Donald Trump's Dodgy Tax History | The Daily Show - Summary

Summary

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**Title:** Exposing Donald Trump's "Self-Made" Myth

**Key Points:**

1. **Investigation by The New York Times** reveals Donald Trump's "self-made billionaire" narrative is false.
2. **Financial Support from Father**: Trump received at least $60.7 million from his father, Fred Trump, through various means, including loans, trust funds, and tax schemes.
3. **Tax Evasion Allegations**: The Trumps allegedly cheated the US government out of millions in federal taxes using sham companies and undervaluing properties.
4. **Consequences**: Due to the statute of limitations, the worst outcome for Trump would be paying a fine; imprisonment is unlikely.
5. **Broader Implication**: The nation's projected debt has increased by $1.6 trillion since Trump took office, drawing a parallel between Trump's financial management and his father's experiences.

Facts

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1. **Investigation by The New York Times**: Examined over 100,000 pages of documents related to Donald Trump's finances.
2. **Donald Trump's Loan from Father**: Initially claimed to have received a "very small loan" from his father, which he later stated was $1 million.
3. **Actual Amount Lent by Fred Trump**: Reportedly at least $60.7 million to Donald Trump.
4. **Donald Trump's Early Earnings**:
* Earned ~$200,000 (in today's dollars) by age 3.
* Became a millionaire by age 8.
5. **Fred Trump's Financial Support**:
* Provided Donald Trump with loan after loan, many of which were never repaid.
* Gave him three trust funds, shares, multiple partnerships, and laundry revenue from his buildings.
6. **Tax Practices**:
* The Trumps used a sham company to funnel tax-free money to the children.
* Manipulated apartment building values, claiming they were worth millions less than their fair value.
7. **Tax Avoidance**:
* Transferred over $1 billion of Fred Trump's wealth to his children, potentially avoiding at least $550 million in taxes.
* Employed tax dodges to reduce the tax bill to $52.2 million.
8. **Donald Trump's Business Failures**:
* Needed his father to repeatedly bail out his failing businesses.
9. **1990 Event**:
* Donald Trump crafted a new will for his father and had lawyers present it to him for signing without prior discussion.
10. **Current Consequences**:
* Due to the statute of limitations, the worst outcome for Trump could be paying a fine, with no possibility of prison time.
11. **National Debt since Trump's Office**:
* The projected national debt has increased by approximately $1.6 trillion in less than two years.