Trump says 'of course' he used his $916 million loss to avoid paying federal income taxes


At Sunday night's presidential debate, Donald Trump all but confirmed reports that he has avoided paying income taxes for nearly two decades. "Did you use that $916 million loss to avoid paying federal income taxes?" Anderson Cooper asked, referring to the massive loss declared on Trump's 1995 taxes. "Of course I do. Of course I do," Trump replied.
But as this is a presidential debate, Trump also pointed fingers — literally. "And so do all of [Clinton's] donors, or most of her donors," he went on. "I know many of her donors." Trump added that Clinton was to thank in part for his exploitation of the laws: "I have a write off. A lot of it's depreciation, which is a wonderful charge. I love depreciation. You know, she's given it to us."
Hillary Clinton had her own response to that: "We are going to make sure nobody — no corporation and no individual — can get away without paying his fair share to support our country." Watch below. Jeva Lange
The Week
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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
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