The Democratic-controlled House Ways and Means Committee is expected to vote Tuesday on whether to publicly release years of Donald Trump ‘s tax returns, which the former president has long tried to shield.
Richard Neal (D-Mass.), Chairman of the Committee, has been closely monitoring the actions of the panel, and whether it will be meeting in public or private sessions. It’s not clear how fast lawmakers will release returns if they move ahead with their plans.
After a long battle, the Supreme Court finally cleared the way for the Treasury Department last month to submit the returns to Congress. Democrats now feel the need to take action. Six years worth of returns on Trump’s tax returns were provided to the committee. With only two weeks until Republicans take full control of the House in November, Tuesday’s meeting may be their last chance to share any information that they might have.
Trump’s relationship to his personal income taxes has been complicated for a long time.
He broke decades-old precedent when he refused to make his tax returns public as a 2016 presidential candidate. In 2016, he claimed that he was smart because he didn’t pay federal taxes. Later, he said that he would not personally be able to benefit from 2017 tax cuts that favor people of extreme wealth. He asked Americans to just take his word for it.
His tax records could have served as a helpful metric to judge his business success. The reputation of being a successful businessman is key to his political image, which he developed during his time as an Apprentice star and tabloid anchor. You could also reveal financial debts, including those from abroad that may have an impact on how you govern.
However, Americans were mostly unaware of Trump’s relationship to the IRS up until September 2018 and September 2020 when The New York Times published separate series that were based on tax records leaked by the IRS.
Pulitzer Prize winning 2018 articles revealed that Trump was awarded a modern equivalent to $413 million through his father’s realty holdings. Most of this money came from “tax dodges” of the 1990s. In 2021, Trump filed a lawsuit against the Times and Mary Trump’s niece for providing records to the paper. Mary Trump requested an appeals court in November to reverse a decision by a judge to deny her claim that her uncle, and his two siblings, defrauded the newspaper of millions of dollars.
According to 2020 articles, Trump only paid $750 federal income tax in 2017 and 2018. Trump did not pay any income taxes in any of his 15 previous years, as he lost more than he earned.
These articles revealed deep inequalities in America’s tax code. Trump was a multi-billionaire who paid very little federal income taxes. According to IRS data, the average taxpayer paid approximately $12,200 for 2017 – 16 times less than what the ex-president paid.
Tax filings also included details about Trump’s foreign income and his debt levels, which Trump dismissed as fake news.
Neal stated that Trump’s oversight of a federal agency, which he had also battled with legal documents at the time of 2020 articles was an ethical issue.
Neal stated in 2020, “Now Donald Trump is boss of the agency that he regards as an enemy.” It is vital that the IRS presidential audit program remains free from interference.
After a long legal battle that saw two trips to Supreme Court, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office obtained tax records for Trump in February 2021.
In 2019, the office was led by Cyrus Vance Jr. as District Attorney. They sought access to Trump’s eight-years worth of tax returns.
After Trump’s ex-personal lawyer Michael Cohen disclosed to Congress that Trump had deceived tax officials and insurers regarding the worth of his assets, the DA’s Office issued the subpoena. These allegations were the basis of the fraud suit that Letitia James, New York’s Attorney General filed in September against Trump and his firm.
Donald Bender (Trump’s long-time accountant) testified that Trump had reported tax losses every year since 2009, which included nearly $700M in 2009, and $200M in 2010.
Bender was a Mazars USA LLP partner who prepared Trump’s tax returns for years. He said that Trump reported his losses between 2009 and 2018 including net operating losses from certain businesses he has through the Trump Organization.
Trump Organization was earlier this month convicted of tax fraud for helping executives avoid taxes on company-paid perks like apartments and luxurious cars.
Alvin Bragg (current Manhattan District Attorney) told The Associated Press last week that the office is continuing its investigation into Trump’s businesses.
Bragg stated, “We are going to keep our jobs and follow the facts.”
Trump refused to reveal his tax returns in 2016 and during his four-year tenure as President while also claiming that the IRS was auditing him. He has since argued that there’s little to be learned from his tax returns, even though he has tried to keep them secret.
He complained that tax returns are useless and that it was illegal for him to give them away if they were not his.
Republicans have, however, protested against any possible release and argued that it would create a dangerous precedent.
Rep. Kevin Brady, Texas’ Republican leader of the Ways and Means Committee, said that Democrats had “unleashed a dangerous new politically weapon that reaches beyond President Trump and jeopardizes every American’s privacy.”
Brady stated in a statement that partisans within Congress now have almost unlimited power to attack political enemies, making public the private tax returns of their opponents to discredit and embarrass them. We urge Democrats not to use this new dangerous political tool against the American people, as they rush to attack former President Trump.
