Mega-Thread: Trump Focused Discussion

[Templar 331]

The Emoluments Clause.
Using his position to influence NFL player's jobs.


I'm sure someone has a list somewhere with more...

[Varvara Spiros Gelashvili]

He’s not the one trying to remove Amendments.

You forgot the Second. Which no Trump supporter ever talks about:

“Take the guns first, go through due process second,” Trump said.

https://thehill.com/homenews/adminis...process-second


Yikes

[Bodakane]

I directly challenge each and every Trump supporter on this site to justify this tweet from Trump:

On National Former Prisoner of War Recognition Day, we honor the Americans captured and imprisoned by foreign powers while carrying out their duties to defend this great Nation

After he said this about John McCain:

He’s not a war hero, he was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren’t captured.

I challenge each and every one of you to defend this.

You have now have 39 hours left or everyone will know, without question, that you are not patriots nor do you actually give two shits about our veterans.

[Dontrike]

He’s not the one trying to remove Amendments.

Excuse me, but I ordered this with a side of citation, because it's needed.

[Benggaul]

Yay! Another badge of honor I'll wear proudly. Thanks, Thwart!

The beatings will continue until morale improves...

[Ripster42]

So yeah, looks like trump's sister quit being a judge so they'd stop investigating her for tax evasion. Hmm, wonder why trump doesn't want his taxes released.

[Felya]

So yeah, looks like trump's sister quit being a judge so they'd stop investigating her for tax evasion. Hmm, wonder why trump doesn't want his taxes released.

She was appointed by Bill Clinton... just a fun note. Both sides... lol

[DarkTZeratul]

She was appointed by Bill Clinton... just a fun note.

Another fun note: she's objectively more qualified to be president than he is.

[Felya]

Another fun note: she's objectively more qualified to be president than he is.

Yeah, been saying it for years. She isn’t actually that bad. No controversy. No hand out from daddy. She actually went to school and paid her dues. She was selected by both, republicans and democrats. By everything I know about her, she is fine human being.

[Ripster42]

Yeah, been saying it for years. She isn’t actually that bad. No controversy. No hand out from daddy. She actually went to school and paid her dues. She was selected by both, republicans and democrats. By everything I know about her, she is fine human being.

Except for, you know, the tax evasion.

[Felya]

Except for, you know, the tax evasion.

I know nothing about that... been a busy week.

[Ripster42]

I know nothing about that... been a busy week.

She was a party to the same tax evasion that was reported about trump last fall. 940m worth of property valued to the IRS as 40m (her share was 182m). A fake corporation made to get around the yearly gift limits (she gets $1m a year from this, still).

[gaymer77]

Boyfriend and I got matching shirts today. Love them so much! Gonna wear them with pride! #MAGA

[Breccia]

Trump thinks he's batman

Twitter pulls video due to copyright violation.

The head of Twitter signed his name, and walked away as the video exploded in a burst of sparks.

- - - Updated - - -

Trump sends more troops to the border.

He also laments that they "can’t act like a military would act because if they got a little rough, everybody would go crazy.”

[Dead Moose Fandango]

Twitter pulls video due to copyright violation.

The head of Twitter signed his name, and walked away as the video exploded in a burst of sparks.

- - - Updated - - -

Trump sends more troops to the border.

He also laments that they "can’t act like a military would act because if they got a little rough, everybody would go crazy.”

And if he acted like a president would act, his base would go crazy!

[Breccia]

Well, the results are in. Hey Netflix, you had a good year, didn't you?

"Damn right. $856 million in US income."

Outstanding. So how much tax did you pay?

"Oh, we didn't. We got a rebate, actually. $22 million."

Huh. Well, that's interesting. Well, not everyone watches TV. Hey Blizzard, how'd you do?

"Actually we did even better. $447 million in income, got a refund of $228 million."

How did you two do that?

"The tax cut for the rich, of course. Turns out, when you use the money for a stock buyback, the company gets to claim a loss. Amazon used it to reduce their taxable income level by an entire billion dollars. Isn't that great?"

Huh. Hey, US Steel, how'd you do?

