Monday, August 29, 2016

Clinton Released Her Taxes. Will Trump Follow This Tradition?


Almost all candidates who have run for presidency these past years have released their tax returns which give the public a glimpse of the finances of a candidate. Candidates usually do this to give the public a deeper look into their lives financially and the business matters they may deal with. Doing so can help voters better understand candidates but can also reveal information people disagree with. Clinton has already released her tax returns and now the public is wondering whether Trump will do the same. Trump’s reason for not releasing his forms up until now has been the Internal Revenue Service which has been auditing his forms. They say he is allowed to release them, but that it is not recommended because his forms are complex because of the businesses he deals with.


Discussion Questions:
Do you think releasing tax returns will hurt Donald Trump’s campaign?
Do you think that the tax returns Hillary Clinton has released will help her image and support her?
How would you feel about releasing private information such as tax returns to the public?

39 comments:

  1. I feel that the releasing of tax returns is a good Idea as an idea of how the candidates deal with money. I Agree that Donald Trump Should release his tax returns, even if they are complex because if nobody could understand them then it won't really do any harm unless ts something bad but then releasing them will be a sign of truthfulness

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  2. It seems a little weird that Trump's taxes are unavailable. I believe that these taxes could hurt Trump. Hillary has made an attempt to make herself very public, but I do not think releasing her taxes will make the public trust her any more than they already do. Releasing tax returns seems like a real invasion of privacy and although I would not want to do that, it would contribute to the public's image of me.

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  3. Trump might not be the one withholding his taxes. While the IRS says that he can legally release his taxes, he may have business obligations that would be put in jeopardy by the taxes. On top of that, what would releasing his taxes actually do to his candidacy? Everyone already knows that he is in the 1% and is ridiculously rich. If anything, I think that refusing to release his taxes is a statement of privacy.

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  4. I believe that releasing private information such as tax returns is unnecessary. It is a matter of personal choice. However, it is understandable that Hillary Clinton released her tax returns in order to gain votes.

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  5. I think its a personal decision for Mr. Trump to release his tax returns. Clinton obviously did it as a act of provocation a bait per se and Trump so far hasn't played her again. On another note I think both candidates should release their medical records because we wouldn't want a President that would just die the next day now would we per se(tm).

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  6. If Donald Trump released his tax returns, I believe they would hurt him rather than help him in the campaign. If it were to benefit him, he definitely would have made it available to the public.

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  7. If Donald Trump released his tax returns, I believe they would hurt him rather than help him in the campaign. If it were to benefit him, he definitely would have made it available to the public.

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  8. I think that releasing private information should not be required as it is private information, but releasing things such as tax returns will help your campaign stay honest and will help it be as transparent as possible. I do not think releasing things such as tax returns will make or break a campaign, but I do think it will help it.

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  9. I believe releasing tax returns will make a campaign more transparent, but this can either help or hurt a campaign depending on what was released. It can either support a candidate's stance on taxes, or it can portray someone as a hypocrite.

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  10. If Trump ever releases his tax returns, I think it will looks bad. Because he took so long, people will be suspicious and look even deeper for things to catch him on. By Hillary releasing hers, it looks good since her opponent has not released his. Releasing tax returns to the public when you are competing for a role such as president is a good idea.

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  11. I think it's highly possible that Donald Trump releasing his tax returns will affect him in the campaign. It's suspicious enough that the IRS says he can release them. Yet he chooses not to. Although tax returns are considered to be more private information, releasing them just proves that the candidate has nothing to hide from their supporters and that they're making the right choice in the end.

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  12. It seems suspicious that Trump did not release his tax returns. They probably are not good and by Hillary releasing hers this shows that she will look and be better than Trump will be by showing her responsibility

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  13. It seems suspicious that Trump did not release his tax returns. They probably are not good and by Hillary releasing hers this shows that she will look and be better than Trump will be by showing her responsibility

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  14. If Donald Trump does release his tax return I think this will have a major impact on his campaign. If he does not release his tax returns then it would seriously hurt his own campaign for not doing as any American citizen should be doing.

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  15. Releasing these statements is not a requirement by any means, but it does add transparency to a person running for office, just as disclosing personal organizations or business actions from one's career can help make a candidate seem more qualified. If he does not show them, then obviously many will jump to conclusions about his tax returns when there is also the possibility that he just chooses not to, but that's up to him to calculate its weight on his image.

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  16. Releasing his tax returns may or may not help him as a candidate. Clinton already released her tax returns, and it most likely will help her, due to the fact that Trump decides not to release his tax returns. I personally would not release information such as to the public, because it will just allow people to be able to look further into whatever business that i have been dealing with.

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  17. I think that releasing his tax returns may hurt him as a candidate because he has been trying to avoid this for so long which is hurting his campaign, and he should not be hiding them if he's been doing everything responsibly. I think that while it is up to him and it is not required, he should release them just because of the demand to see them from the voters.

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  18. I believe releasing tax returns will make a campaign more transparent, but this can either help or hurt a campaign depending on what was released. It can either support a candidate's stance on taxes, or it can portray someone as a hypocrite.

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  19. I think that releasing his tax returns could hurt him because it seems like he wanted to hide them. However, it could benefit his campaign. If I were him I would be uncomfortable to release them to the public.

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  21. I think Hilary Clinton was being childish when she released trumps tax returns because even though trump has been disrespecting Clinton throughout the whole Campaign Hilary should have been more mature and tactical about how she will get back at trump because honestly there are so many people out there that try to hide their tax returns he's not the first one to do it but still I don't like Trump.

