President Trump stirred up a Twitter tornado this morning, taking aim at NFL anthem protests while calling for change in tax laws that favor the failing league, echoing calls already being raised by other GOP lawmakers.
Why is the NFL getting massive tax breaks while at the same time disrespecting our Anthem, Flag and Country? Change tax law!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 10, 2017
“Why is the NFL getting massive tax breaks while at the same time disrespecting our Anthem, Flag and Country?” he asked rhetorically. “Change tax law!”
The National Football League operated as a tax exempt, non-profit organization until 2015 when they relinquished that designation amidst pressure from lawmakers and the public, resulting in a relatively nominal tax burden of approximately $10-$15 million per year – less than half of commissioner Roger Goodell’s approximately $35 million annual salary.
The President’s critics have cited this detail in their attempts to counter his statement, but fail to recognize that the league and its teams still enjoy a variety of other loopholes and breaks – specifically those that pertain to the construction of new stadiums.
A report by Watchdog.org estimates that NFL teams have made off with around $7 billion in subsidies in the last 20-30 years via stadium costs footed by taxpayers.
Additionally, when arena-building expenses for other major sports leagues are taken into account, taxpayers have been fleeced for over $15 billion during the same period, according to a study done by the College of the Holy Cross on “Financing Professional Sports Facilities.”
“Far from pumping money into the local economy, stadium subsidies are merely shifting money from ordinary taxpayers to large corporations,” reads the study. “We’re taking money away from some parts of town so that business can boom closer to the stadium. And the small increase in tourism that the stadiums generally attract doesn’t come close to covering what the public pays to make it happen.”
“It’s a false investment that we’re being forced to make, and it’s no wonder we’re not seeing a return.”
A similar study done last year by the Brookings Institute reports, “All together, the federal government has subsidized newly constructed or majorly renovated professional sports stadiums to the tune of $3.2 billion federal taxpayer dollars since 2000. But because high-income bond holders receive a windfall gain for holding municipal bonds, the resulting loss in total revenue to the federal government is even larger at $3.7 billion.”
Legislation was introduced this summer designed to block federal funding for future stadium construction, and as Americans ranging in social status from the average Joe to the President become more frustrated and disgusted with the behavior of athletes advancing the anti-American globalist agenda, support for defunding these bloated projects is likely to increase.
A poll released by Fox earlier this week revealed that the NFL is now the least popular of top professional or collegiate sports.
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