Trump paid $38 million in federal taxes in 2005 on income of $153 million and reported a $105 million write-down in business losses, according to a copy of his tax return first revealed Tuesday night on MSNBC. Trump paid an effective tax rate of 25 percent and saved millions of dollars in additional taxes by claiming the losses, according to the document, the first two pages of which were obtained by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Cay Johnston and first shared on “The Rachel Maddow Show.” The return shows that Trump paid $36.5 million in income tax, of which about $31 million was in the form of an “alternative minimum tax,” a supplemental tax designed to cut down on filers with excessive deductions. He also paid about $1.5 million in Medicare and Social Security taxes. [See the tax documents from Trump's 2005 return] The document offers a rare snapshot of Trump’s personal finances, considering he has refused to disclose his tax returns to the public. The White House issued a statement chastising MSNBC for reporting on Trump’s taxes — “totally illegal,” read the statement — but also confirming top-line numbers from the return and defending Trump. Trump’s taxes were a major flash point in last year’s campaign and continue to be a subject of intense scrutiny from Democrats and others who believe they would show whether he has financial relationships with any Russian entities. The newly revealed pages from his 2005 return do not detail his financial ties, but they do seem to disprove the theory that some Democrats advanced in last year’s campaign that Trump avoided paying any federal income taxes during that period. In their first general-election debate, Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton speculated about Trump, “maybe he doesn’t want the American people — all of you watching tonight — to know that he’s paid nothing in federal taxes.” At that, Trump quipped, “That makes me smart.” Donald Trump Jr., the president’s oldest son, tweeted, “Thank you Rachel Maddow for proving to your #Trump hating followers how successful @realDonaldTrump is & that he paid $40mm in taxes! #Taxes” Last fall, the New York Times revealed that Trump reported a massive $916 million loss in 1995, which he could have carried over to allow him to offset taxable income and avoid paying income taxes for up to 18 years. Though Trump was able to use those net losses as a deduction in 2005, the returns show, they did not zero out his tax obligation altogether. Trump used real estate deductions to pay no federal income taxes in 1978 and 1979, according to Trump tax returns submitted years ago to New Jersey regulators. Much of those losses came from a deduction offered to real estate developers, like Trump, allowing them to subtract from their income on the basis that buildings depreciate in value over time. Trump repeatedly has refused to release his income tax returns — breaking with four decades of tradition for presidential nominees — claiming that he has been under audit and that his lawyers have counseled him not to release them. The Internal Revenue Service has not confirmed that it is auditing Trump’s taxes. The Washington Post could not independently verify the 2005 return, but a statement from the White House indicated that it is authentic. The statement, issued to reporters anonymously to be attributed to a White House spokesperson, accused MSNBC of unlawfully releasing Trump’s tax returns. “You know you are desperate for ratings when you are willing to violate the law to push a story about two pages of tax returns from over a decade ago,” the statement said. It added that Trump, as “one of the most successful businessmen in the world,” paid “no more tax than legally required.” The statement went on to say: “Mr. Trump paid $38 million dollars even after taking into account large scale depreciation for construction, on an income of more than $150 million dollars, as well as paying tens of millions of dollars in other taxes such as sales and excise taxes and employment taxes and this illegally published return proves just that. Despite this