Anonymous wrote:

I don't think Trump's financial affairs were completely irrelevant to the people who voted for him, but his refusal to release returns was simply not the "deal breaker" that the left would like it to be.

So many of his supporters talked about how he was such a great businessman, even with all of the information pouring in from right and left about how he wasn't. It's almost like they had watched him act like a great businessman on TV for a decade and believed it despite hundreds of real-life examples to the contrary.

No, it's almost as if they watched Trump come out of nowhere to win the Republican nomination and then figure out a way to defeat the clear favorite in the general election and decided the man is a winner.

Anonymous wrote:

I don't think Trump's financial affairs were completely irrelevant to the people who voted for him, but his refusal to release returns was simply not the "deal breaker" that the left would like it to be.

So many of his supporters talked about how he was such a great businessman, even with all of the information pouring in from right and left about how he wasn't. It's almost like they had watched him act like a great businessman on TV for a decade and believed it despite hundreds of real-life examples to the contrary.

He's a showman. His voter base is full of people who suck up WWE and The Apprentice and who buy his schtick. They don't realize it's just a production for entertainment with no reality behind any of it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Trump says he was smart not to pay taxes for multiple years and he was certainly smart to not disclose his returns given the media bias against him that would have dissected every portion of his return - and often inaccurately.

The final proof that he did the right thing is that he won the election!

I did not vote for him and am not enamored of him but the guy is shrewd and has an almost feral sense of what he can get away with. His detractors can bad mouth him and rant endlessly about his lack of transparency, etc but in the ultimate analysis it worked for him and that is what matters when it comes to an election.

Yes, it worked for him because his fan base were gullible and stupid. I'll say again... he told Americans "screw you" about his taxes, and half of America bent over, and said, "thank you sir may I have another".

"Make America great again" vs "Breaking the glass ceiling"

No contest that Trump had a better slogan; even worse was her slogan "I am with her"

Can there be a dumber slogan than the one below which emphasizes her and not her support of the people?

"Make America Great Again" - Fuck you. America already IS great. We can make it better, but his slogan's implication that America has nosedived like a handcart spiraling into the depths of hell is insulting.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Trump says he was smart not to pay taxes for multiple years and he was certainly smart to not disclose his returns given the media bias against him that would have dissected every portion of his return - and often inaccurately.

The final proof that he did the right thing is that he won the election!

I did not vote for him and am not enamored of him but the guy is shrewd and has an almost feral sense of what he can get away with. His detractors can bad mouth him and rant endlessly about his lack of transparency, etc but in the ultimate analysis it worked for him and that is what matters when it comes to an election.

Yes, it worked for him because his fan base were gullible and stupid. I'll say again... he told Americans "screw you" about his taxes, and half of America bent over, and said, "thank you sir may I have another".

"Make America great again" vs "Breaking the glass ceiling"

No contest that Trump had a better slogan; even worse was her slogan "I am with her"

Can there be a dumber slogan than the one below which emphasizes her and not her support of the people?

Like his wife Melania, stole the words/slogan from another... Reagan


"Make America Great Again" is a campaign slogan used in American politics that originated with the Ronald Reagan campaign of 1980. Donald Trump subsequently applied for and received U.S. Service Mark 85,783,371.

History[edit]
Created in 1979[1] when the United States was suffering from a worsening economy at home marked by stagflation,[2][3] it was first used in Ronald Reagan's 1980 presidential campaign.[4][5] The slogan was also used by former President Bill Clinton in his 1992 presidential campaign, although he later claimed the statement was a racist dog whistle during the 2016 election.[6][7]

Use by Donald Trump[edit]

Banner displaying "Vote To Make America Great Again" on a roadside in California shortly after the November 2016 election.
Trump applied to trademark the slogan in November 2012, and it was registered as a service mark as of July 2015.[8][9] Trump used it during his 2016 presidential campaign, particularly by wearing hats bearing the phrase.[10] Following Trump's election, the website of his presidential transition was established at greatagain.gov.[11]

Anonymous wrote:

I don't think Trump's financial affairs were completely irrelevant to the people who voted for him, but his refusal to release returns was simply not the "deal breaker" that the left would like it to be.

