Subject: RE: Video Request: Trump morning shows
From: "Sarge, Matthew" <[email-masked]>
To: "Paustenbach, Mark" <[email-masked]>, "Kane, Michael" <[email-masked]>
Cc: "Bhatnagar, Akshai" <[email-masked]>, "Roberts, Kelly" <[email-masked]>, Comm_D <[email-masked]>, "[email-masked]" <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 13 May 2016 06:04:01 -0700

Partial transcript portions.
Cleaned up from closed captioning

STEPHANOPOULOS: I just have a bottom line question for you. Yes or no, do you believe voters have a right to see your tax returns before they make a final decision?
TRUMP: I don't think they do. But I do say this, I will really gladly give them -- not going to learn anything but it's under routine audit. When the audit ends I'll present them. That should be before the election. I hope it's before the election. But when the audit ends I've had even journalists say that.

....  ....

TRUMP: I am under audit now and as soon as the audit ends I'll release my returns. It's a simple thing. If you look at many others, many others feel the same way and almost every lawyer will tell you the same thing when you're under audit you finish the audit before you release. I have no problem and it should be and I hope it's before the election.
STEPHANOPOULOS: If you were willing --
TRUMP: By the way, people will learn nothing. I put in financials 100 pages worth of financials that show that I built a company that's worth more than $10 billion. It shows cash. It shows cash flows. It shows everything. You learn very little from tax returns but nevertheless, when the audit is complete, I will release. I have no problem with it.
STEPHANOPOULOS: A couple of follow-ups to that. If you are willing to release your tax returns to get a casino license why shouldn't voters see them before they make you commander in chief.

TRUMP: Well, because at the time it didn't make any difference to me. Now it does. If you take a look at the picture that we sent you with a tax returns probably ten feet high when you stack them on top and lengthy and complex and built a massive business and want to make sure that everything is perfect. It's a routine audit and get through it first and that's what I'll do. There have been many presidents that have not shown their tax returns.
STEPHANOPOULOS: Every single nominee before 1976 --
TRUMP:  Before 1976 most people didn't do. It used to be a secret thing. I don't want it secret, but I do want it finished.
STEPHANOPOULOS:  Before that Richard Nixon released his returns but to get to your point on the one hand you show that tack and on the other hand you say people can't learn anything. They can learn a lot. They can learn your sources of income. They can learn whether you have any foreign sources of income or any Swiss bank accounts or other offshore accounts. Do you?
STEPHANOPOULOS:  I tell you, I do not. I do not have Swiss bank accounts. I don't have offshore -- I really have a very, very clean company and believe me, if I didn't, it would have been reported by 200 groups because there's nobody that has more reporting or more scrutiny than I have. I have given my financials, they're extraordinary. And we would have read if they weren't. Believe me when I release my financial, George and sent them down to federal elections, there was a feeding frenzy by the media and they reported, wow, that is a great company and I have built a great, great company and by the way, when you look at numbers, when you look at incomes, when you look at all of the things or most of the things you talked about that's reported on the financials.
STEPHANOPOULOS: It's not reported on the financials. What they don't know also is your tax rate. They don't show whether you paid a low --
TRUMP:  I try to pay as little tax as possible and have said that for the last two years, I fight very hard because this country wastes our money. They take our tax money and throw it down the drain. They spend $4 trillion in the Middle East and we can't fix a road or a bridge and I fight very hard. I consider it an expense because, frankly, our country doesn't know what they're doing with our money or tax money and that's part of the problem so I fight very hard to pay as little tax as possible.

STEPHANOPOULOS:What is your tax rate?
TRUMP: It's none of your business. You'll see it when I release but I fight very hard to pay as little tax as possible.
STEPHANOPOULOS: You know, we've talked about this several times over the last several years. I first asked about it in 2011. You said you would release your tax returns then thinking of running for president when president Obama releases his birth certificate. He did. Then you said when secretary Clinton released her e-mails. She turned over all mails in her --
TRUMP: There's plenty of missing. I read yesterday that there were plenty missing. I know you're a good friends of hers. She did not turn over her e-mails. There are a lot of e-mails missing.
________________________________
From: Paustenbach, Mark
Sent: Friday, May 13, 2016 8:45 AM
To: Kane, Michael
Cc: Bhatnagar, Akshai; Roberts, Kelly; Comm_D; [email-masked]
Subject: Re: Video Request: Trump morning shows

Can we get a transcript, especially the "none of your business" line?

