White House

President Trump's infamously elusive tax returns have reportedly seen the light of day -- and they appear to paint a portrait of Houdini-like tactics that have allegedly allowed DT to avoid paying income taxes for years ... and a grand total of $750 in his first year on the job.

The NYT claims to have obtained tax-return data extending over two decades, including 2016 and 2017 ... years they report Trump paid a paltry $750 in income taxes in each year. Prior to that -- for at least 10 of the previous 15 years -- NYT says Trump paid $0 in income tax.

An attorney for the Trump Organization disputed the Times' findings ... and called them inaccurate ... asserting Trump had paid tens of millions in personal taxes to the feds over the past decade, including millions more since announcing his candidacy is 2015.

The Times says the attorney appears to be conflating "personal taxes" with income taxes -- noting DT has paid taxes for Medicare, Social Security and taxes for household employees.

As for how it's possible that Trump could've avoided paying income taxes for all those years -- as the Times reports -- it's because, based on the filings they've reviewed, he reported losing more money than he made ... in what they characterize as "chronic losses."

As for how rich the dude actually is ... the Times says the returns show he does own hundreds of millions in valuable assets, but they also claim he's hundreds of millions in debt as well, debts they say are coming due soon. So, it's really unclear how much he's worth.

The Times also reports that the returns do not show anything not previously known about Trump and Russia as far as business dealings are concerned. Just a quick glance at how much dough the dude was rolling in back in the 2000s because of "The Apprentice" and the licensing deals that followed -- the NYT says it amounted to upwards of $427 million all in. They also say some of that money was reinvested into other businesses -- including golf courses -- which have hemorrhaged cash.

Now, Trump has already caught wind of the report -- and he's calling it the usual ... fake news.

Trump says he's currently under audit by the IRS -- which the Times confirms, and explains it could cost the Prez a whopping $100M if they find that a $72 mil tax credit he once claimed is illegitimate.

President Trump just officially tapped his pick for the next Supreme Court justice to replace the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg ... Judge Amy Coney Barrett.

The Prez nominated the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals judge Saturday, just over a week after RBG passed away from cancer. Barrett, a Trump appointee to the Circuit Court, was a Notre Dame law professor. He dished out her bona fides and respectable resume while naming her as his nominee, while also calling on the Senate to do their duty.

Barrett began her remarks by praising the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg for her laudatory and consequential life. She noted RBG smashed many glass ceilings.  And, she had words about her mentor -- the late Justice Antonin Scalia -- and how he helped shape her vision of the law and how he taught her about collegiality even with people who are polar opposites.

Barrett said she'd learned a lot from Scalia and promised -- if confirmed -- to uphold the letter of the law as written, without any personal bias or otherwise. She also thanked her husband and her 7 kids, all of whom eventually came up on stage to pose for a photo op with the First Family.

Some more background on Barrett ... she is a die-hard conservative justice, who is a deeply religious, practicing Catholic. She's opposed to abortion, but has said she thinks Roe vs. Wade is more likely to be reimagined than overruled. In common parlance, reimagined means whittling away at the precedent.

Trump urged the public and the media to refrain from personal or partisan attacks against Judge Barrett, with a nod to how nasty and contentious Justice Kavanaugh's confirmation was. Trump went on to praise Justice Ginsburg, and explained why Barrett was the best choice to replace her.

If she's confirmed by the Senate -- which is highly likely -- the Supreme Court will have a solid 6-3 majority. The stakes are enormous, with abortion rights, health care, LGBTQ rights and voting rights on the chopping block.

Barrett has long been considered for a Supreme Court seat with Trump in office ... she was on the shortlist to replace Anthony Kennedy when he retired in 2018, a seat that is now occupied by Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

It's interesting ... when Trump filled Kennedy's seat, he reportedly informed advisors he was "saving" Barrett just in case RBG left SCOTUS during his presidency.

Barrett graduated from Notre Dame School of Law. She was in private practice before becoming a law professor at George Washington University and then Notre Dame.