substantial income figure and tax paid, it is totally illegal to steal and publish tax returns. The dishonest media can continue to make this part of their agenda, while the President will focus on his, which includes tax reform that will benefit all Americans.” The tax documents were sent to Johnston, a veteran investigative reporter who specializes in taxes and formerly worked at the New York Times. He speculated on air to Maddow that Trump himself may have sent him the returns. The return shows Trump and wife Melania paid most of their income taxes as an alternative minimum tax. Taxpayers requesting many itemized deductions must pay the AMT in certain circumstances. The AMT rejects specific deductions, including for dependents and assorted real estate write-downs. In his tax-reform plan, Trump has called for eliminating the AMT. The return shows that Trump’s business income in 2005 totaled roughly $42 million, with capital gains from investments totaling roughly $32 million and income from partnerships, trusts and so-called “S corporations” totaling roughly $67 million. Trump used roughly $103 million in net operating losses, carried over from previous years, to greatly lower that tax obligation. Trump also used such losses, likely from a series of costly business failures and Atlantic City bankruptcies, to lower his tax bill in 1995. Trump has routinely taken pride in his aggressive working of the nation’s tax laws. “I have brilliantly used those laws,” Trump said at a campaign event in October. “I was able to use the tax laws of this country, and my business acumen, to dig out of the real estate mess — you would call it a depression — when few others were able to do what I did.” Trump’s reported income in 2005 may call into question his net worth. Trump says he is now worth more than $10 billion, but independent estimators have said that figure may be overstated. In 2005, Trump said he was worth more than $5 billion. Trump sued author Timothy O’Brien after his 2005 book, “TrumpNation,” cited anonymous sources suggesting Trump was instead worth $150 to $250 million. In depositions from that case, O’Brien’s attorneys revealed estimates from two lenders to Trump, North Fork Bank and Deutsche Bank, who suggested Trump’s net worth was between $800 million and $1.2 billion. Trump’s current finances are set to face a new test with the coming April 18 tax deadline. He has steadfastly refused to release his returns, pointing both to ongoing audits and to his belief that Americans do not care to see them. However, a Pew Research Center survey in January found that 60 percent of Americans believe that Trump has a responsibility to release his returns. All U.S. presidents are automatically audited every year, as prescribed by a guideline in the Internal Revenue Service manual in place for presidents and vice presidents since the 1970s. Trump could urge Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to change that provision, legal experts said. Trump has not said whether he would do so. Trump could have used a dubious tactic called a 'stock-for-debt' swap to avoid paying taxes on as much as $916 million in income for years. Here's how that works. Philip Rucker is the White House Bureau Chief for The Washington Post. He previously has covered Congress, the Obama White House, and the 2012 and 2016 presidential campaigns. He joined The Post in 2005 as a local news reporter. Follow @PhilipRucker Drew Harwell is a national business reporter at The Washington Post. Follow @drewharwell 
