President Donald Trump has long bragged about becoming a self-made billionaire, saying he only borrowed $1 million from his father and paid him back with interest. | Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images White House Trump rips into The New York Times over tax schemes report

President Donald Trump on Wednesday criticized a New York Times investigation that alleged the president perpetuated a number of tax schemes and fraud during the 1990s to bolster the inheritance he received from his parents.

"The Failing New York Times did something I have never seen done before," Trump tweeted. "They used the concept of 'time value of money' in doing a very old, boring and often told hit piece on me. Added up, this means that 97% of their stories on me are bad. Never recovered from bad election call!"


The concept of time value of money is that money in the present time is worth more than the same amount in the future, but it's not clear why Trump fixated on that idea.

The report — which is based off of thousands of documents including tax returns from Fred Trump, the president's now-deceased father — revealed that Trump received $413 million in today's money from his father.

It also alleges that the business mogul and his siblings helped their parents dodge taxes through a number of measures, including setting up a “sham corporation,” taking improper tax deductions and undervaluing their real estate holdings.

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The president has long bragged about becoming a self-made billionaire, saying he only borrowed $1 million from his father and paid him back with interest.

Trump has refused to release his tax returns, citing an audit by the IRS.

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Tuesday evening also criticized the article, saying the Times "and other media outlets’ credibility with the American people is at an all time low because they are consumed with attacking the president and his family 24/7 instead of reporting the news.”