Trump’s daughter-in-law says his poll numbers are rising amid trial

NEWS AND OPINION:

News Nation’s “Morning in America” show had a noteworthy question for Republican National Committee Co-Chair Lara Trump, who is also the daughter-in-law of former President Donald Trump.

The news organization was curious. How is the Trump family faring as the trial continues — and will the trial affect campaign fundraising?

“This is not the first time that my father-in-law has found himself in an unprecedented and completely unwarranted situation like this. And I think it just shows you really how strong this man is, that not only is he able to face these things and call them out for really how egregiously wrong they truly are, but every time you see this sort of thing happen to him, his poll numbers go up,” Ms. Trump replied.

“In the four weeks since I took the RNC as co-chair, we raised $100 million. And by the way, 98% of that were donations under $200. What that says is the average person in this country is behind this man,” she added.

“They want to see him win because they don’t care about these court cases. They care about getting their country back,” Ms. Trump said.

6.5 billion hours

Well, April 15 has come and gone. The National Taxpayers Union Foundation, however, has marked the passage of the day by releasing its annual “tax complexity study,” which uses the latest IRS data to estimate the compliance and time burdens associated with filing income tax returns.

Brace yourself.

“The numbers are staggering: Americans have spent 6.5 billion hours preparing their income tax returns, with an opportunity cost of over $280 billion for preparation alone. The average American individual income tax return now takes 9 hours to complete,” the foundation said in a report shared with Inside the Beltway.

“The compliance burden rose in the most recent tax year data, with Americans spending 33 million more hours to complete and file their 1040 forms above the previous year. The tax code clocked in at 4.2 million words, with IRS regulations comprising more than 12 million more,” the report said.

“In total, the economic burden imposed by tax code compliance reaches $414 billion. To put this figure into context, this is larger than the 2023 revenues of all but two U.S. companies: Amazon ($554 billion) and Walmart ($639 billion). On the other hand, Americans expected to spend $214 billion on summer vacations in 2023,” wrote Demian Brady, vice president of research for the foundation and author of the study.

“With the cost of the compliance burden, taxpayers could have nearly tripled their time off! Taxpayers would probably much rather be spending their hard-earned money and free time on vacation than poring over records to head off a tax audit. Meanwhile, the cumulative 6.5 billion hours spent each year on taxes would stretch out to over 742.5 thousand years,” he said.

Five words of advice

The Republican National Committee is warning the public to “brace for impact” thanks to President Biden’s recent call for — among other things — a record-breaking $4.9 trillion tax increase and a higher business tax rate than can be found in China.

Five words could center that, however.

“Mr. Biden already broke his promise not to raise taxes, so what’s to stop him from doing it again? Electing President Trump in November,” said Jake Schneider, director of rapid response for the committee.

Political perils

Get ready. We have more big numbers for you today.

Spending on political advertising this election year is expected to reach a record $15.9 billion, up 30% since the 2019-2020 election cycle, according to GroupM, a large advertising agency that provides media strategies and also tracks the data and the revenue during election time.

Meanwhile, the National Association of Broadcasters — NAB for short — has a message for those in the business of effectively communicating with voters.

“A growing tide of misinformation is running rampant on social media, often disguised as harmless memes and posts, threatening to drown out reliable sources and erode public trust in accurate information. From manipulated photos to fabricated news articles, the rise of misinformation poses a complex challenge, especially during election season,” the organization said in a message to its membership.

“In this environment, broadcasters’ commitment to driving civic participation and educating voters has become even more critical. You can make a powerful impact. When it comes to informing and motivating citizens, no platform is more trusted than broadcast television and radio. Local stations and broadcast networks serve a vital role in helping Americans appreciate the importance of exercising their right to participate in the democratic process,” the NAB said.

It has also provided the broadcasters with an NAB Election Toolkit — which offers ideas to help promote voter registration, education and turnout, and ways to curb intentional “rising misinformation as well as disinformation” meant to mislead the public.

“By making election issues and candidates a cornerstone of your on-air and online programming, you give your listeners and viewers the political knowledge and facts they need to cast an informed vote. Thank you for engaging and educating Americans in the electoral process. Your trusted and verified reporting is the foundation of our democracy,” the message concluded.

Poll du jour

• 44% of U.S. adults “strongly disapprove” of the way President Biden is handling his job as president; 82% of Republicans, 48% of independents and 4% of Democrats agree.

• 22% “somewhat approve” of the way he is handling his job; 5% of Republicans, 16% of independents and 44% of Democrats agree.

• 15% “somewhat disapprove”; 10% of Republicans, 21% of independents and 12% of Democrats agree.

• 15% “strongly approve”; 3% of Republicans, 5% of independents and 36% of Democrats agree.

• 5% are not sure how they feel about the issue; 0% of Republicans, 10% of independents and 4% of Democrats agree.

Source: An Economist/YouGov poll of 1,795 U.S. adults conducted April 6-9.

• Contact Jennifer Harper at jharper@washingtontimes.com. Follow her on X at @Harper Bulletin, on Facebook @HarperUniverse.