KEVIN LAMARQUE/REUTERS Donald Trump earned more than $150 million in the year 2005—and paid just a small percentage of that in regular federal income taxes. Daily Beast contributor David Cay Johnston has obtained what appear to be the first two pages of Trump’s 2005 federal income tax return, and published an analysis of those pages on his website, DCReport.org. The Daily Beast could not independently verify these documents. The documents show Trump and his wife Melania paying $5.3 million in regular federal income tax—a rate of less than 4% However, the Trumps paid an additional $31 million in the so-called “alternative minimum tax,” or AMT. Trump has previously called for the elimination of this tax. “Before being elected President, Mr. Trump was one of the most successful businessmen in the world with a responsibility to his company, his family and his employees to pay no more tax than legally required,” the White House said in a statement. “That being said, Mr. Trump paid $38 million dollars even after taking into account large scale depreciation for construction, on an income of more than $150 million dollars, as well as paying tens of millions of dollars in other taxes such as sales and excise taxes and employment taxes and this illegally published return proves just that.” Trump’s 2005 return also shows that he’d continued to benefit from the roughly $916 million loss he reported in his 1995 return--published last year by The New York Times. Using a loophole Congress closed in 1996, Trump converted that loss into a tax credit for the same amount he could offset against income. “It is totally illegal to steal and publish tax returns,” the White House statement read. “The dishonest media can continue to make this part of their agenda, while the President will focus on his, which includes tax reform that will benefit all Americans.” 2005 was the year that Trump, a newly minted reality star, made his last big score as a real-life real estate developer, when he sold two properties, one on Manhattan’s west side and one in San Francisco, to Hong Kong investors, accounting for the lion’s share of his income that year. President Trump has long been resistant to releasing his tax returns, repeatedly claiming during the election that an ongoing IRS audit had prevented him from doing so. THE DAILY BEAST http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2017/03/14/report-trump-s-2005-taxes-revealed.html?via=desktop&source=copyurl |
เมื่อปี 2016 Grace Meng, ส.ส.อเมริกันเชื้อจีน, เห็นว่า "Orientals" เป็นคำไม่เหมาะสม ไม่สมควรจะใช้ในกฎหมายใดๆของสหรัฐฯ เพราะเป็นคำที่แสดงอาการดูถูกคนเอเชีย และคนอเมริกันเชื้อสายเอเชีย จึงเสนอกฎหมายให้ยกเลิกการใช้คำว่า "Orientals" นี้ อย่างเป็นทางการ กฎหมายผ่านรัฐสภา และมีผลบังคับใช้เมื่อปี 2016 โดยให้ใช้คำว่า 'Asian American' แทน ทำนองเดียวกับการใช้คำว่า 'African American' แทนคำว่า 'Negro'
เมื่อวันที่ 4 กุมภาพันธ์ 2017 Mike Bost, สมาชิกสภาผู้แทนสหรัฐอเมริกา แห่งรัฐ Illinois, พูดว่า “You know the cleansing that the Orientals used to do where you’d put one person out in front and 900 people yell at them?” เป็นการพูดแสดงความไม่พอใจที่เวลาไปประชุมพบประชาชนที่หอประชุมท้องถิ่นแล้วมีคนมายืนตะโกนต่อว่ากันมากในระนี้ที่การเมืองสหรัฐฯกำลังแบ่งข้างชัดเจน เขาจึงเปรียบการระดมคนไปสร้างปัญหาด่าว่าผู้บรรยายในที่ประชุมนั้นเหมือนกัยที่จีนคอมมิวนิตส์ทำสมัยหนึ่ง พอพูดเสร็จแล้ว ส.ส. Bost พูดเสร็จแล้วนึกขึ้นมาได้ว่าการใช้คำว่า ‘Orientals’ เป็นเรื่องไม่เหมาะสม เพราะคนอเมริกันเชื้อสายเอเชีย โดยเฉพาะคนจีนรู้สึกว่าคำว่า ‘Orientals’ เป็นคำดูถูกเหยียดผิวคนเชื้อสายจีนหรือเอเชียในอเมริกา เพราะเมื่อปี 2016 มีกฎหมายห้ามใช้คำว่า ‘Orientals’ ในกฎหมายต่างๆทั้งหมดแล้ว ส.ส.ผู้นี้เลยต้องกลับมาขอโทษประชาชนที่ใช้คำว่า 'Orientals' โดยเหตุที่ว่าชาวอเมริกันส่วนหนึ่งถือเป็นคำไม่สุภาพและเหยียดหยามคน 'Asian Americans' เหมือนกับการใช้คำว่า 'Negro' กับคนผิวดำ คนอเมริกันเข้าใจไปอย่างนี้ได้อย่างไร ว่าคำว่า 'Oriental' ไม่สุภาพและเป็นอาการเหยียดหยามคนเชื้อสายจีน วรรณกรรมในอดีต ใช้คำว่า 'Oriental' เป็นคำงดงาม สุนทรีย์ romantic คำใช้ในงานวรรณกรรมในอดีตสะท้อนความ อัศจจรย์ เป็นเอกลักษณ์ของชาวเอเชียตะวันออก โดยเฉพาะชาวจีน "Orient" ใช้เป็นชื่อนาฬิกาชั้นดีของญี่ปุ่น และเป็นชื่อสายการบินในเอเชีย และ ชื่อโรงแรม 'The Oriental' ยังเป็นชื่อที่ยิ่งใหญ่ของโรงแรมระดับนำของโลกที่กรุงเทพฯ เป็นเรื่องของการซึมซับรับรู้ทางประวัติศาสตร์วัฒนธรรมและประสบการณ์ของต่างบริบทสังคม คนอเมริกันเชื้อสายจีนมีประสบการณ์ชีวิตที่ต่างไปจากคนเอเชียตะวันออกที่เกิดและเติบโตที่ The Orient มิได้จากบ้านเกิดไปตั้งรกรากใหม่ที่ไหน Asian Americans think 'Orientals' is an offensive word. This is puzzling to me. 'Oriental', in many classic literatures, has been used as a romantic term describing the exotic East. 