Barrett has been serving on the Chicago-based 7th Circuit Court of Appeals since 2017. She's ruled on a pair of abortion-related cases, both times in favor of restrictions on access to abortion.

One key issue she's made herself perfectly clear on is the Affordable Care Act, arguing the birth control mandate is unconstitutional and the ACA overall is an overreach and abuse of Congressional power.

"GET YOUR BOOTY TO THE POLL!!!"

That's the message a group of pole dancers is sending with this sexy and humorous PSA urging citizens to vote in this election.

The spot is super cheeky, for sure, but otherwise the strippers keep things PG-13 as they bust out their best pole moves while dropping some knowledge about why it's important to vote ... and not just for President.

The women point out, District Attorneys are responsible for prosecuting "dirty cops" -- and they run down lots of other county level offices, and public schooling issues all hanging in the balance when you vote.

Yeah, we know sex sells ... but these strippers are hoping it can also sell you on casting a ballot. Why else would one gyrate in a thong with "vote" written on one's butt cheeks?? Besides tips, that is.

As one interested polester puts it, hit the polls to make sure the people who will run your community have your best interests at heart.

Kodak Black is turning to Donald Trump for help ... he's begging the President to commute his prison sentence.

The rapper's attorneys, Bradford Cohen and Jonathan Schwartz, sent a petition to Trump, obtained by TMZ, asking the Prez to cut Kodak a break.

Kodak's camp has lots of reasons why Trump should commute his sentence ... Cohen points out Kodak was sentenced to 46 months behind bars in his federal gun case, and claims the average sentence for the same crime is 18 months.

As you know, Kodak's locked up in a maximum-security federal prison in Kentucky, but Cohen says it's not warranted ... he claims the Bureau of Prisons "erroneously" viewed Kodak as level 4 criminal history, paving the way for Kodak to be housed in a maximum-security facility. Cohen claims the judge only put Kodak at a level 2, which means he could be housed at a lower security prison.

Kodak's attorney's also argue he's being unfairly punished for assaulting a prison guard in Miami ... repeating their earlier claim that Kodak was set up and possibly drugged.

KB's legal team also claims he was punished twice for the incident with the guard in Miami ... Cohen says Kodak was only supposed to get a 6-month sentence, but instead ended up with year-long punishment, which has kept him in total lockdown since last September, resulting in no phone calls or visits from anyone but his attorneys.

Trump's also being asked to consider abuse Kodak's allegedly suffering in prison -- beatings at the hands of guards, religious suppression and mental abuse.

As we first told you ... Kodak's suing the Federal Bureau of Prisons for alleged torture and denial of access to a rabbi, which his attorney's claim is a violation of his constitutional rights.

Kodak's also hoping his good deeds go a long way toward swaying Trump ... Cohen cites the hundreds of thousands of dollars he's donated to charities over the years, including playing Santa, gift cards at Christmas, donations to underprivileged youth, helping folks in his neighborhood and paying for children's education.

It seems like a long shot, but there's this ... Cohen may have an in with Trump.

President Trump resorted to one of his favorite pastimes -- insulting women -- making a sexist comment about Meghan Markle ... all because she dared to encourage Americans to vote.

Meghan and Prince Harry have not officially endorsed any political candidates ... but the couple recently entered the convo by urging folks to cast their vote in November, which the Duchess of Sussex calls ... "the most important election of our lifetime."

Trump was asked about this at his Wednesday press briefing by a reporter who framed it as Meghan's words being an endorsement of Joe Biden ... and he did not respond kindly.

The Prez said, "I'm not a fan of hers," adding, "I wish a lot of luck to Harry, 'cause he's gonna need it."

Kanye West enlisted a small army of signature gatherers in several states in order to make the presidential ballot, and even though he spent a fortune ... he still came up short in spots where he dropped a lot of cash.

According to a source at Let the Voters Decide -- the 3rd-party petitioning group Kanye's been using this summer -- the rapper's campaign paid them between $3.5 and $4.5 MILLION across 15 states to send workers out for John Hancocks.