"Pretty good. We made $432 million in US income. Got a sweet refund of $40 million."

Delta Airlines?

"We made over five billion dollars in US income. Got a refund of $187 million."
"Yeah, this is Jet Blue, we only made $219 million but got $60 million of it back."

How?

"You get to claim depreciation when items you buy are worth less."

That sounds familiar. I think the old tax laws had that.

"Oh, they did. But the tax cut for the rich let you claim all the depreciation all up front. So instead of having the depreciation take place a bit at a time, we get it all right away, put the money in the bank and get even richer. Or, we could go bankrupt, and just keep the money we said we'd eventually lose, even if we go out of business and sell the items to someone else. Who will claim depreciation. Again."

Wow. At least that only affects physical items.

"Actually it doesn't. Hi, this is Netflix again. There's also a new research tax credit that lets you lower your income if you do R&D on new items or services. Blizzard claimed it for making new video games."

But they were going to make new video games anyhow!

"I know, right? It's basically free money for a cost of business. We used it for $140 million worth of income reduction.

Well, my car is a necessary cost to get to work. Can I deduct that?

"No, this is for businesses only. That's one of the many personal deductions you no longer get. Because tax cut for the rich."

Wow. I bet energy companies got a lot of this.

"Hi, this is Chevron. We made four and a half billion in US income last year, and got a refund of $181 million. In addition to everything you said above, we're also using a new percentage depletion tax benefit, just like US Steel did."

What the hell is that?

"It's a flat 15% reduction if you sell your own oil and gas. It's capped, but the cap goes beyond the total value of the well you're depleting."

Wait, aren't basically all resources limited? Shouldn't everyone get that?

"Nope. Just oil and gas companies. Oh, wait, also mining companies."

Of the Fortune 600 companies, 60 -- yes, including Amazon -- made money, but paid no taxes due to a variety of new breaks, and earned a collective refund of $4.3 billion dollars. Other benefactors include GM, Coors, IBM (yes, they're still in the Fortune 500), Haliburton, and Wisconsin Energy. While Wal-Mart didn't do as well, they did cut their taxes in half. Meanwhile as we keep citing, the taxes and tax refunds of the average American barely moved, if they moved at all.

"That's just standard Republicans-in-charge stuff."

Well, not really. Reagan passed the largest tax cut in history because personal income tax rates dropped in addition to corporate. Also, the personal/business ratio was a lot more even. Trump's tax cut for the rich, by contrast, is not.

[Fugus]

@Breccia

As an extension of the tax stuff. My dad did his taxes earlier this week. It collects Social Security and a pension from working for 20+ years building tires for Goodyear (plant was formerly Kelly Springfield).

He was pissed, this is the first year he ever had to pay taxes on a portion of his social security.

[Breccia]

He was pissed

He has company. Poll after poll after poll after poll after poll after --

"We get it."

-- show that a lot Americans either expect to pay, or did pay, more taxes and/or got lower refunds under the tax cut for the rich.

For more information, I did find this article called "Taxes are taking a growing percentage of SS benefits from seniors" from March 2018.

"What Fake News librul -- "

FOX News.

[Fugus]

He has company. Poll after poll after poll after poll after poll after --

"We get it."

-- show that a lot Americans either expect to pay, or did pay, more taxes and/or got lower refunds under the tax cut for the rich.

For more information, I did find this article called "Taxes are taking a growing percentage of SS benefits from seniors" from March 2018.

"What Fake News librul -- "

FOX News.

Well that sucks. Knew it was a scam overall but yeah. Just glad they don't for VA disability to pay or I would be screwed too.

[cubby]

He has company. Poll after poll after poll after poll after poll after --

"We get it."

-- show that a lot Americans either expect to pay, or did pay, more taxes and/or got lower refunds under the tax cut for the rich.

For more information, I did find this article called "Taxes are taking a growing percentage of SS benefits from seniors" from March 2018.

"What Fake News librul -- "

FOX News.

I wonder if there would be enough support to kill that tax cut in 2021 (assuming Dems take WH and Sen).