Trump's Philanthropy: Big Tax Write-Offs and Claims That Don't Always Add Up

[brooklynite]

Source: New York Times

In President Trump’s telling, he is a committed philanthropist with strong ties to many charities. “If you don’t give back, you’re never ever going to be fulfilled in life,” he wrote in “Trump 101: The Way to Success,” published at the height of his “Apprentice” fame.

And according to his tax records, he has given back at least $130 million since 2005, his second year as a reality TV star.

But the long-hidden tax records, obtained by The New York Times, show that Mr. Trump did not have to reach into his wallet for most of that giving. The vast bulk of his charitable tax deductions, $119.3 million worth, came from simply agreeing not to develop land — in several cases, after he had shelved development plans.

Three of the agreements involved what are known as conservation easements — a maneuver, popular among wealthy Americans, that typically allows a landowner to keep a property’s title and receive a tax deduction equal to its appraised value. In the fourth land deal, Mr. Trump donated property for a state park.

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/23/us/trump-taxes-philanthropy.html

[dalton99a]

1. Kick

[Marie Marie]

2. "If you don't give back, you're never ever going to be fulfilled in life,"

Maybe this is why he is so unfulfilled in life? He probably sees those that give away their own money to charities as Suckers and Losers. After all, what's in it for them?

[Skittles]

3. "he wrote"

[Hotler]

4. There's a loop hole that needs to be closed. nt

[ck4829]

5. Kick