'The Orient' refers to the colorful people and culture of East Asia, China in particular. The word 'Orient' and 'Oriental' have positive connotation throughout Asia even today. By classic definition, any place east of Istanbul is the Orient. Marco Polo traveled to the orient to serve Kublai Khan also by way of Istanbul. The Orient Express connects Europe with Istanbul, where Europe meets the Orient, and on which a murder was committed - thanks to Agatha Christie who made the word 'Orient' so thrilling. We now can fly Orient Air to Japan and buy an Orient watch. Then fly back to Bangkok for a few night stay at 'The Oriental', the best hotel in the world, where Joseph Conrad frequented during his time of 'Lord Jim', and other famous novels. They even named a room after him. Get your orientation right and you will love the Orient and the Orientals. No matter what Asian Americans think of their place in American cultural context, I still feel that the word 'Oriental' is exotically romantic. Somkiat Onwimon 5 March 2017 
Democracy Dies in Darkness
The Washington Post When freedom is killed 'Democracy Dies in Darkness' 'ประชาธิปไตย ตาย ในความมืด' เมื่อเสรีภาพถูกทำลาย หนังสือพิมพ์ The Washington Post พิมพ์ 'คำเสียขวัญ' ด้านล่างของหัวหนังสือพิมพ์ว่า 'Democracy Dies in Darkness' / 'ประชาธิปไตย ตาย ในความมืด' สะท้อนความตกต่ำของประชาธิปไตย อันได้รับผลกระทบจากความคิดทางการเมืองของ Donald Trump ที่กำลังปิดกั้น, ทำลายเสรีภาพ, และจำกัดบทบาทหน้าที่ของสื่อมวลชนในการสร้างสังคมประชาธิปไตยในอเมริกา เวลาที่มีข่าวที่เขาไม่ชอบ Trump จะกล่าวหาสื่อมวลชนเสมอว่าเป็น 'fake news' รายงานข่าวปลอม โกหก เป็นพวกเลวร้ายที่สุดในโลก ที่รุนแรงที่สุด คือการที่ Trump กล่าวว่า "สื่อมวลชนคือศัตรูของประชาชนชาวอเมริกัน" และล่าสุดเมื่อสัปดาห์ที่ผ่านมา Trump สั่งห้ามสื่อมวลชนสำคัญของสหรัฐฯหลายองต์กร เช่น CNN, BBC, New York Times, Bloomberg, Huffington Post รวมทั้ง BBC ของอังกฤษ ไม่ให้เข้าฟังการชี้แจงข่าวที่ทำเนียบขาว ส่วนสำนักข่าว AP ทั้งๆที่ได้รับเชิญ แต่ก็ประท้วงไม่ไป เพื่อแสดงความสนับสนุนเพื่อนสื่อมวลชนที่ถูกห้ามเข้าทำเนียบขาว สงครามระหว่าง Donald Trump กับเสรีภาพ รุนแรงหนักขึ้น ดังที่หนังสือพิมพ์ The Washington Post ตอกย้ำกับสังคมอเมริกันถึงความสำคัญของเสรีภาพของสื่อมวลชน ตามข้อความที่ลงในเนื้อที่สำหรับคำขวัญและปรัชญาขององค์กร แต่คราวนี้เป็น 'คำเสียขวัญ' ประกาศไว้อาลัยต่อประชาธิปไตยในอเมริกา ว่า 'Democracy Dies in Darkness' / 'ประชาธิปไตย ตาย ในความมืด' สมเกียรติ อ่อนวิมล 26 กุมภาพันธ์ 2560 
ปัจจุบันนี้เรียกชื่อว่า "ทะเลจีนใต้" แต่จากนี้ต่อไป,
เพื่อความถูกต้องเหมะสมตามลักษณะทางภูมิศาสตร์, ทะเลแห่งความตึงเครียดนี้สมควรจะเรียกชื่อใหม่ว่า "ทะเลแห่งเอเชียตะวันออกเฉียงใต้" หรือ "South-East Asian Sea" (SEAS) ในความเห็นของผม / IN MY OPINION ▶️ Currently known as the South China Sea, this body of contentious water shall, from now on, be geographically-correctly called "THE SOUTH-EAST ASIAN SEA" (SEAS). It's located south of China and surrounded by Southeast Asian countries. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) recognizes 12 nautical miles off the furthest shore as national territorial water, and the exclusive economic zone 200 nautical miles further away. Countries of Southeast Asia surrounding this marginal sea west of the Pacific Ocean should have equal rights to administer their respective maritime territories and economic zones in accordance with UNCLOS. China has no right to claim the whole of SEAS as their own by merit of history and its namesake. The namesake "South China Sea" does not signify automatic China's ownership, otherwise Thailand could claim the whole of Gulf of Siam. Likewise, India and Bangladesh can start a war for the Bay of Bengal. History belongs to the past and the present is today. The world today lives by international treaty, convention, and agreement. China must learn to abide by international rules. The South China Sea, therefore, is an irrelevant name and a ghost of the past. This body of peaceful water of South East Asia, from today onwards, shall be called "THE SOUTH-EAST ASIAN SEA" (SEAS). China must relinquish all claims and withdraw from all the islands within SEAS. ASEAN negotiation process should continue with full cooperation from China. Somkiat Onwimon 21 February 2017 |
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