Thanks to last week’s bombshell reporting from The New York Times, we know that President Trump paid $750 in taxes in 2016 — and no taxes at all in 10 of the previous 15 years. CNN’s Chris Cillizza sheds some light on why Trump’s financial straits influenced his decision to run for president.
SOURCES AND FURTHER READING:
LONG-CONCEALED RECORDS SHOW TRUMP’S CHRONIC LOSSES AND YEARS OF TAX AVOIDANCE
Golden escalator ride: the surreal day Trump kicked off his bid for president
About me:
I was named "best dressed" in 7th grade. That, along with being CNN's editor at large and author of the daily "Point" newsletter are my proudest achievements. Look for me here every Tuesday and Thursday to find out what’s really going down in politics.
CREDITS
Writer: Chris Cillizza
Producer: Allison Gordon
The Point Editor: Leigh Munsil
Video Editor: Steven Sevilla
Follow Chris on
Instagram:
Twitter:
Facebook:
Subscribe to The Point newsletter: .
#CNN #Cillizza #Trump
Hey, Chris here. Do you think every candidate should be obligated to release their tax returns?
Yes and disclose any debts
Everyone forgot about Ghislaine Maxwell. That’s all this is. Distraction from reality. Fake impeachment, COVID, race war, division, ect.
@Rose Phoenix you’re a poorly programmed bot
@Leo Frank if you stand by only one channel to make up your mind then you can be screwed.
But when it comes to tRump and don’t need to check out others channel or newspaper to understand he is not fit to be president
And all outstanding loans explaing who they owe money to
The man was never a billionaire – only in his messed up head
Stop showing your stupidity.
Forbes magazine is the now making a claim on how rich he is.
Go complain to Forbes magazine then.
so then,,,he was closer to the regular working man!
@Mel Gillham nope he’s right His personal attorney faked the numbers to make it look like he was a billionaire look it up gullible idiot
@Mel Gillham your part of the reason American has become an embarrassment you wear your stupidness like a badge of honor
Biden destroyed.
Stop using the expression “leader of the free world”, it doesn’t make sense, the USA is not the only country in the world
I’ve been saying this from the beginning
Don’t worry, 4 more years and what you been saying does not matter anymore.
On Tyranny: 20 Lessons from the 20th Century (2017) by Historian Timothy Snyder — We all need to learn and practice these lessons. Pass this information on to others:
1 — Do not obey in advance: “Most of the power of authoritarianism is freely given. In times like these, individuals think ahead about what a more repressive government will want, and then offer themselves without being asked. A citizen who adapts in this way is teaching power what it can do.”
2 — Defend Institutions: “It is institutions that help us to preserve decency. They need our help as well. Do not speak of “our institutions” unless you make them yours by acting on their behalf. Institutions do not protect themselves. They fall one after the other unless each is defended from the beginning. So choose an institution you care about—a court, a newspaper, a law, a labor union—and take its side.”
3 — Beware the one party state: “The parties that remade states and suppressed rivals were not omnipotent from the start. They exploited a historic moment to make political life impossible for their opponents. So support the multi-party system and defend the rules of democratic elections. Vote in local and state elections while you can. Consider running for office.”
4 — Take responsibility for the face of the world: “The symbols of today enable the reality of tomorrow. Notice the swastikas and the other signs of hate. Do not look away, and do not get used to them. Remove them yourself and set an example for others to do so.”
5 — Remember professional ethics: “When political leaders set a negative example, professional commitments to just practice become more important. It is hard to subvert a rule-of-law state without lawyers, or to hold show trials without judges. Authoritarians need obedient civil servants, and concentration camp directors seek businessmen interested in cheap labor.”
6 — Be wary of paramilitaries: “When the men with guns who have always claimed to be against the system start wearing uniforms and marching with torches and pictures of a leader, the end is nigh. When the pro-leader paramilitary and the official police and military intermingle, the end has come.”
7 — Be reflective if you must be armed: “If you carry a weapon in public service, may God bless you and keep you. But know that evils of the past involved policemen and soldiers finding themselves, one day, doing irregular things. Be ready to say no.”
8 — Stand out: “Someone has to. It is easy to follow along. It can feel strange to do or say something different. But without that unease, there is no freedom. Remember Rosa Parks. The moment you set an example, the spell of the status quo is broken, and others will follow.”
