The Washington Post reports that the Trump Foundation admitted to abuses of the foundation’s money. In other words, it broke federal tax laws by spending its money to benefit Trump and his family rather than for charity.
What Tax Laws Did Trump Foundation Break?
The tax laws ban “self-dealing,” that is, using a charity’s money for private purposes rather than charity. A 2015 Trump Foundation tax form shows that the Foundation admitted to self-dealing in 2015.
On page 5 of the tax form, the Foundation answered “yes” to the question:
“During the year, did the foundation transfer any income or assets to a disqualified person (or make any of either available to or for the use of a disqualified person)?”
It also answered that it had done the same thing in one or more years before 2015. A disqualified person could be Trump, a member of his family, or a related organization. The form does not list the amounts of the payments, who received them, or when they occurred. These details would be on another form, which was not disclosed.
What Could Happen?
The foundation could be required to pay additional taxes and penalties. Whoever received the payments could have to repay the foundation.
Because the foundation’s returns for previous years answered “no” to the same questions, there could be additional penalties for false statements made on those returns.
Previous Reporting
During the campaign, both the Post and Liberal America ran stories about questionable Trump Foundation payments, including:
- The use of Trump Foundation funds to settle lawsuits against Trump for-profit businesses;
- A contribution to Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi’s reelection campaign (The Foundation paid a penalty to the IRS); and
- The purchase of two portraits of Trump, one for $20,000 in 2007, and one for $10,000 in 2014.
2015 Receipts and Donations
The form did include a list of the charitable donations the Foundation says it made in 2015. There were many donations to well-known charities such as the American Red Cross, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, and the Salvation Army, which each received $25,000.
The recipient of the largest donations, totaling $125,000, was the Marine Corps Law Enforcement Foundation and Project Veritas, a conservative activist group that conducts “sting” operations. This is the organization responsible for the sting videos that distorted Planned Parenthood’s activities.
Just so you know, the return shows that Trump donated more than $500,000 to the foundation in 2015.
Here’s some interesting video about the news coverage:
Featured Image: Screenshot Via YouTube Video.
