Ivanka Trump likely received ‘consulting fees’ to reduce Donald’s taxes
Ivanka Trump was allegedly paid consulting fees that were deducted as a business expense on President Donald Trump's taxes.
President Donald Trump‘s tax returns from the past decade were released by the New York Times and the information revealed led to new conclusions about his financial activity.
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Beyond not having paid taxes for 10 of 15 of the years the information chronicled and only paying $750 during recent years, between 2010 and 2018, POTUS wrote off as business expenses totaling $26 million in “consulting fees.” While in the documents, no consultants are listed by name, the NYT aligned the financial records to information shared by Ivanka Trump.
The 38-year-old began working at the White House in 2017 as a senior advisor to her father. According to NYT, she reported receiving payments from a consulting company she co-owned, totaling $747,622 which match amounts listed in the president’s tax deductions. The report named Ivanka as an executive officer of the Trump companies that received the profits from and paid the consulting fees for both projects in Hawaii and Vancouver.
The news outlet explained the occurrences as “she appears to have been treated as a consultant on the same hotel deals that she helped manage as part of her job at her father’s business.”
In order for employers to deduct consulting fees as a business expense and avoid the withholding taxes that apply to wages, the NYT found the arrangement must be an “ordinary and necessary” part of running the business with fees that are reasonable and market-based. The recipient of the fees is still required to pay income tax according to the IRS.
As reported by the NYT, Ivanka received a $480,000 salary as an executive with the Trump Organization. That amount significantly grew to $2 million after her father became president. The outlet continued to highlight since leaving the organization to work in the White House, she has not received a salary from the company.
Alan Garten, a lawyer for the Trump Organization, did not respond to the NYT request for comment.
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It is no secret that Ivanka has been given highly regarded positions and opportunities by her father and according to new information, he hoped to rank her much higher in his White House administration.
In his new book, Rick Gates, a former Trump campaign aide, wrote Trump strongly considered his daughter as his running mate before deciding on Vice President Mike Pence. According to Bloomberg News, ‘Wicked Game: An Insider’s Story on How Trump Won, Mueller Failed and America Lost’, authored by Gates, revealed details relevant to the 2016 presidential campaign. The outlet received a copy of the text.
“During a VP discussion that included Jared [Kushner] and the other kids all assembled in one room, Trump said, ‘I think it should be Ivanka. What about Ivanka as my VP?’ There was silence,” Gates wrote in the book. He continued, “All heads turned toward her, and she just looked surprised. We all knew Trump well enough to keep our mouths shut and not laugh.”
Allegedly, POTUS cited what he considered to be attributes of Ivanka the voters would take liking to.
“He went on: ‘She’s bright, she’s smart, she’s beautiful, and the people would love her!'”
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