9 — Be kind to our language: “Avoid pronouncing the phrases everyone else does. Think up your own way of speaking, even if only to convey that thing you think everyone is saying. Make an effort to separate yourself from the internet. Read books.”
10 — Believe in truth: “To abandon facts is to abandon freedom. If nothing is true, then no one can criticize power, because there is no basis upon which to do so. If nothing is true, then all is spectacle. The biggest wallet pays for the most blinding lights.
11 — Investigate: “Figure things out for yourself. Spend more time with long articles. Subsidize investigative journalism by subscribing to print media. Realize that some of what is on the internet is there to harm you. Learn about sites that investigate propaganda campaigns (some of which come from abroad). Take responsibility for what you communicate with others.”
12 — Make eye contact and small talk: “This is not just polite. It is part of being a citizen and a responsible member of society. It is also a way to stay in touch with your surroundings, break down social barriers, and understand whom you should and should not trust. If we enter a culture of denunciation, you will want to know the psychological landscape of your daily life.”
13 — Practice corporeal politics: “Power wants your body softening in your chair and your emotions dissipating on the screen. Get outside. Put your body in unfamiliar places with unfamiliar people. Make new friends and march with them.”
14 — Establish a private life: “Nastier rulers will use what they know about you to push you around. Scrub your computer of malware on a regular basis. Remember that email is skywriting. Consider using alternative forms of the internet, or simply using it less. Have personal exchanges in person. For the same reason, resolve any legal trouble. Tyrants seek the hook on which to hang you. Try not to have hooks.”
15 — Contribute to good causes: “Be active in organizations, political or not, that express your own view of life. Pick a charity or two and set up autopay. Then you will have made a free choice that supports civil society and helps others to do good.”
16 — Learn from peers in other countries: “Keep up your friendships abroad, or make new friends in other countries. The present difficulties in the United States are an element of a larger trend. And no country is going to find a solution by itself. Make sure you and your family have passports.”
17 — Listen for dangerous words: “Be alert to the use of the words extremism and terrorism. Be alive to the fatal notions of emergency and exception. Be angry about the treacherous use of patriotic vocabulary.”
18 — Be calm when the unthinkable arrives: “Modern tyranny is terror management. When the terrorist attack comes, remember that authoritarians exploit such events in order to consolidate power. The sudden disaster that requires the end of checks and balances, the dissolution of opposition parties, the suspension of freedom of expression, the right to a fair trial, and so on, is the oldest trick in the Hitlerian book. Do not fall for it.”
19 — Be a patriot: “Set a good example of what America means for the generations to come. They will need it.”
20 — Be as courageous as you can: “If none of us is prepared to die for freedom, then all of us will die under tyranny.”
3 links to historian Timothy Snyder discussing his book On Tyranny
https://youtu.be/A7RBWea3Ie8
https://www.c-span.org/video/?424912-2/timothy-snyder-discusses-on-tyranny
https://youtu.be/19IhRaWZUl4
About Timothy Snyder
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timothy_D._Snyder
https://www.timothysnyder.org/books/on-tyranny-tr
As they say, follow the money. Bet ya they can locate the missing hundreds of millions from their campaign. I suspect they already know what loans he paid. Can anyone say “RICO”.
What CNN isn’t telling you (surprise) is that Trump paid over 25 million under the alternative minimum tax code. Just more bs propaganda from CNN. And you libtards eat it up.
@Mars S theones in the “know” are all owned by trump atm. your point?
@nevermore from past As if you would know. You think you have the inside track?
Mars S; I’m talking about the the hundreds of millions that disappeared from the trump campaign. He may have used it for debt. Why are acting ignorant? I think you know exactly what I was saying.
Rod; hey bonehead, tell us why we should listen to a trump troll and Fox over all news reporting including the Times, Post…… go back to your bubble,, we’ll be along shortly to pop it with some very sharp ballots. 🗳ROCK THE VOTE! VOTE BIDEN/HARRIS! VOTE BLUE 🗳
He needed a way to stay in the spotlight so he didn’t just disappear via Russian mob. Now he has top tier personal bodyguard protection. Promised law changes and absurd riches for people to look the other way. A Hail Mary from someone with nothing left to lose.
