Story highlights Trump promised during the presidential campaign to release his returns

White House released figures Tuesday ahead of MSNBC interview

Washington (CNN) President Donald Trump paid $38 million in taxes on income of more than $150 million in 2005, the White House confirmed on Tuesday.

Trump made a "large-scale" write-off for construction losses in 2005, the White House said, in response to questions about a partial disclosure of his tax return from that year.

He also paid "millions of dollars in other taxes such as sales and excise taxes and employment taxes," an official said, without giving further details.

The White House published its statement just before material from Trump's 2005 tax return was disclosed by journalist David Cay Johnston on his website and on MSNBC.

BREAKING: We've got Trump tax returns. Tonight, 9pm ET. MSNBC.



(Seriously). — Rachel Maddow MSNBC (@maddow) March 14, 2017

The White House said the publication was illegal. "You know you are desperate for ratings when you are willing to violate the law to push a story about two pages of tax returns from over a decade ago," the official said Tuesday. Trump, himself, weighed in on the matter Wednesday morning, tweeting, "Does anybody really believe that a reporter, who nobody ever heard of, 'went to his mailbox' and found my tax returns? @NBCNews FAKE NEWS!"

Does anybody really believe that a reporter, who nobody ever heard of, "went to his mailbox" and found my tax returns? @NBCNews FAKE NEWS! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 15, 2017

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