Neither a gentleman nor a scholar The New York Times has done some sleuthing, and has decided that if the New York Times didn't break the story of Donald Trump's very conveniently-timed (and, oopsies, also illegal ) donation to Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi's re-election campaign in 2013, after which her office then
Notice their assumption that the only way people have to find out things is from newspapers? THAT, dear people, is why the NYT will pre-decease me by several years at least. Their self-regarding fappitude is epically provincial.
Yes, NYT, take that - you who live in the supposed center of the universe are, in fact, provincial.
Gotta say, this whole line of argument--Donald Trump won't release his tax returns because he would be ashamed that they show he paid no taxes--founders on examination of its premise: Donald Trump has a sense of shame. I think Trump would be proud that he paid no taxes. Taxes is for suckas.
To me it is less about the taxes directly (because as a nonprofit shouldn't have any) and the ability to basically misrepresent the impact/scope of giving (which could have tax implications). Trump is known for giving away free rounds of golf and writing them off at full value (which is horse manure - you are supposed to write off at cost not retail). If he does what you are saying the Foundation might similarly try to claim they gave double what they actually did. They'd claim the money spent on the item as a donation, then when it was donated back assert the money spent in the first place was the fair market value for purposes of the size of the second "donation". Which would actually mean the first action wasn't a donation at all but a straight purchase, and should not be able to be listed as any sort of contribution as a result.
TL;DR - this would be scammy as fuck and exactly what I'd expect Trump to do.
I think (but could be wrong) that the original donor gets a tax deduction and somehow because the money goes through the foundation, it looks like Donald Trump is this great benefactor because it is the Donald Trump FOundation and no one realized that all the money in it comes from other people, or at least has for the past several years. So all his claims about being this great charitable guy are full of crap.
These are great points. I just talked to a friend who's a NFP / foundation finance expert. You're right, there is evidently quite a lot of room for hiding shenanigans. Not so much with the huge foundations (Clinton, Gates) because they tend to operate with decent transparency. More so with family foundations (which is where Trump falls)...there are plenty of ways they can milk the tax deduction loopholes while essentially benefitting themselves. It would be nice if all this attention shines a light on these things that persists after the election and gets reformed. Somehow I doubt it will.
It also assumes that a guy who is on the record about buying politicians needed to have it pointed out to him that AGs other than NY's might take an interest.
I don't know if the NYT bothered to look, but the Sentinel reporter has run a few columns lately about the thousands of pages of emails he got from Bondi's office through public records, just recently, and how he was piecing together when they were supposedly working looking at the whole Trump thing, and when they told him how many complaints they'd had (they told him different things at different times, apparently). Of course that would take work. I admit I haven't read the Times story yet.
Someone raised that possibility (the capital punishment thing) earlier today, probably some troll commenter, before Trump did it. You wouldn't say, fire up the gas chambers (plural) if talking about the capital punishment kind. I remember reading some true crime story years ago that described an execution in California and they would put some kind of cyanide pill somewhere where it would be released into a gas form, which is not the same thing at all as the Nazi gas chambers, right, where they pumped carbon monoxide. If it is a dog whistle thing to use the phrase fire up the gas chambers, then that's what he was doing, the asshole.
Notice their assumption that the only way people have to find out things is from newspapers? THAT, dear people, is why the NYT will pre-decease me by several years at least. Their self-regarding fappitude is epically provincial.
Yes, NYT, take that - you who live in the supposed center of the universe are, in fact, provincial.
It puts the lotion in the basket of deplorables...
"The end of civilization is happening now. Full report on Newsteam at 11. Now, back to America's Got Talent."
Gotta say, this whole line of argument--Donald Trump won't release his tax returns because he would be ashamed that they show he paid no taxes--founders on examination of its premise: Donald Trump has a sense of shame. I think Trump would be proud that he paid no taxes. Taxes is for suckas.
To me it is less about the taxes directly (because as a nonprofit shouldn't have any) and the ability to basically misrepresent the impact/scope of giving (which could have tax implications). Trump is known for giving away free rounds of golf and writing them off at full value (which is horse manure - you are supposed to write off at cost not retail). If he does what you are saying the Foundation might similarly try to claim they gave double what they actually did. They'd claim the money spent on the item as a donation, then when it was donated back assert the money spent in the first place was the fair market value for purposes of the size of the second "donation". Which would actually mean the first action wasn't a donation at all but a straight purchase, and should not be able to be listed as any sort of contribution as a result.
TL;DR - this would be scammy as fuck and exactly what I'd expect Trump to do.
But first, an adorable kitten was found stuck in a tree in Allentown.
Eh. The first wave of what was going to become lulz culture was already starting to take root. It wasn't all that by the end.
It did give us TV Tropes, tho.
But his dead brother got him admitted as a favor, because people actually liked his dead brother.
I think (but could be wrong) that the original donor gets a tax deduction and somehow because the money goes through the foundation, it looks like Donald Trump is this great benefactor because it is the Donald Trump FOundation and no one realized that all the money in it comes from other people, or at least has for the past several years. So all his claims about being this great charitable guy are full of crap.
I am tired about how she needs to be better liked.
These are great points. I just talked to a friend who's a NFP / foundation finance expert. You're right, there is evidently quite a lot of room for hiding shenanigans. Not so much with the huge foundations (Clinton, Gates) because they tend to operate with decent transparency. More so with family foundations (which is where Trump falls)...there are plenty of ways they can milk the tax deduction loopholes while essentially benefitting themselves. It would be nice if all this attention shines a light on these things that persists after the election and gets reformed. Somehow I doubt it will.
You have to make a big fat real donation to get your name on a building, I think.
It also assumes that a guy who is on the record about buying politicians needed to have it pointed out to him that AGs other than NY's might take an interest.
I don't know if the NYT bothered to look, but the Sentinel reporter has run a few columns lately about the thousands of pages of emails he got from Bondi's office through public records, just recently, and how he was piecing together when they were supposedly working looking at the whole Trump thing, and when they told him how many complaints they'd had (they told him different things at different times, apparently). Of course that would take work. I admit I haven't read the Times story yet.
Someone raised that possibility (the capital punishment thing) earlier today, probably some troll commenter, before Trump did it. You wouldn't say, fire up the gas chambers (plural) if talking about the capital punishment kind. I remember reading some true crime story years ago that described an execution in California and they would put some kind of cyanide pill somewhere where it would be released into a gas form, which is not the same thing at all as the Nazi gas chambers, right, where they pumped carbon monoxide. If it is a dog whistle thing to use the phrase fire up the gas chambers, then that's what he was doing, the asshole.
That is not what she said?