So many of his supporters talked about how he was such a great businessman, even with all of the information pouring in from right and left about how he wasn't. It's almost like they had watched him act like a great businessman on TV for a decade and believed it despite hundreds of real-life examples to the contrary.

To Trumpsters, Trump could do absolutely no wrong. Remember, he could shoot someone on 5th ave, and Trumpsters would still vote for him. That's how little Trump thinks of his supporters - "they must have such little morals and respect for themselves that they would continue to support me even if I shot someone".

Again, you Trumpsters don't seem to realize how little he respects you, even after he pretty much said those exact same words "most people don't deserve respect". He was talking about most of his base -- the poorly educated, the ones who are still waiting for the manufacturing jobs instead of finding other opportunities.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Trump says he was smart not to pay taxes for multiple years and he was certainly smart to not disclose his returns given the media bias against him that would have dissected every portion of his return - and often inaccurately.

The final proof that he did the right thing is that he won the election!

I did not vote for him and am not enamored of him but the guy is shrewd and has an almost feral sense of what he can get away with. His detractors can bad mouth him and rant endlessly about his lack of transparency, etc but in the ultimate analysis it worked for him and that is what matters when it comes to an election.

Yes, it worked for him because his fan base were gullible and stupid. I'll say again... he told Americans "screw you" about his taxes, and half of America bent over, and said, "thank you sir may I have another".

"Make America great again" vs "Breaking the glass ceiling"

No contest that Trump had a better slogan; even worse was her slogan "I am with her"

Can there be a dumber slogan than the one below which emphasizes her and not her support of the people?

Anonymous wrote:

I don't think Trump's financial affairs were completely irrelevant to the people who voted for him, but his refusal to release returns was simply not the "deal breaker" that the left would like it to be.

So many of his supporters talked about how he was such a great businessman, even with all of the information pouring in from right and left about how he wasn't. It's almost like they had watched him act like a great businessman on TV for a decade and believed it despite hundreds of real-life examples to the contrary.

Also, if he has been under audit since 2007, it comes with a strong assumption that something fishy is going on.

I don't think Trump's financial affairs were completely irrelevant to the people who voted for him, but his refusal to release returns was simply not the "deal breaker" that the left would like it to be.

So many of his supporters talked about how he was such a great businessman, even with all of the information pouring in from right and left about how he wasn't. It's almost like they had watched him act like a great businessman on TV for a decade and believed it despite hundreds of real-life examples to the contrary.

Anonymous wrote:Trump says he was smart not to pay taxes for multiple years and he was certainly smart to not disclose his returns given the media bias against him that would have dissected every portion of his return - and often inaccurately.

The final proof that he did the right thing is that he won the election!

I did not vote for him and am not enamored of him but the guy is shrewd and has an almost feral sense of what he can get away with. His detractors can bad mouth him and rant endlessly about his lack of transparency, etc but in the ultimate analysis it worked for him and that is what matters when it comes to an election.

Yes, it worked for him because his fan base were gullible and stupid. I'll say again... he told Americans "screw you" about his taxes, and half of America bent over, and said, "thank you sir may I have another".

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As laudable as those reasons are, you aren't going to discover that from tax returns. You won't generally know the source of income. Who someone is indebted to. What potential conflicts there are. Tax returns Aline simply won't provide that info.

I would be in favor of a system where first a far more robust financial discourse is required of all elected officials and appointees. No more of this range crap. If your investment is in a pass through, the pass through must make disclosures. If a nonpublicly traded corporation is involved, that entity must disclose. With actual numbers and counter-parties.

As for tax returns, an audit of those officials should be mandated and the IRS must issue a clean bill of health.

Tax returns are personal. And disclose information that is no one's business. Like medical deductions. And charitable deductions. It simply isn't your business.

Hmm.. then again, why did Trump insist Romney do it? I'll tell you why? Because he knew there was something in there that the public wouldn't like, like how he paid almost nothing in federal taxes, and it would hurt him. I don't think he cheated on his taxes, but certainly, showing how he paid so little would upset most of middle America.