We've covered many of the individual states where the group has been dispersed on Kanye's behalf, but we're told one of the biggest chunks of money went toward Arizona -- where Ye allegedly dished out $1 million to get 93,000 signatures -- only to have a judge bar him from the ballot anyway.

The same is true in Ohio and Virginia -- where our source says Kanye's campaign allegedly spent $325k and $300k respectively to gather signatures ... only to not make the ballot.

As we reported, Kanye also spent at least $30k with LTVD in Illinois -- and that ended poorly for him -- and though it's unclear what he spent in Wisconsin ... he's currently been booted from the ballot in that state too for missing a deadline by just seconds.

Of course, without paying big bucks to Let the Voters Decide, he likely wouldn't have made the prez ballot in states like Kentucky -- where we're told he spent $400k -- or Iowa, where he dropped $80k. He's currently made the ballot in 12 states.

BTW -- the bill keeps growing for Ye, because as you recall, he's already reported $6 million he's spent and disclosed in his first financial report with the FEC earlier this month, which outlined various disbursements to other companies to get him on various ballots.

So, it begs the question ... is it all worth it? Kanye's running as an independent, but many believe his campaign is being fueled by pro-Trump operatives and having his name on the ballot will mostly hurt Joe Biden. Ye denies he's working with Trump and co.

Shortly before President Trump's North Carolina rally, a group of his supporters were rolling deep and screaming racist rhetoric in the streets, not too far from where he'd touch down.

A convoy of pickup trucks decorated with Trump 2020 stickers and American flags roared through downtown Elon, NC Saturday ... where some folks in their vehicles screamed out "white power!" to bystanders watching them go by. You hear it clearly, at least twice.

According to the Triad City Beat, which first posted the incident, a local professor was standing quietly on the corner -- which you can also see in the video -- holding a "Black Lives Matter" sign. That appears to be what triggered all the honking and hate speech.

TCB reports the convoy was organized by local neo-Confederate activist Gary Williamson.

Mind you, Trump held a rally in nearby Fayetteville, NC ... just a couple hours south of Elon.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wants folks to turn their despair over Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death into rocket fuel for November ... and she's got a step-by-step plan on how to do it.

AOC posted a lengthy video of herself addressing her constituents, fans and anyone who's willing to listen -- but, more importantly, anyone who's worried about what the death of RBG might mean for this election. She makes it clear ... the stakes are higher than ever.

She explains how some people might think there's nothing they can really do, but quickly corrects them and points out that EVERYONE can make a difference in their own small way. She's not talking in platitudes or vagueries ... she lays out specifics.

First off, AOC literally begs people to make sure they're properly registered to vote ... even if they think they're already good. It doesn't hurt to check and to update one's info.

She then touches on organizing, or at the very least ... supporting those who do organize on the ground. Then comes what might be her biggest and most doable suggestion -- lobbying people you know, and helping spread awareness in your own circles.

We'll let AOC speak for herself -- and frankly, it's worth watching her full, 41 minute-plus talk. Her overarching message ... everyone has someone only they can reach, and that in this crucial time, it's time to do that.

She also said this is an even bigger issue than voting for Biden ... it's about voting to preserve democracy.

TikTok users around the U.S. are probably sighing with relief, 'cause President Trump appears to now be cool with the social media app partnering up with Oracle and Walmart.

DT drastically changed his tune Saturday, telling reporters at the White House he'd given the deal his "blessing" while going on to sing Oracle and Walmart's praises as trustworthy partners in guarding Americans' data and privacy. Literally, a full, bizarre 180 here.

There were also some specifics ... like the fact the new, U.S., ran TikTok would likely be based out of Texas, and that a bunch of new jobs would result.

He went on to guarantee the American version of the app would NOT be in any way affiliated with China, and that security would be a top priority. Trump also said TikTok would be ponying up $5M in charity money toward education causes, and would pay a lot of taxes.

Just a day prior, Trump was promising TikTok, as well as WeChat, wouldn't be available to download come Sunday -- because he was unhappy with the initial terms Oracle and TikTok had come to last weekend.

