CREW to Trump: Remember to pay taxes on RNC cash

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington today sent Donald Trump a letter to remind him that he will need to pay taxes on any money the Republican National Committee spends to cover his legal bills.

The RNC has reportedly agreed to cover up to $1.6 million in legal bills stemming from the New York investigations into Trump’s business practices, having already spent about $700,000. As these are Trump’s personal legal expenses arising from his personal businesses, any dollar the RNC spends on covering Trump is taxable income for him under the law.

“For years, Donald Trump has been looking to taxpayers, political supporters, and those seeking to curry favor with him to pay his bills, and this is one more example,” said CREW President Noah Bookbinder. “Trump is facing so many legal issues that it’s important he remembers that not paying taxes on this income could cause him to face even more.” 

It may come as a surprise that Trump needs help covering his personal legal expenses, as he claims to be worth billions. Then again, his false claims about the value of his holdings are what brought about the investigations into his business practices in the first place.

We would hope that the former president does not need this reminder. After all, this is the man who said, “I think nobody knows more about taxes than I do, maybe in the history of the world. Nobody knows more about taxes.” Trump famously paid a $2 million fine after illegally using his tax-deductible foundation to pay his personal expenses, a scandal first exposed by CREW.

“Tax evasion is a serious crime–it’s what finally sent Al Capone to prison,” said Bookbinder. “Given the litany of laws Donald Trump has apparently violated, we thought it helpful to give him a reminder before he violates another one.”