Three takeaways from the New York Times’ bombshell Trump investigation

  Last week, The New York Times published a bombshell investigative report alleging that the Trump family engaged in “outright fraud” and other schemes to dodge federal taxes over many years. Through these schemes, the Trump family may have avoided or evaded as much as $500 million of taxes on the transfer of wealth from President Donald Trump’s parents to him and his siblings.

  If true, the revelations in the 14,000-word story are shocking. They bear on Trump’s personal finances, his credibility, his greed, and—perhaps most importantly—his policies. The revelations include:

Congress should reassess the importance of two corporate tax breaks

  A series of tax breaks expired at the end of 2013. These tax breaks are all technically temporary, but they are extended so regularly that they are collectively known as the tax extenders. Some of these tax extenders are good policy, such as relief for foreclosure victims, support for energy efficiency and renewable energy, incentives for businesses to hire disadvantaged workers and veterans, and tax credits to revitalize economically depressed areas. Other tax extenders, however, offer fewer public benefits and primarily subsidize big multinational corporations.