Itemized deductions
Richard Rubin reports in the Wall Street Journal on the role of itemized deductions in Donald Trump's tax plan. Capping deductions at $100k/$200k simply wouldn't be enough to offset the giant tax cut that Trump is currently proposing. Plus, everyone loves the mortgage interest, charitable contribution and state and local tax deductions. Any proposal to get rid of them would face an uphill battle in Congress.
Elsewhere in Trump: His cabinet will be the wealthiest in history, the Office of Government Ethics is real excited about his conflict-of-interest plan and an archive of the internet will be in Canada, just in case.
Guns
The story of Levi's CEO Chip Bergh asking its customers to leave their firearms at home reminded me of the lively conversation we had a couple years back about more accountants carrying guns (according to stories a guy heard). Regardless of how you feel about firearms or concealed carry laws, or whether you're selling denim or professional services, it's an absolute certainty that asking people to leave their firearms at home will result in fewer people leaving their firearms at home.
Non-GAAP worries: Valeant edition
Michael Rapoport aired the SEC's latest disagreement with Valeant Pharmaceuticals over the company's non-GAAP accounting. The SEC said that Valeant was excluding, like, "normal, recurring operating expenses like restructuring and legal costs" and Valeant was all, "those adjustments were 'appropriate' because the expenses it excluded were in fact not normal and recurring." I'm really enjoying these "It said, it said," disagreements over non-GAAP accounting too much.
Previously, on Going Concern…
I made the case for EY Tax Guide 2017 to be your white elephant gift. And in Open Items: Looking for Someone with Experience with Gramm-Lach-Bliley Act Compliance
In other news:
- PCAOB Chair Goes on the Defensive
- U.S. to Forgive at Least $108 Billion in Student Debt in Coming Years
- Hipster Dads Now Want to Be Called ‘Papa’
- Harvard research suggests that an entire global generation has lost faith in democracy
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