Take This Impeachment And Shove It...

[JimL]

Not even that.

Just like you or I, Trump is going to try to pay as little in taxes as possible. Nearly the only people who don't are those who plan on running for or already holding office. They are more concerned about "optics" than we'd be.

IIRC, Trump has already said that he took every tax deduction that he could. And for billionaire property owners those include a few that aren't typically open for you or me. Or even something that might be available to some like depreciation is going to mean a lot more to someone who owns several multi-million dollar buildings than for them.

Another possibility is that it is not uncommon for folks in high finance to use loopholes that are later closed and labelled "abuses" when they become widely known^[1]. That's the advantage of being able to hire top notch financial legal assistance. While nothing illegal was done just the fact that if it was done today it would be illegal would be enough for much of the MSM to announce yet another "bombshell" ("Trump Involved in Shady Tax Schemes!").



1. Only rarely is anything being abused but more typically the law is being followed exactly as it was written -- it's just that it was written to allow just what would be called an "abuse" when the public became aware of it so that those responsible could shift the blame.

It isn't solely about his taxes or how he may have cheated on them, it's about how they may link to other illegal activity such as his hush money payoff to his mistresses, his financial dealings with foreign entities, banks, his suspected money laundering for Russian oligarchs etc etc.

[Mountain Man]

It isn't solely about his taxes or how he may have cheated on them, it's about how they may link to other illegal activity such as his hush money payoff to his mistresses, his financial dealings with foreign entities, banks, his suspected money laundering for Russian oligarchs etc etc.

None of which would be reflected in tax returns. Haven't you ever filled out a tax form? It's basically "Here's how much I earned; here's how much I paid in taxes; here's how much I owe/am getting in a refund". There's no line for "illicit payments to my mistress" or "bribes accepted from foreign governments. The only thing they would be able to get him on would be unreported income and/or failure to pay taxes owed, and they would have certainly found that by now.

[Sam]

None of which would be reflected in tax returns. Haven't you ever filled out a tax form? It's basically "Here's how much I earned; here's how much I paid in taxes; here's how much I owe/am getting in a refund". There's no line for "illicit payments to my mistress" or "bribes accepted from foreign governments. The only thing they would be able to get him on would be unreported income and/or failure to pay taxes owed, and they would have certainly found that by now.

Given Trump's hundreds of "businesses" and the large stack of tax returns he used to be fond of showing before he quit promising to release them like other presidential candidates, along with the numerous reports that he inflated and deflated the value of his holdings depending on whether he was talking to banks or the government, this seems a bit sanguine.

--Sam

[Mountain Man]

Given Trump's hundreds of "businesses" and the large stack of tax returns he used to be fond of showing before he quit promising to release them like other presidential candidates, along with the numerous reports that he inflated and deflated the value of his holdings depending on whether he was talking to banks or the government, this seems a bit sanguine.

--Sam

And you think Trump personally manages all the finances and tax filings for his hundreds of companies, do you?

[Tassman]

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Oh you mean the crimes, e.g. the overwhelming pile of evidence suggesting that Trump pressured a foreign country to damage a political rival.

[Sam]

And you think Trump personally manages all the finances and tax filings for his hundreds of companies, do you?

Oversees, directs, signs off on ... those are how I'd describe Trump's fiscal responsibility when it comes to his hundreds of shell companies.

But we all know that almost every tax cheat and ponzi schemer has escaped the claws of justice by blaming their CPAs so

--Sam

[Sparko]

It isn't solely about his taxes or how he may have cheated on them, it's about how they may link to other illegal activity such as his hush money payoff to his mistresses, his financial dealings with foreign entities, banks, his suspected money laundering for Russian oligarchs etc etc.

You realize that tax returns don't itemize such things, right? You would need to look at his ledgers to see something like that. Have you never filled out a tax form before?

[Cow Poke]

You realize that tax returns don't itemize such things, right? You would need to look at his ledgers to see something like that. Have you never filled out a tax form before?

Oh, no, Sparko - you got this all wrong -- there's actually categories to claim credit for hush money for prostitutes, payoffs, criminal activity.... It's right there on Schedule I'mSoStupid!

[Cow Poke]

Oh you mean the crimes, e.g. the overwhelming pile of evidence suggesting that Trump pressured a foreign country to damage a political rival.

A) The Democrats should have included that in the Articles of Impeachment
2) If it's so compelling, why not transmit the AoI to the Senate?

Yeah, I know, cause the Democrats are afraid the Republicans will treat their part of the process like the Democrats did.

[Sparko]

A) The Democrats should have included that in the Articles of Impeachment
2) If it's so compelling, why not transmit the AoI to the Senate?

Yeah, I know, cause the Democrats are afraid the Republicans will treat their part of the process like the Democrats did.

As if anyone had to do something to damage Biden's chances. He is doing that fine all by himself.

[Sam]

As if anyone had to do something to damage Biden's chances. He is doing that fine all by himself.

The Trump campaign, at least, pays attention to polling.

Image 122.jpg

[Mountain Man]

Oversees, directs, signs off on ... those are how I'd describe Trump's fiscal responsibility when it comes to his hundreds of shell companies.

But we all know that almost every tax cheat and ponzi schemer has escaped the claws of justice by blaming their CPAs so

--Sam

Right...

"We know Trump is up to something, but we won't know what it is until we have access to his financial records!"

It's called a fishing expedition.

[Sparko]

The Trump campaign, at least, pays attention to polling.

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Yeah because we found out how accurate polls were in the last election

Biden is a joke. If he is the best the democrats have, then welcome to 4 more years of Trump. Elizabeth Warren isn't much better. Heck I think Yang is better than both of them but he doesn't have much of a following. He at least makes sense and can speak in complete sentences on stage.

[Sam]

Yeah because we found out how accurate polls were in the last election

Biden is a joke. If he is the best the democrats have, then welcome to 4 more years of Trump. Elizabeth Warren isn't much better. Heck I think Yang is better than both of them but he doesn't have much of a following. He at least makes sense and can speak in complete sentences on stage.

Final RCP average Trump v. Clinton: Clinton +3.2

Final Election result: Clinton +2.1

It's only willful fools, at this point, who pretend that polling was wide of the mark. It was in line with or slightly better than past elections.

Biden has some trouble speaking on stage, sure. Some of that is attributable to his lifelong struggle with stuttering. What's Trump's excuse?

--Sam

[Sam]

Right...

"We know Trump is up to something, but we won't know what it is until we have access to his financial records!"

It's called a fishing expedition.

Luckily ...

• Edited by a Moderator •

Moderated By: OBP

Stop arguing by weblink, Sam. You know better.

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