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  22. I find it odd that Trump has chosen not to release them yet even though the IRS said he is able to. In that way, I think people would be suspicious as to why he chose not to release them yet. I don't know if Clinton's release of tax returns necessarily made the public more trusting of her. I think it just gives the public more insight into her personal life. I wouldn't want my tax returns to be released because it is a private matter that is unnecessary as public knowledge.

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  23. Clinton's release of taxes may help her in relation to Trump because she has made herself more open to the public. Trump's campaign may not be extremely different based on just this, but Clinton's openness may give her a slight edge.

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  24. I do not think releasing Clinton’s tax returns will help her candidacy because there is not anything in there that would help persuade people to vote for her; however, it does show that her money is being used wisely, and that it is not just being thrown away. I do not think releasing Trump’s tax returns will hurt his campaign because although they may be complex people will see that his finances are correct and that he knows what he is doing with that.

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  25. I agree with everyone that believes that tax returns are a good idea because they show trust. It would be good for Trump to release them, however it depends on how his tax returns look, since they are complex. I think it will help Hillary especially since she did it first. I would feel somewhat comfortable releasing such information.

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  26. I agree with everyone that believes that tax returns are a good idea because they show trust. It would be good for Trump to release them, however it depends on how his tax returns look, since they are complex. I think it will help Hillary especially since she did it first. I would feel somewhat comfortable releasing such information.

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  27. Releasing the tax returns would be a good idea to show that he wants to gain our trust. With Hillary showing her tax returns it gives her a reason to question why Trump is not doing the same and she can say why wont he release them? is he trying to hide something. This could hurt Trump campaign.

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  28. It feels as if Trump is hiding something that has to do with the way he deals with his money. As to Clinton showing her release of taxes, I think that is a good source to determine when deciding on who to vote for. If she knows how to deal with her money then that would mean she would be able to have good ideas on how to deal with the country's money.

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  29. I think if Trump wants to gain the public's favor then he should release his tax returns. By doing so, he would put himself in a better light, showing everything that he is trustworthy. Now that Hillary has released hers, he would seem very suspicious and like he is hiding something if he does not release his as well. It think there's a very good chance that if he makes them public he would get hurt. Although it does seem like an invasion of privacy, it would make the candidates m=seem more down to earth and trustworthy.

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  30. I think Trump might not release his tax returns because he might have a way to not pay as much taxes as other people. Clinton releasing her tax returns will help her campaign because it shows that she isn't using some trick to barely pay taxes.

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  31. I believe anything that man does hurts his campaign but releasing his tax returns will sink his campaign. I think that to some it would show her as a person that knows how to handle her money and that would show her good decision making. I would want to show people my tax returns because I do not get tax returns.

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  32. I've always thought releasing tax returns is kind of pointless. How much money somebody makes and what they are going to do with it isn't going to make or break whether or not I believe in the candidate. Trump is already so controversial that I don't think his tax returns will influence it much. I also don't think that Hillary's tax returns made much of a difference either. I don't think I would. Stuff like that people don't really need to see and its kind of pointless. I would make sure I would just try to get to as many people as possible with my views.

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  33. Trump would try his best to finesse the system. He would not want to pay off taxes as much. But as for Clinton taxes it would help her at her campaign because it seems like she is not trying to trick to some what pay taxes

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  34. I am not exactly set on if not showing his tax returns would hurt or benefit Trumps campaign but I do find it to be rather strange. When people aren't so open, they tend to not feel so trustworthy and for that reason I think democrats will add another reason to vote democratic, but at the end of the day, republicans will most likely stand their beliefs. I think Hillary Clinton's release of her tax returns will definitely help her image and support her in the presidential elections by gaining people's trust back(deleting E-mails situation). I personally wouldn't feel comfortable about releasing private information such as tax returns to the public but I believe that if you're running for a trustworthy spot and a powerful spot you probably should.

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  35. I definitely think the exposure of Trump's income taxes will further distance himself from voters. The lack of exposure of his income taxes will be detrimental because this kind of deception will place distrust in him economically and socially. As president, one should take the responsibility to allow the public to get to him know, but instead Trump is not showing his true self, the self that emphasizes his wealth and extravagances. Despite the number within his income tax, I think he should show his self to the public and place onfidence in his voters.

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  36. It has been a common practice of releasing presidential candidates tax return for public to scrutinize. In the recent history there was never a presidential candidate who has been involved in a large enterprise. Donald Trump is just such person. Making his tax return public would allow anyone and everyone to form their opinion about taxes with reference to mogul status people. Besides that Donald Trump is going through an IRS audit that alone precludes him from disseminating information that has not been finalized. Hilary Clinton on the other hand has very simple tax return. Her releasing it should not change her position.

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  37. I think that just because Clinton released her tax records, Trump doesn't necessarily have to release his directly in response. Trump will have a much more extensive tax record because of his large corporation, so it should be expected to take more time to be processed, especially if his company is being audited. I do believe that his tax records should be made public to assure transparency to the public, but I don't think that he should have to do it directly after being prompted by Hillary Clinton.

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  38. I don't think her tax returns will hurt Trump's campaign. If Trump supporters see Clinton's tax returns, it's not like they will change their beliefs. It may possibly help her and give voters an insight on her life, but it won't make anybody change their mindset. If it was for the campaign, I wouldn't really hesitate to release my taxes to show citizens how I live my life financially.

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  39. Since Clinton has released hers, it would raise suspicions about his credibility and honesty if he decides not to do the same. Although it is a personal decision for Trump whether or not to release his tax returns, he would be presented in a better light if he followed through with it

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