Saving The Trumps Billions April 27, 2017 By eliminating the alternative minimum tax, Trump’s tax plan would have saved him 85% of the federal income tax he paid in 2005. By eliminating the estate tax (if his estate is truly worth $10 billion), it will save his heirs $4.5 billion. There are probably other ways Trump would benefit from his plan, but we can’t know because — remarkably — his 2015 tax returns were selected for audit within seconds of filing. All his tax returns are under audit, always. No audit has ever been completed on any year of his taxes, ever. And that — along with the unprecedented crowds at his inauguration and the fact that, frankly, we’ve been winning so much we’re actually tired of winning — is why his tax plan makes so much sense. If rich people and corporations pay less tax, we’ll have the money to rebuild our military, renew our infrastructure, and assure everyone gets better health care at lower cost. Herewith, Nick Kristof’s less sarcastic analysis. TED is inspiring. It confirms (for me, at least) that these next few decades will be either the beginning of the end or the end of the beginning for our species. Do we hurtle off the rails? Or do we successfully harness the technological explosion that will make virtually anything possible? We have a president excited by the future of coal.