This is a big defeat for Donald Trump. The US Supreme Court on Tuesday authorized the transfer of his congressional tax return, rejecting a last-minute appeal by the former Republican president. A decision that should allow Democrats to obtain the documents they have been asking for for more than three years, before handing them over to the Republicans in January.
Unlike all White House occupants since the 1970s, Donald Trump has consistently refused to release his tax returns and fought fiercely in the courts to block Congress’s request. It is these years as a candidate and as president, between 2015 and 2020, that are worrying.
Judicial ping pong
After so many episodes, at the end of October a federal appeals court had authorized the tax authorities to transmit these documents to the House committee. The real estate mogul then sent an urgent appeal to the US Supreme Court to block this move.
This had suspended the transmission of the documents on November 1, pending having the elements to decide on the merits. After receiving arguments from both sides, he finally rejected Donald Trump’s request on Tuesday. In accordance with his practices, she did not explain his motives.
Although it has been profoundly revised by the former president, the High Court has inflicted several counterattacks on the matter and in particular authorized in 2020 the transfer of financial documents to the New York justice who is investigating his affairs.
The commission will decide whether to make the documents public
Donald Trump’s lack of transparency, who has made his wealth an electoral argument, has fueled speculation for years about the size of his fortune or potential conflicts of interest.
However, it is said that the transfer of his tax records to Congress will lift the veil on the events of the seventy-year-old who has just announced his candidacy for the presidency in 2024.
The commission, which has asked for these tax returns to develop ethical rules about the business of presidents, is not expected to make them public. According to New York Times, the decision has not yet been made and will depend on what the documents reveal. For the Democrats, time is running out: in January, the Republicans will regain control and probably abandon this job.
