Trump Lawyers Say He Had No Russian Income or Debt, With Some Exceptions -<br />By MARK LANDLER and ERIC LIPTONMAY 12, 2017<br />WASHINGTON — President Trump’s lawyers say his income tax returns do not show income from Russian sources or debt owed to Russians, with the exception of $95 million paid by a Russian billionaire for a Trump-owned estate in Florida<br />and $12.2 million in payments in connection with holding the Miss Universe pageant in Moscow in 2013.<br />“Much of what we need to know about Trump and Russian money — and<br />that includes money from Kazakhstan, Turkey and other places where Russian oligarchs operate — involves transactions prior to 10 years ago.”<br />Still, the details in the letter are generally consistent with what Mr. Trump’s sons, Eric<br />and Donald Jr., have said in recent interviews regarding income associated with Russian entities.<br />It leaves other questions unanswered, including whether Mr. Trump or his firms received Russian income or loans from entities<br />registered elsewhere or whether he derived income from Russian-linked partnerships that file their own returns.<br />The president referred to the Florida estate and the Miss Universe pageant in the interview,<br />but said the letter — “from one of the most prestigious law firms in the country” — demonstrated “that I have nothing to do with Russia<br />Mr. Trump’s sons also acknowledged that wealthy Russians were often bidders on Trump Organization condominiums, in apparent contrast to the lawyers’ statement<br />that any other Russian income from real estate sales was immaterial.
