The president’s refusal to release those financial documents has dogged him for years.
President Donald Trump has filed a request with the U.S. Supreme Court, asking it to stop a subpoena seeking the release of his tax returns, several outlets reported Thursday.
The request his lawyers filed is a last-ditch effort to reverse a lower court ruling directing his accountants to give New York prosecutors eight years of his tax returns, which he has long refused to make public, despite precedent set by every other modern president.
The move comes weeks after a federal appeals court shut down Trump’s claims that presidents are immune from criminal investigation and ruled that his accounting firm, Mazars, must comply with the subpoena from Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr.
Trump is asking the court to decide the case by late June, The Associated Press reported, in compliance with a deal he made with Vance, who agreed not to enforce the subpoena if Trump immediately asked the Supreme Court to hear the case this term.
Pressure on Trump to release his tax returns, which would shed important light on any conflicts of interest he may have, is at a high this week. On Wednesday, an appeals court ruled in a separate case that Congress has the right to access his tax returns.
Given Wednesday’s development, The Washington Post reported, chances are high the Supreme Court will agree to hear the case. However, it cannot make that decision for another month.
If the court declines, the accounting firm will have to hand over the documents to Vance, who is investigating whether Trump made alleged hush money payments to two women prior to the 2016 election who said they had sexual relationships with him ― something the president has vehemently denied.
HUFFPOST.COM
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-supreme-court-tax-returns_n_5dcdd247e4b01f982efed920
