Four Ways Trump's Tax Return Revelations Could Help Biden in The Debate

Throughout Donald Trump's entry into Republican politics and then into the White House there has always been the matter of his tax returns and his refusal to release them.

Well, The New York Times has published a lengthy exposition of Trump's returns scarcely 48 hours before his first debate against Joe Biden.

There is no doubt that Trump will deem the matter "fake news" (and has now done so). After all, he did get elected without releasing his returns in 2016. Why should they harm him now much less help Biden?

While tax records for someone of Trump's entangled business interests is a complicated matter, Biden is in a position to use them to his advantage during the debate in four ways.

1. With Trump reporting hundreds of millions of dollars in business losses most years, Biden can tell Trump to his face that he isn't a very good businessman. This is sure to anger him.

2. With Trump using those losses to pay little or no federal income tax while millions struggle during this catastrophic recession, Biden can argue that it's time close corporate loopholes so Trump and other wealthy Americans can be pay their fair share.

3. If Trump brings up Hunter Biden and his business dealings, all Biden has to do is raise Ivanka Trump being paid as a consultant even though she is an employee of the Trump Organization. Biden can tell Trump, "You can pay Ivanka as an employee as an employee or a consultant. One can do one or the other. If you do both then you're breaking the law." And then Biden could throw in Ivanka's patents from China for good measure. Given that Ivanka is Trump's favorite child that will absolutely raise his ire.

4. With Trump's money from The Apprentice all but dried up, his recent tax returns indicate running for President and the Presidency presented an opportunity to enrich himself by profiting off of foreign governments through the use of his properties. Can you say Emoluments Clause? Biden can ask Trump, "Where does the Trump Organization end and the White House begin?"

If there was no pandemic nor recession or social unrest then perhaps voters would have no more cared now than they did in 2016 so long as they were doing alright. But we are not doing alright and to have all of this corruption on top of a pandemic, recession and social unrest cannot be helpful to Trump. That is unless we have truly ceased to care. This is true of a significant part of the electorate. But aside from shenanigans, it won't be significant enough to keep Trump in the White House. Not if Biden uses the fresh ammunition he has been given.