Giuliani: Tax report proves Trump is a 'genius'

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) said Sunday that a New York Times report that shows Republican presidential nominee Donald TrumpDonald John TrumpFlynn to campaign for Montana GOP Senate candidate Trump considering pardon for boxing legend after call from Sylvester Stallone Decline in EPA enforcement won't keep climate bill from coming MORE may have legally avoided taxes for years shows the businessman is a “genius.”

“My response is he’s a genius ... [an] absolute genius,” Giuliani, a Trump adviser, said on ABC’s “This Week.”

“This was a perfectly legal application of the tax code, and he would’ve been a fool not to take advantage of it."

The New York Times reported late Saturday that a $916 million loss on Trump’s 1995 income tax returns could have allowed him to legally avoid paying any federal income tax for up to 18 years. 

“Not only that — he would have probably breached his fiduciary duty to his investors, his business,” Giuliani said Sunday.

“You have an obligation when you run a business to maximize the profits,” Giuliani said. “And if there is a tax law that says, 'I can deduct this,' you deduct it. If you fail to deduct it, people can sue you.”