Democrats vote to release six years of Trump’s tax returns

[mystery-ak]

 Democrats vote to release six years of Trump’s tax returns
by Tobias Burns - 12/20/22 7:50 PM ET

Democrats on the main tax-writing committee in the House voted during a closed-door meeting on Tuesday to make six years of former President Trump’s tax returns public — the culmination of years of Democratic efforts to obtain Trump’s financial records and a move that Republicans view as a provocation as they assume control of the House.

The returns encompass years 2015 to 2020 and could be released within a few days, Ways and Means leader Richard Neal (D-Mass.), said Wednesday night after the vote. The returns will be attached to a package of two reports from the Ways and Means Committee to the broader Congress about the presidential audit system of the IRS.

The committee voted along party lines, 24-16, to make the returns public, with Democrats voting in favor and Republicans voting against.

Republicans blasted the decision to release the returns, warning that the move will usher in a new era of disclosing personal financial documents as a “political weapon.”

more
https://thehill.com/policy/finance/3782750-democrats-vote-to-release-six-years-of-trumps-tax-returns/

[mystery-ak]

 Brady warns Trump tax return precedent could extend to Supreme Court justices
by Zach Schonfeld - 12/20/22 5:06 PM ET

House Ways and Means Committee ranking member Kevin Brady (R-Texas) warned Tuesday that Democrats’ potential decision to release former President Trump’s tax returns could set a precedent for lawmakers making public those of Supreme Court justices.

Speaking moments before the committee went into closed session on Tuesday to discuss the documents — protected by a rule under which Democrats were able to obtain Trump’s tax records from the Treasury Department — Brady said a potential decision to release a private citizen’s returns would be a “dangerous” political weapon.

“Going forward, the majority chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee will have nearly unlimited power to target and make public the tax returns of private citizens,” Brady said at a news conference.

“And not just private citizens,” he continued. “Political enemies, business and labor leaders or even the returns of Supreme Court justices themselves. No party in Congress should have that power. No individuals in Congress could have that power. It’s the power to embarrass, to harass or destroy Americans through disclosure of their tax returns.”

The committee remained in closed session as of early Tuesday evening, and lawmakers could vote at Tuesday’s meeting to publicly release Trump’s tax return information. 

The committee recently received access to the former president’s tax returns between 2015 and 2020 after a years-long legal battle that culminated in an order from the Supreme Court, which paved the way for lawmakers to access the documents.

more
https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3782697-brady-warns-trump-tax-return-precedent-could-extend-to-supreme-court-justices/

[Hoodat]

The Democrats vote to upend current IRS laws, but only for one person.  That is a bill of attainder - a clear violation of the US Constitution.


Democrats:  Opposing Equal Protection since 1836

[Hoodat]

26 U.S. Code § 6103 - Confidentiality and disclosure of returns and return information

(a)General rule

Returns and return information shall be confidential, and except as authorized by this title—

(1)no officer or employee of the United States,
(2)no officer or employee of any State, any local law enforcement agency receiving information under subsection (i)(1)(C) or (7)(A), any local child support enforcement agency, or any local agency administering a program listed in subsection (l)(7)(D) who has or had access to returns or return information under this section or section 6104(c), and
(3)no other person (or officer or employee thereof) who has or had access to returns or return information under subsection (c), subsection (e)(1)(D)(iii), paragraph (10), (13), (14), or (15) of subsection (k), paragraph (6), (10), (12), (13) (other than subparagraphs (D)(v) and (D)(vi) thereof), (16), (19), (20), or (21) of subsection (l), paragraph (2) or (4)(B) of subsection (m), or subsection (n),
shall disclose any return or return information obtained by him in any manner in connection with his service as such an officer or an employee or otherwise or under the provisions of this section. For purposes of this subsection, the term “officer or employee” includes a former officer or employee.

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/26/6103

[Right_in_Virginia]

House Ways and Means Committee votes to release Trump's tax returns
CBS, Dec 20, 2022

...six years of former President Donald Trump's tax returns will be released by the Democratic-controlled House Ways and Means Committee, which voted 24-16 on Tuesday to release the years of tax records Trump has has long tried to shield.

The vote was along party lines.

After a years-long legal battle, the Supreme Court cleared the way last month for the Treasury Department to send the returns to Congress. The committee received six years of tax returns for Trump and some of his businesses. Democrats are under pressure to act quickly, since only two weeks remain until Republicans take control of the House of Representatives.

https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/trump-tax-returns-release-vote-house-ways-and-means-committee/

[Right_in_Virginia]

Did the court say Congress could release them?

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

They will either officially be released or they will be leaked... doesn't matter.

[Smokin Joe]

They will either officially be released or they will be leaked... doesn't matter.

So he should sue every one of the people who voted for this, either way.
or leak the Schumer's, the Biden crime family, and the Pelosi gang's info, too.

[kevindavis007]

Just saying:


https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/297009-trump-mocked-romney-for-not-releasing-taxes-until-sept-21/

[LMAO]

Just saying:


https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/297009-trump-mocked-romney-for-not-releasing-taxes-until-sept-21/

@kevindavis007

Lol….ouch

A presidents tax returns is probably way on the bottom of the list of reasons  people will or won’t vote for any candidate. But whats good for the goose is also good for the gander.

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

So he should sue every one of the people who voted for this, either way.
or leak the Schumer's, the Biden crime family, and the Pelosi gang's info, too.

