Oct. 31 (UPI) — Former President Donald Trump turned to the Supreme Court Monday as a last-ditch effort to keep his tax returns from the eyes of a House committee.
Trump asked the high court to block the House Ways and Means Committee from uncovering his tax returns. The committee has sought the former president’s tax records since 2019 while he was still in office.
“The committee’s purpose in requesting President Trump’s tax returns has nothing to do with funding or staffing issues at the IRS and everything to do with releasing the president’s tax information to the public,” Trump’s lawyers said in a filing to the court.
On Thursday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia affirmed the House’s authority to request Trump’s tax returns, rejecting his attempt to block the House. In response to the decision, committee Chairman Rep. Richard Neal,” D-Mass., issued a statement, saying Trump was trying to “delay the inevitable.”
“The law has always been on our side. Former President Trump has tried to delay the inevitable, but once again, the Court has affirmed the strength of our position. We’ve waited long enough — we must begin our oversight of the IRS’s mandatory presidential audit program as soon as possible,” Neal said in a statement from the committee.
Trump’s tax returns will be disclosed, possibly as soon as Nov. 3, if the Supreme Court does not intervene.
Trump has drawn criticism for not to releasing his tax returns either during his first campaign or while serving in office. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris released their tax returns during their 2020 campaign. There is not a law requiring the president or presidential candidates to release their tax returns, though it has become a custom.
Conservatives hold a 6-3 majority in the Supreme Court. Three of the judges were appointed by Trump.
Rep. Neal formally began the process of uncovering Trump’s tax returns. The Treasury Department did not comply with requests for the tax documents while Trump was in office. After President Biden took office, the department changed direction and agreed to comply.
The tax returns could reveal the nature of Trump’s various business dealings before and during his presidency. Meanwhile, the Trump Organization is on trial in New York for allegedly paying its top executives under the table in a scheme to avoid paying taxes.
