Sanders will target Trump’s tax breaks in new legislation

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said Tuesday he will introduce legislation in the next Congress to crack down on the tax breaks Donald Trump used to possibly avoid paying federal taxes for nearly two decades.

The former Democratic presidential candidate is targeting four provisions in the tax code, mainly focused on how real estate losses are deducted, that he says the Republican nominee employed to skirt paying taxes.

{mosads}”Special tax breaks and loopholes in a corrupt tax code enable billionaires and powerful corporations to avoid paying their fair share of taxes while sticking the burden on the middle class,” Sanders said.

“It’s time to create a tax system which is fair and which asks the wealthy and powerful to start paying their fair share of taxes,” he said.

On Saturday, the New York Times reported that Trump had claimed $916 million in losses on his 1995 tax return, which could have allowed him to avoid paying federal taxes for 18 years.

Sanders said the tax breaks used by Trump and others “do nothing to boost the economy.”

He is targeting four specific provisions: The ability to use real estate losses to offset other income, to claim losses on real estate investments beyond what was invested, to avoid capital gains on property that was sold and to combine tax breaks on loan interest while taking deductions if the property depreciates.