Thanks!

Mark Paustenbach
National Press Secretary &
Deputy Communications Director
Democratic National Committee
202.863.8148
[email-masked]<mailto:[email-masked]>

On May 13, 2016, at 7:55 AM, Kane, Michael <[email-masked]<mailto:[email-masked]>> wrote:

Obama directive on transgender students' use of bathrooms?
I think it should be a state's decision

So you're against it?
it should be state's rights, like many things

reports that GOP Senators in meeting suggested you tone down your rhetoric on immigration ?
I don't think I toned it down
I want to have strong immigration and borders
No, I didn't tone it down
border patrol endorsed me, first time ever
willing to listen to people

you won't modify your positions to get their support, they have to come to you?
no, there are things we can talk about
I'm not totally inflexible on anything

do voters have the right to see your tax returns?
I don't think so
I will gladly release them when audit ends, that should be before the election
I laugh when Mrs. Clinton says that: when will she give emails or Goldman transcripts?
I get audited every single year

The audit is no excuse, the IRS has made it clear it's your choice. Nixon released while under audit and you released returns while seeking casino license in PA
as soon as the audit is over, I'll release them
people aren't going to learn anything
I released financials that show everything

if you were willing to release your returns to get casino license, why not release them to be President?
at the time, it made no difference to me, now it does
my tax returns are complex
there have been many Presidents who haven't released

every nominee since 1976 has
yes, but before 1976, people didn't do it

you show that stack of returns, but there are actually many things people can learn: do you have any foreign sources of income or Swiss or offshore bank accounts?
I do not
I don't have offshore bank accounts
I have a very clean company, otherwise it would've been reported
there was a feeding frenzy when I released my financials, they all said I have a great company

financials don't show tax rate
I fight very hard to pay as little in taxes as possible
our country wastes our tax money

what is your tax rate?
It's none of your business, you'll see when I release

you said you'd release them when Obama released his birth certificate, then you said you'd do it when HRC released her emails, and she's released all the ones in her possession...
she didn't turn over her emails, there are plenty missing
I know she's a good friend of yours and you worked for them and you didn't reveal it, but she did not
the whole thing is a scam

you said you'd release them under those conditions, now you're throwing up the audit
I never said that at all
I said I'd release them after the audit
Greta van Susteren said she agreed with me

________________________________
From: Bhatnagar, Akshai
Sent: Friday, May 13, 2016 7:29 AM
To: Roberts, Kelly; Comm_D
Cc: [email-masked]<mailto:[email-masked]>
Subject: RE: Video Request: Trump morning shows

Today<https://toolbox.dnc.org/?tool_name=vantage%20uploader&path=vantageuploader.dnc.org/videos/shared_show?jwt=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJpYXQiOjE0NjMxMzg4MjcsImVtYWlsIjoiYmhhdG5hZ2FyYUBkbmMub3JnIiwiaWQiOjMxODA5MCwiZG93bmxvYWRhYmxlIjp0cnVlfQ.TrUzNzW--O95lOhfDYQq8vjpTnDY_qSc-6J9U8CGqmQ>
GMA<https://toolbox.dnc.org/?tool_name=vantage%20uploader&path=vantageuploader.dnc.org/videos/shared_show?jwt=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJpYXQiOjE0NjMxMzg5NjMsImVtYWlsIjoiYmhhdG5hZ2FyYUBkbmMub3JnIiwiaWQiOjMxODA5MSwiZG93bmxvYWRhYmxlIjp0cnVlfQ.r5NxGgElNEukGE1M86UnCW18eYpIkW_aBqPycZDz3vM>

From: Roberts, Kelly
Sent: Friday, May 13, 2016 7:11 AM
To: Comm_D
Cc: [email-masked]<mailto:[email-masked]>
Subject: Video Request: Trump morning shows

[https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1980294624/DJT_Headshot_V2_normal.jpg]

Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump<https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump?refsrc=email&s=11>)

5/13/16, 06:59<https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/731076390582403072?refsrc=email&s=11>
Will be interviewed on Good Morning America at 7:00 A.M. and the @TODAYshow<https://twitter.com/TODAYshow> at 7:10 A.M. ALSO, @foxandfriends<https://twitter.com/foxandfriends> at 7:30 A.M. ENJOY!

Download<https://twitter.com/download?ref_src=MailTweet-iOS> the Twitter app

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