NorthJersey

Regarding “Obama’s speaking fee has precedent, and that’s regrettable” (Ruth Marcus column, May 2):

Former President Barack Obama, out of office now for only a few months, still carries a lot of political clout on the lecture circuit. As reported recently in The Record and elsewhere, he has quickly taken advantage of large political donors who are willing to pay him $400,000 for giving a speech. As Ruth Marcus points out, this particular speech was given as part of a health care conference.

All of which begs the question: Is this a speech that can be classified as a deductible business expense? If a Wall Street firm gave a retirement party and paid for food, the food would clearly be a deductible expense. But when a Wall Street firm gives Obama $400,000 for a “speech” that is really a “political gift” masquerading as a “speech,” then in my view our tax laws are being broken.

Speeches are tax-deductible and can reduce income taxes paid by the company paying for the speech 100 percent. Obama will have to report the “speech” as “ordinary income.” But laws should be changed that examine the content of an “alleged speech,” along with the circumstances of an “alleged speech” and amount paid for such an “alleged speech.”

If the cost of the speech is deducted illegally from their income taxes because it is really a political gift, ordinary Americans like me are being screwed when we all pay taxes honestly. Excessive speech fees really are nothing more than a political gift, and we all know that. It should have a limit in dollars as to the tax-deductibility.

The same applies to excessive advances on “book deals” that are phony advances not based on any possible earnings a book will make. I am asking President Donald Trump to include this clarification in his new tax proposals.

David F. Lipton

Toms River, May 9