TikTok had actually resorted to legal action to stop the de facto ban, but it would seem talks over the past 24 hours -- not to mention the inclusion of Walmart -- made the guy cozy up to the idea. So, in other words, banishment averted ... and influencers can carry on dancing.

TikTok itself appeared to confirm the news they weren't going anywhere, saying they were pleased that the deal had addressed Trump's national security concerns.

Somebody tried sending ricin to the White House, with the intent of having it received by President Trump ... this according to several reports.

The NYT, CNN and WSJ reported Saturday that, recently, federal authorities intercepted a package addressed to the White House with Trump as the target. Two different tests were reportedly done to confirm it was ricin ... a poisonous substance that can be lethal.

The package -- which is said to have arrived in an envelope of some sort -- was reportedly caught early at an off-site mail facility ... some outlets are saying it was sent from a Canadian address. No arrests have been made -- the FBI and the Secret Service are investigating.

This isn't the first time someone has tried sending the natural poison to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. -- in fact, a Navy vet admitted to doing it in 2018, only that time,  castor beans (from which ricin is derived) were shipped and he ended up getting caught and arrested for it.

Someone also tried sending ricin-laced letters to Barack Obama when he was in office, and got sentenced to 25 years in prison for it back in 2014. Ricin can kill someone by inhaling it, injecting or ingesting it. It was recently made famous and well-known in "Breaking Bad."

What one Michigander thought was a joke could possibly land them in legal trouble after they put a toilet in their front yard and instructed folks to leave their mail-in ballots inside.

This is wild ... a Democratic election official named Barb Byrum -- a clerk for Ingham County -- filed a police report ratting out a resident in the city of Mason who recently pulled this cringe-worthy stunt, which obviously isn't meant to be taken literally or seriously.

Doesn't matter though, because Byrum contends that what this person did -- telling folks (whether in jest or not) to drop off their ballots in her toilet via signage -- is actually illegal, and amounts to election tampering. Byrum says it's against the law to take illegal possession of an absentee ballot, and feels like this display could mislead people about the process.

So, in other words ... she's worried some doofus might actually come by and drop their ballots in the toilet, thinking this is a legit way of it being counted. Sounds crazy, but hey ... Barb here is just looking out for the newbies who might be voting for the first time.

If this sounds extreme and over the top ... let it be a sign of where we are in this country, with President Trump sewing doubt over the election process, especially as it pertains to mail-in voting. It would seem some people are trying to make a tongue-in-cheek gag out of it, but clearly the folks running the election process there on the ground don't find it funny.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death and President Trump's race to fill her seat isn't just a one-issue problem ... so says Lil Nas X, who fears big setbacks for the LGBTQ community.

LNX was leaving LAX Saturday when he told a photog how he felt about the Supreme Court Justice's passing, and what it could possibly forebode ahead of the election. He says he's worried a super-conservative justice could seriously hurt progress made for gay rights.

Check it out ... Nas X is a man of few words, but the ones he does drop are powerful and speak to the anxiety being felt by various marginalized groups.

Yes, the abortion/pro-choice battle is front and center and top of mind -- but the possible dismantling of gay marriage and other LGBTQ causes that have been pushed through SCOTUS in recent years is also a very real possibility if Trump gets his way.

They almost fought in line at a Vegas buffet in 2019 -- but UFC star Colby Covington and fighter manager Ali Abdelaziz have buried the hatchet in 2020 ... with a little help from Donald Trump.

First, some backstory!!!

Ali represents some of the biggest names in MMA -- from Khabib to Justin Gaethje, Kamaru Usman, Henry Cejudo and more.

Back in early 2019, Colby was trying to set up a welterweight title fight with Kamaru ... and the trash talk got so personal, things came to a head at the buffet at The Palms in Vegas.

Colby was in line ... and Ali gets in his face -- and Kamaru had to hold Abdelaziz back! Intense!!!

So, what happened since?

Ali -- along with Henry Cejudo and Justin Gaethje -- were invited to hang with Trump at his rally in Nevada on Sunday ... where Covington was also a VIP guest of the President.

Ali tells us ... since the two men were forced to hang out, they made the best of the situation and talked things out. And, as of now, they're cool.

