Washington. US President Donald Trump has yet again been dragged into a controversy, this time by a New York Times’report regarding his tax payments.

The New York Times has made public the details of records Trump had always tried to conceal and made revelations about his avoidance of payment of federal taxes showing terrible business losses, being able to maintain having a successful business empire all the time.

Interesting enough is the fact that Trump paid no federal income taxes in 11 of 18 years that The Times examined. In 2017, after he became president, his tax bill was only $750.

He has reduced his tax bill, including a $72.9 million tax refund that is the subject of an audit by the Internal Revenue Service. The New York Times’s inquiry into his business details show that many of his businesses, including his golf courses, report losing large amounts of money helping him lower his taxes.

The investigation shows that Trump has been more successful playing a business mogul than he is in real life. Even while declaring losses, he has managed to enjoy a lavish lifestyle by taking tax deductions.

The US president is in a re-election campaign which he will probably lose according to polls and  his finances are buckling under pressure of loans he has personally guaranteed. The New York Time states that whether he wins or loses, he will have to find new ways to make money. It is noteworthy, however, that as president, he has received more money from foreign sources and U.S. interest groups than previously known

Is Trump’s election campaign a scheme just to redeem the marketability of his name?  The speculation doesn’t seem baseless looking at his history and past details.

(Agency)