Here's an interview back in 2011 where Trump says Romney should release his returns:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UN4vkickxT8

Trump didn't care what was in Romney's returns. He did it for the same reason he spoke with Taiwan: a display of dominance over Romney. He tells Romney to do something, if Romney does it, he's Trump's bitch.

Well, gee, that's so presidential of Trump. Trump didn't harbor ill will towards Romney back in 2012. But, Trump did say later than Romney releasing his returns hurt him. That's why Trump didn't want to release them.. because he was afraid it would hurt his chances, too.

Trump says he was smart not to pay taxes for multiple years and he was certainly smart to not disclose his returns given the media bias against him that would have dissected every portion of his return - and often inaccurately.

The final proof that he did the right thing is that he won the election!

I did not vote for him and am not enamored of him but the guy is shrewd and has an almost feral sense of what he can get away with. His detractors can bad mouth him and rant endlessly about his lack of transparency, etc but in the ultimate analysis it worked for him and that is what matters when it comes to an election.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A) You wouldn't know if they were hiding anything.

B) Your fair share is what Congress and the IRS says it is not what you feel it should be.

C) It only shows charitable contribution to the extent deducted. For example, Buffet's 2015 return showed a charitable contribution of less than one-tenth of one percent of his actual contribution.

D) Applying the tax laws and regulations consistently is what ensures people pay their fair share. If deductions are one of the rules to be applied, then the application of those rules means you are paying your fair share. That is what Congress does (you know . . . The elected folk).

1. You would know if he is hiding how much income he actually makes vs. how much he said he made -- ie, he is hiding something
2. Only the rich people, except a few, think Trump paying very little income taxes thinks he's paying his fair share. Only people who actually use those deductions think it's fine.
3. That's fine... at least it shows *some* charitable contribution, if he made any, like when he said he contributed to a veteran's group, and then people discovered that he actually didn't, so he quickly did so, ie, he lied and he was hiding something
4.Again, it's the wealthy people who lobby congress to get those types of laws passed, ie people like Trump

Everyone who agrees with Judge Learned Hand about paying only as much taxes as is legally required, and no more, agrees with it. That would be everyone who's reasonable, and actually pays taxes.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not one person on here would have changed their vote to Trump if he had released his returns. There was no advantage to him in doing so. Just because it has been a "tradition" doesn't make it a requirement. The left would have been all over his taxes for one reason or another and he would have lost votes as a result. He will never release his taxes - now or in the future. Get used to it.

MAGA.

Of course he won't release them because he is massively in debt and owes that money to the Russians and other foreigners. Nobody would vote for the great businessman when they realized what a failure he is.

Who cares about any of that stuff?

You weren't voting for him anyway, he's a pussy grabber, right?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As laudable as those reasons are, you aren't going to discover that from tax returns. You won't generally know the source of income. Who someone is indebted to. What potential conflicts there are. Tax returns Aline simply won't provide that info.

I would be in favor of a system where first a far more robust financial discourse is required of all elected officials and appointees. No more of this range crap. If your investment is in a pass through, the pass through must make disclosures. If a nonpublicly traded corporation is involved, that entity must disclose. With actual numbers and counter-parties.

As for tax returns, an audit of those officials should be mandated and the IRS must issue a clean bill of health.

Tax returns are personal. And disclose information that is no one's business. Like medical deductions. And charitable deductions. It simply isn't your business.

Hmm.. then again, why did Trump insist Romney do it? I'll tell you why? Because he knew there was something in there that the public wouldn't like, like how he paid almost nothing in federal taxes, and it would hurt him. I don't think he cheated on his taxes, but certainly, showing how he paid so little would upset most of middle America.

Here's an interview back in 2011 where Trump says Romney should release his returns:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UN4vkickxT8

Trump didn't care what was in Romney's returns. He did it for the same reason he spoke with Taiwan: a display of dominance over Romney. He tells Romney to do something, if Romney does it, he's Trump's bitch.

Trump insisted Romney do it in order to annoy Romney. It did it because he was being a d**k. Is that a surprise?