President Trump has pursued expansive business projects in China for years, according to his tax records. The New York Times reported on October 20 that he even maintains a Chinese bank account. This may affect his strategy to affect rival Democratic nominee Joe Biden as the one who is soft on China.
President Trump on China
The New York Times analyzed President Trump's tax records, and it showed that he had an unreported bank account in China. The said bank account was not included in his financial records disclosed to the public because it is held under a corporate name. He also has bank accounts in Ireland and Britain.
The Chinese account is controlled by Trump International Hotels Management, according to The New York Times, and it paid $188,561 in taxes in China from 2013 to 2015.
Even though the tax records do not show how much money has moved through President Trump's foreign accounts, the Internal Revenue Service mandates that filers disclose the portions of their incomes coming from foreign countries. Trump International Hotels Management reported only a few thousand dollars that came from China.
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Expanding Trump's hotel business
Alan Garten, the Trump Organization lawyer, told The New York Times that the organization opened an account with a Chinese bank that has an office in the US to pay the local taxes that are connected with its intent to do business in China. Garten refused to name the Chinese bank that has Trump's account.
Garten also said that the company had opened the account once an office was opened in the country to explore the potential for hotel deals in Asia.
Garten told The New York Times that there were no deals, no transactions or other business activities ever materialized, and since 2015, the office has remained inactive. He added that even though the office in China is currently not active, the bank account remains open, but it has never been used for any other purpose.
President Trump has painted Democratic nominee Joe Biden as weak on China throughout the general election. However, his own financial ties to China shows a stark contrast with the financial ties of the former vice president. Biden released his tax returns, and all his financial disclosures show that he has no business transactions nor income from China.
President Trump's tax records show that he has invested $192,000 in five different companies that were established to pursue numerous business projects in China over the past few years, according to BBC. Since 2010, the five companies have claimed at least $97,400 in expenses, according to The Guardian.
The new details gleaned from President Trump's tax records build on a previous report that detailed how he paid no federal income taxes in 10 out of the 15 years that he has been operating his business. It shows he has not paid any federal income taxes since 2000 because he reported losing more than he made.
In the year he won the presidency, which was in 2016, and his first year in the White House, which was in 2017, President Trump paid only $750 in federal income taxes.
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