No, can't sue someone for voting one way or the other, no matter how atrocious the vote is. I will say the same thing I've been saying for a while now, the people have to solve this somehow.

[BellyAche]

Definitely a sticky privacy issue in releasing these. A report from the committee about the returns was released, and that should be sufficient. It describes enough for knowledgeable folks to sink their teeth into. But the actual tax returns?? The media is repeating the fact that all presidents since Nixon voluntarily released the returns and now they're forcing the issue with Trump, who volunteers nothing and litigates everything.

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

Just saying:


https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/297009-trump-mocked-romney-for-not-releasing-taxes-until-sept-21/

Yeah, there's also that.

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

Definitely a sticky privacy issue in releasing these. A report from the committee about the returns was released, and that should be sufficient. It describes enough for knowledgeable folks to sink their teeth into. But the actual tax returns?? The media is repeating the fact that all presidents since Nixon voluntarily released the returns and now they're forcing the issue with Trump, who volunteers nothing and litigates everything.

Why not leave it up to the voters? I don't understand that I guess.

[Bigun]

Can anyone explain to me why we even have tax returns?  Can't the government collect its taxes without having to negate the fourth and fifth amendments?

[cato potatoe]

I'm reading the summary, and my first impression is he had a good reason to keep the returns private.  $4,295,098 of tax over the course of six years isn't much for a purported billionaire who reports his income using pass-through entities.  Over the same period he took advantage of $20M worth of credits with far more carried into future years.  He carried a $105M NOL into 2015.  In addition, he has substantial cancellation of debt income which is bound to be picked through.

https://waysandmeans.house.gov/sites/democrats.waysandmeans.house.gov/files/documents/jctreport.pdf

[DefiantMassRINO]

I guess there's an obscure IRS regulation on the books since the late 1970s that says the IRS is to audit every current President's tax returns ... some Congressmen are looking to have this codified in a law.

[Hoodat]

Just saying:

https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/297009-trump-mocked-romney-for-not-releasing-taxes-until-sept-21/

Blatant hypocrisy does not excuse Congressional Reps from violating US law as well as the Constitution of the United States.

[Hoodat]

I guess there's an obscure IRS regulation on the books since the late 1970s that says the IRS is to audit every current President's tax returns ... some Congressmen are looking to have this codified in a law.

Auditing is one thing.  Releasing those returns to the public is entirely different.  If there was anything in those returns that runs afoul of the law, Trump would have already been busted on it.

[Hoodat]

Why not leave it up to the voters? I don't understand that I guess.

If it was left up to the voters, Trump would still be in office.

[Hoodat]

@kevindavis007

Lol….ouch

A presidents tax returns is probably way on the bottom of the list of reasons  people will or won’t vote for any candidate. But whats good for the goose is also good for the gander.

So when do we get to see Fauci's tax returns?

[Free Vulcan]

Dems may regret crossing that Rubicon.

[Hoodat]

Dems may regret crossing that Rubicon.

No, they won't.  A Republican committee won't be releasing any Democrat returns.  Some district court judge will block it from happening.

[mystery-ak]

Read how much Trump paid — or didn’t pay — in taxes each year
Published Tue, Dec 20 202211:22 PM ESTUpdated 37 Min Ago
thumbnail
Dan Mangan
@_DanMangan

The amount of income, deductions and taxes paid by or refunded to former President Donald Trump while serving in the White House was detailed in a new report released Tuesday night.

The report reveals that Trump on his federal tax returns declared negative income in 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2020, and that he paid a total of $1,500 in income taxes for the years 2016 and 2017.

On their 2020 income tax returns, Trump and his wife Melania paid no federal income taxes and claimed a refund of $5.47 million, according to the report by the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation.

The report was posted online shortly after the Ways and Means Committee voted to make public redacted versions of Trump’s full income tax returns, and those of eight related business entities for the tax years 2015 through 2020.

Those full returns are expected to be released in the coming days.

excerpt:

The report identifies different areas that the staff thought warranted further examination, such as documentation of nearly $506,000 in charitable donations claimed by the Trumps in 2019.

Highlights of the report include:

    On their 2015 federal return, Trump and his wife declared negative income of $31.7 million, with taxable income of $0. The couple paid federal income taxes of $641,931.
    The 2016 return declared negative income of $31.2 million, with zero dollars of taxable income. The Trumps paid $750 in taxes.
    The 2017 return declared negative income $12.8 million, with $0 in taxable income. The couple paid $750 in taxes.
    The 2018 return declared total income of $24.4 million, with taxable income of $22.9 million. The Trumps paid $999,466 in federal income taxes.
    In 2019, the Trumps declared $4.44 million in total income, and $2.97 million in taxable income. They paid $133,445 in taxes.
    The 2020 return shows negative income of $4.69 million, with zero dollars in taxable income. The tax paid by the Trumps was $0 and they claimed a refund of $5.47 million.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/12/21/trump-income-tax-returns-detailed-in-new-report-.html

[Hoodat]

    The 2020 return shows negative income of $4.69 million, with zero dollars in taxable income. The tax paid by the Trumps was $0 and they claimed a refund of $5.47 million.

So to comply with IRS regulations, the Trumps paid $5.47 million to the IRS in a year where they would owe no tax.  And the IRS was forced to refund them the $5.47 million that they had paid.

This is worded to make it look like the Trumps got a $5.47 million windfall from taxpayers when in reality it was Trump's money to begin with.