"I don't hate the kid, I don't have no ill will towards him. He was there to represent the President, I was there to represent the President. If he fought Kamaru or Gilbert or any of my guys again, he becomes the enemy again, it's simple."

"But, right now he's not the enemy. He's a guy trying to make a name for himself."

As for meeting Trump, Ali says it was one of the highlights of his life -- and says Trump treated him like one of the boys!

There's more ... Ali also talked about the upcoming matchup between Kahbib and Gaethje (both are his clients) and explained why it could be one of the greatest fights in MMA history!

The Patagonia clothing brand taking a political stand is nothing new ... but the tags in its organic shorts are, and the message they're pushing is change.

The company is now confirming it's indeed putting a tag that reads, "VOTE THE ASSHOLES OUT" in some of its clothing. A pic of the tag spread like wildfire on Twitter last week, but no one knew if it was legit.

Brad Wieners, the company's director of copy, says ... "With an assist fm @BallotReady we've got a widget to help folks folo thru on that advice, too" followed by a link directing consumers to its website calling for Americans to vote climate deniers out of office.

Hmmm ... think they might be referring to President Trump?

You'll recall the current occupant of the White House most recently laughed off climate change during a wildfires briefing with California Governor Gavin Newsom.

Patagonia -- which closes its stores on Election Day -- and the Trump administration have been at odds for some time now. The company sued the administration in 2017 to protect national monuments. The company also donated the money it got from tax cuts to environmental groups.

James Otis -- best known as the guy who destroyed Donald Trump's Hollywood Walk of Fame star right before he was elected president -- is trying to do his part to make sure DT doesn't get re-elected ... by littering NYC with Trump's lies.

Otis -- who's also an heir to the Otis Elevator Company fortune -- made his way to the top of the Empire State Building Thursday morning and dropped thousands of gold flyers down upon the city.

Naturally, an employee caught him in the act and told him to stop and leave immediately, but as you can see ... the damage was already done.

We got the anti-Trump vandal after his stunt, and he tells us he didn't get in any serious trouble for the flyer drop ... suggesting he talked his way out of it.

Otis says he explained to the building authorities that what he did was a non-violent act to spread the word about President Trump's incessant lying ... and they were "cordial."

However, on the downside ... he says he's now banned for life from the Empire State Building.

As for the flyers, Otis says they were printed on both sides with more than 20,000 examples of lies Trump has told in office ... along with the fact-checking to refute them.

Examples include Trump quotes about tax-cutting, the economy, Joe Biden, protests and the VA Choice bill ... and those are just from the past few months. James says he dropped at least a couple thousand flyers.

As you'll recall ... Otis was charged with vandalism for the pickax stunt he pulled on October 26, 2016, to protest then-candidate Trump. He pled no contest in February 2017 and was sentenced to 3 years probation, community service and ordered to pay $4,400.

Jim Carrey is going toe-to-toe with Alec Baldwin on "Saturday Night Live" -- because he'll be the show's new Joe Biden heading into the election.

Showrunner and EP Lorne Michaels made the announcement Wednesday ... also sharing that Alec will return as President Trump, and so would Maya Rudolph, who played a hilarious version of Kamala Harris last time around.

But, on Biden -- who's been portrayed by Woody Harrelson and Jason Sudeikis of late -- Lorne told Vulture they were probably gonna give Jim a shot ... with conditions, it seems.

He says, "There was some interest on his part. And, then we responded, obviously, positively." He adds there were caveats, explaining ... "But, it came down to discussions about what the take was. He and Colin Jost had a bunch of talks. He and I as well. He will give the part energy and strength, and … [Laughs.] Hopefully it’s funny."

Oh, it's gotta be.

It's interesting that Lorne wanted to feel out how Jim would go about portraying the former Veep. The last time 'SNL' spoofed him ... they often made Biden out to be rambling, kooky and kinda creepy with his touchy-feely-ness.

Ya gotta wonder what the take will be now ... with the new backdrops of the coronavirus pandemic and Biden being the Democratic nominee.