Former President Donald Trump is going to the Supreme Court again, this time trying to stop him from submitting his tax return to the Congress Committee
Former President Donald Trump is going to the Supreme Court again, this time trying to stop him from submitting his tax return to the Congress Committee
former US president Donald Trump is going to Supreme CourtAgain, this time to try to prevent him from submitting his tax returns to the Congressional Committee.
In an emergency appeal filed on October 31, Trump wants the court to at least order the Democratic-controlled House Ways and Means Committee on the Treasury Department to turn over his return.
Lower courts ruled that the committee has broad authority to obtain tax returns and rejected Mr Trump’s claims that it was overstepping.
Mr Trump had sought the intervention of judges in a legal dispute arising out of the recent discovery of His Mar-a-Lago Property in Florida in August. The court dismissed that appeal.
If Mr. Trump can persuade the country’s highest court to intervene in the matter, he could potentially delay the final decision until the start of the next Congress in January. If Republicans regain control of the House in the fall election, they can drop the record request.
The House Ways and Means Panel and its chairman, Democrat Richard Neill of Massachusetts, first requested Mr Trump’s tax return in 2019 as part of an investigation into the Internal Revenue Service’s audit program and compliance with the tax law by the former president. A federal law says the Internal Revenue Service will “submit” any taxpayer’s return to a handful of top lawmakers.
The Justice Department under the Trump administration had defended a decision by then-Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to withhold tax returns from Congress. Mr Mnuchin argued that he could withhold the documents because he concluded they were being sought by Democrats for partisan reasons. A lawsuit ensued.
After President Joe Biden took office, the committee renewed the request, calling for Trump’s tax returns and additional information from 2015-2020. The White House took the stance that the request was valid and that the Treasury Department had no choice but to comply. Mr Trump then attempted to block the handover in court.
Then-Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. obtained copies of Mr. Trump’s personal and business tax records as part of the criminal investigation. That case also went to the Supreme Court, which rejected Mr Trump’s argument that he had broad leeway as president.