Why do we care what Trump thought his hotel was worth??

Personally I wouldn't compare that sort of loan to a loan arranged between teams of attorneys . . . which is how billionaires do things.

Been going on for a long time

Indeed — if the only “victims” in these schemes were the banks Trump dealt with, and if those banks actually profited from the self-inflated values, then it’s NBD. But it’s likely not that simple.

If you say a property is worth $X when you apply for a loan, but only worth $Y when it’s tax time, then that’s tax fraud. Simple hypothetical, but the victims in that case would be U.S. taxpayers and the U.S. Treasury even if the bank(s) never got harmed.

(Tax fraud specifically is not a part of the NY attorney general’s jurisdiction, but she’s made a referral to the IRS.)

Where will it go from here? Who knows! Grab popcorn!

Personally I won’t be surprised at all if Trump has engaged in a massive pattern of tax fraud over the years, nor do I have any expectation that if he’s shown to have done so, that it will impact his support among Republicans much at all. Hating taxation as much as they do, they may admire him even more for it — stupid as that is, since the vast majority of folks can’t hope to get away with massive white collar crimes.

That said, this is just one branch of the mounting legal problems Trump is facing.

“If you say a property is worth $X when you apply for a loan, but only worth $Y when it’s tax time, then that’s tax fraud.” I’m sorry, but you have your tax law 100% wrong. I assume you don’t have a business degree. Valuing a business, like a hotel, for a bank loan and paying property taxes are NEVER the same. The value of the business for a loan includes the present value of future revenue from renting rooms, the value of the property brand and any non-property assets the business has (equipment, etc.) By sharp contrast, property taxes are the value of the property/building.

To think they would ever be the same is a complete misunderstanding of tax law. The fact that you make this point publicly just shows how far off the mark the media and this DA has led you. We need responsible media that reports these facts correctly so the unknowing public is not fed this kind of dangerous disinformation which undermines our Democracy.

Lol. Well argued, counselor. You may consider forwarding your resume to Trump Legal.

Of course, I’m not talking about that — there are different ways of valuing a commercial property depending on the context. I’m talking about willful misrepresentation.

It’s amusing to interact with Righties who have no problem entertaining nth-dimensional conspiracies about the Bidens, but are at a loss in imagining any of the plausible fraudulent schemes that could be housed within the Trump Organization.

Would you agree that Trump and/or his family members and/or others underneath him are at least capable of conspiring to commit tax fraud?

First U.S. President in roughly 50 years not to willingly release his tax returns to the public — do you find that significant?

Everyone.. including you and I... takes every legal step possible to minimize our taxes. I fully expect the Trumps work with their accountants and legal team to do the same. Will the 'push the limit' on what the immeasurable value of the Trump brand is worth? Of course.

This is yet another case where the media lights their hair on fire for something that is completely common, normal, legal and expected.