Trump is veering off the tax questions, but the first discussion has a new problem

But there was quiet anxiety within the campaign, as aides noted the daily tracking numbers from the Rasmussen Reports – a typical rosy assessment of how the president is doing – that showed declining support after the tax story. Among Mr.Trump’s circle, there has been pointing fingers about how to handle the case and reluctance to discuss an issue with him that they know he is sensitive about.

Several of the president’s advisers argued that such stories had not detrimental to his standing with his primary supporters in the past and that this would not be an exception. However, they realized that Mr. Trump should have an effective response prepared for discussion, The first meeting between the candidates, Scheduled at 9 p.m. ET at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. Some of his aides suggested that he is trying to improve on an answer similar to what he said earlier, that taking advantage of the tax code is simply “smart” for the entrepreneur, while also portraying himself as a job innovator.

Campaign spokesperson Tim Murtaugh described the report as inaccurate because the president had paid “tens of millions in taxes in taxes,” without specifying whether it was federal income taxes or directly denying that there had been years in which he had not paid anything. He told Fox News: “A lawsuit has been filed before voters before.” The President has released more than 100 pages of financial records. And the Americans passed their judgment in 2016 and elected him president. There is nothing there that changes anyone’s mind. “

However, some of the details, notably paying only $ 750 in federal income taxes for two consecutive years and deducting hairdressing expenses, among other things, can reverberate in a profound way. Democrats hoped they could fuel a sense of injustice with average Americans who pay much more for themselves and can’t write off the hair expenses.

Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is from New York chirp She paid thousands of dollars in federal taxes in 2016 and 2017 – when she was still working as a bartender in New York City. “It has contributed less to funding our communities than waitresses and illegal immigrants,” she wrote. A Biden campaign video showing the typical income tax paid by many workers amplified the attack.

The Biden campaign has also started selling T-shirts, buttons, and posters that say, “I’ve paid more income taxes than Donald Trump.” The campaign was launched online on Monday Trump Tax Calculator Allowing people to calculate how much more federal income taxes they paid than Mr Trump. “Angry?” Said the tax account webpage. “Join our campaign to elect Joe Biden and have ‘billionaires’ like Donald Trump pay their fair share.”