Trump says he has 'prepaid' tens of millions of dollars in taxes
President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden squared off in Nashville, Tennessee, on Thursday night for the second and final debate before Election Day. Unlike their first debate, the tone was much more civil but the questions early on were familiar as Biden again badgered the incumbent to release his tax returns.
A blockbuster report in The New York Times in September claimed the president paid no taxes for several years before he was elected to office and paid only $750 in 2016.
The president accused Biden and several of his family members of being corrupt, which Biden denied and shrugged off. The former vice president stated he’s released 22 years of tax returns while Trump has not released any of his.
“Release your tax return and stop talking about corruption,” Biden said.
Trump claimed that he recently called his accountants and wants to release his taxes, but isn’t going to do so until his audit is complete. There is nothing that legally prohibits an individual from releasing his taxes during an IRS audit.
Trump also said he believed that $750 figure cited by the Times was some sort of filing fee and that he’s paid “millions and millions” in taxes.
“I get treated very badly by the IRS, very unfairly,” Trump claimed.
“But I have paid millions and millions of dollars. And it’s worse than paying. I paid in advance. It’s called prepaying your taxes.”
The president compared his plight to the harsh taxation that sparked the Boston Tea Party and led to the Revolutionary War, before again claiming he was working on making his tax information public as soon as possible.
“He’s been saying this for four years,” Biden said. “Show us. Just show us. Stop playing around.”
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