Wednesday, May 11, 2016

The IRS and the Windbag

by Pa Rock
Citizen Journalist

Tax returns can be very revealing documents - showing not only how much a person or a corporate person earned in a specific year, but also what percentage of that income he, she, or it returned to the government in the form of taxes.    Tax returns show levels of charitable giving, and likewise give indications of just how devious one might get in order to minimize tax payments.

Donald Trump, like other presidential aspirants before him, is not anxious to share his tax returns with the public.  So far he has held steadfast to a claim that he can't reveal those enlightening documents because he is currently undergoing a tax audit by the IRS.  Ever helpful, the IRS has said that they are perfectly fine with Trump sharing the documents with the curious public.

But Donald is standing firm.  He won't release his tax returns until the government finishes with them.  He now says that should be around November - probably just days after the general election.

Many might assume that the Donald is hiding his tax returns because they are rife with evidence of tax evasion and dirty dealings, and Trump is fine letting the public wallow in those assumptions.  He knows that a significant number of Americans hate paying taxes and secretly admire anyone who cheats the government out of its due.

Others, however, are beginning to question's Trump's secretiveness as being based in something completely different.  There is speculation that he does not want to share his most private financial records because they will show that he is not worth nearly as much as he likes to let on.  Perhaps the "billionaire" isn't a billionaire at all - but only a sniveling millionaire!  That would certainly let some of the hot air out of the massive windbag.

Anything that speaks to a person's character, whether it be tax returns or transcripts of speeches given to large corporations, should be part of the public record and discourse when those individuals choose to run for public office.   Candidates should be eager to bare their souls to the public and thus allow voters to make the best decisions possible based on the most information.  To hide anything reeks of dishonesty.

1 comment:

Don said...

Right with you on Trump's motive. Bloomberg currently has it pegged at $4 billion, while Trump himself put his 2014 income at $362 million. But without the tax returns it's impossible to tell for sure --- which is why his tax returns will probably remain private until someone in his financial circle leaks the information.