Well, he kept his promise: He was going to run this country the way he ran his businesses.
EXACTLY
Toad Sauce smoke a little crack and reconsider
Ryan Brown if only he would pay his TAXES……..
Yes he has done a great job with that, we have 27 trillions +in debt.
We can definitely call USA a banana republic
Chinese should sell off all Trump garbage property and houses, make him suffer like Hongkongers and Chinese Expats.
He just has to remember Al Capone , what he did and end in Jail for 11 years , for Tax Evasion . This is the Point . Vote Him Out from WH
Sorry but Biden attracts huge crowds at his event’s but they are all chanting 4 more years 4 more years….Biden is toast…errr I mean oatmeal…
Let me guess, you voted for the cellphone smasher, correct?
Donald Trump: “I have the best debt in the world, nothing compares to my debt, it’s amazing”
Biden2020
@Animal Liberation hey man, wanna rub some hairy legs that turn blond in the sun?
C’mon man, you’ll love it
@Ron Caron
He has commercial buildings, golf courses, resorts and a branding business. He has 2.5 billion and another 1.2 billion in assets.
Google is a click away my friend..
WELL SAY THANK YOU OBAMA! ESPECIALLY FOR THAT VIRUS OBAMA AND GATES FUNDED!
The NYT article has been DEBUNKED as a SLANEROUS LIE! But CNN and CHRIS the DUMBASS don’t care, they’ll report it as FACT anyway! Because they are not Journalists, they are SHILLS for the DNC!
Remember when he had that huge McDonald’s feast? Nooooow I get it.
youtu.be/NrvHRMFxHcw
Yeah that Orange idiot is broke!!🤣😂🤣😂😂
Cavondus Cross you’re right anyone else would have had steak and lobster
Thanks to Burisma Biden Trump won again…with his taxes!!! Awesome news, the soy tears must be a flowing in the rich suburbs….
Will you please quit calling “America the leader of the free world?”
And while your at it, stop telling us America won WWI and WWII. The Brits and the Commonwealth countries were fighting Germans years before you came along. Secondly, without the USSR drawing Hitler deep into Russia, WWII would likely have been lost.
And just how do you think Britain and France were going to win WWII alone? Most of Europe was taken over by the Nazis and although the British Army was strong, it wasn’t equipped for war. France was taken over by the Nazis, so how exactly would those two countries alone defeat Hitler?
@ADC91802 [GD] you need to read his comment again, youre way off base 🇬🇧
yup 🇬🇧
Don’t you still owe us money??
He “really” ran to close the loopholes that he took advantage of over all those years, doubtful. Did he run to help other people who have large incomes get even more breaks, more likely. It seems that he has passed more bills to help the wealthy than he has the middle class
We all knew he didn’t run to serve. This is in no way surprising in the least. 🤦🏽♂️
why did we have to endure this for almost four years, when his financial situation was pretty obvious? The press should be ashamed at how they pandered to this blowhard snake oil salesman when he ran for office. They and the Democrats are as culpable as the sniveling GOP in giving this guy a forum.
Yup – to use campaign funds for himself. Wait for Pascale to sing like Cohen.
the thing that mystifies me is how many apparently decent people become complicit in tRumpf’s con games : |
Well i would say it back fired and he is in more trouble now then before he ran for president.
Biden, for years, has claimed to support the interest of America’s union workers. His record, dating back to the 1990s, has consistently been at odds with those interests, however.
In 1993 and the early 2000s, Biden vowed support for the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), China’s entering the World Trade Organization (WTO), and normalizing United States trade relations with China. The measures resulted in the U.S. losing five million manufacturing jobs and at least 50,000 manufacturing plants, destabilizing communities and putting downward pressure on wages.
Biden, as vice president, also lobbied for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement which would have forced American workers to compete for jobs against workers in Vietnam and Malaysia who are paid cents for an hour’s worth of work.
In a recent interview with the New York Times, Biden’s senior economic adviser said he is focused on implementing a “new approach to globalization” of the U.S. economy.
Wall Street’s giant donations to Biden this election cycle may also be a red flag for union workers. The latest CNN analysis admitted that “all the big banks” are backing Biden’s candidacy against Trump, largely because of their opposition to the president’s tariffs on China and tightening of the labor market to force up wages for American workers.