Biden gets tough on Trump’s taxes in Fallon interview

Vice President Biden went after Donald Trump during an interview on NBC’s “The Tonight Show,” zeroing in on the Republican nominee’s remark that it would be “smart” to avoid paying federal taxes. 

“What does that make the rest of us, suckers?” Biden asked host Jimmy Fallon during the interview, which aired Thursday.

{mosads}“Can you think of any president, any president you’ve studied, read about, or knew who said anything like that,” Biden asked, directly appealing to the audience. “Name me one president who would do that.

“It angers me, quite frankly. It’s one of the things the American people really resent. The American people don’t like being played for suckers.”

During Monday’s presidential debate, Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton said Trump might be hesitant about releasing his tax returns because he avoids paying federal taxes.

“Maybe he doesn’t want the American people, all of you watching tonight, to know that he’s paid nothing in federal taxes,” Clinton said.

“That makes me smart,” the GOP nominee interjected.

Biden, who has been campaigning for Clinton, questioned how Trump’s remark would sound to people who make far less than the billionaire.

“You’ve got somebody working the assembly line making $51,000 and his wife making $50,000 working in another factory,” he said. “They’re paying 15 percent of their income, they’re trying to raise two kids.

“I can’t imagine why somebody would say that, like, ‘that makes me smart,’ ” added Biden. “I mean, just pay your fair share for God’s sake.”

Trump has steadfastly maintained he will not release his tax returns because they are under audit by the IRS, though the agency has said it has no rule preventing the release of tax returns during an audit.

During the debate, Trump said he’d release his returns if Clinton released emails she deleted from her private server.