Trump's $750 Tax Bill

On September 27, 2020, The New York Times published an article titled "Long-concealed records show Trump's chronic losses and years of tax avoidance" about former U.S. President and billionaire Donald Trump's years of tax avoidance. The Times claimed to have obtained Trump's tax returns (Form 1040) for over 20 years through 2017, revealing many unknown details about his Federal Income Tax payments and tax avoidance strategies.

According to the report, Trump paid only $750 in federal income tax during his first year as president (2017) and the same amount during his campaign year (2016). Furthermore, for 11 out of 18 years before 2017, he paid zero federal income tax, not including years where he paid taxes but later received refunds. Most readers surely pay more than $750 (approximately 4,700 RMB) in federal income tax annually, so how did a billionaire like Trump manage to pay virtually nothing?

Since Trump has never released his tax returns and denies the report's authenticity ("Fake News"), we cannot verify its accuracy. American presidents traditionally release their tax returns, and Trump was the first recent president to refuse. Although he repeatedly stated his willingness to release them, even offering conditions (such as saying he would release his returns if Obama released his birth certificate), he ultimately refused using various excuses.

Regardless of whether the Times' report is true or false, it doesn't prevent us from understanding how American billionaires avoid taxes. How did he manage this? Can ordinary people learn from this?