WATCH: Look who Ocasio-Cortez blames for her growing ‘unfavorability’
On Tuesday, House Ways and Means Committee Chair Richard Neal sent a letter to the IRS demanding that they turn over the President Donald Trump’s personal and business taxes for six years. They not only want the returns, they want all the files related to the taxes.
Republicans naturally blew a gasket saying that this was a political witch-hunt and abuse of power, unrelated to any legitimate legislative purpose and in violation of the law that protects the privacy of the taxes of citizens.
The president’s congressional allies registered immediate and fierce disapproval. The top Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee, Kevin Brady, R-Texas, wrote to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to decry what he called Democrats’ “abuse” of their authority.
“Weaponizing our nation’s tax code by targeting political foes sets a dangerous precedent and weakens Americans’ privacy rights, As you know, by law all Americans have a fundamental right to the privacy of the personal information found in their tax returns,” Brady said in the letter. “This particular request is an abuse of the tax-writing committees’ statutory authority, and violates the intent and safeguards of Section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code as Congress intended.”
That provision of tax law generally prohibits the disclosure of personal tax information.
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Brady added that while “transparency in our government is enormously important,” the “privacy and freedom” of all taxpayers is paramount — and that Congress should pass new disclosure laws if it sees a problem. Violating the privacy rights of one taxpayer, Brady asserted, “begins the process of eroding and threatening the privacy rights of all taxpayers
A spokesperson for Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) decried the request as a “politically-motivated fishing expedition” not in keeping with the reason the chairman has the power to make such a request.
Trump’s réponse was dismissive, stating that he was still under audit.
Informed of House Ways & Means request for his tax returns, @POTUS says he's still under audit. "I'm always under audit it seems," He said until he's no longer under audit, he's "not inclined" to release his returns. Though the Congressional request was to the IRS – not to him. pic.twitter.com/Ga3xsQIpxn
Pro tip to Ocasio-Cortez? This is an abuse of power that happens in socialist banana republics, not the United States where we actually have laws to protect citizens from this.
Let’s just hope that the laws properly prevent their new witch hunt.
Because if they don’t, this can devolve into a political weapon.
They couldn’t get him through Mueller so they’re desperate to cast around for other ways to take him out.
Trump had teased Democrats about Ocasio-Cortez saying that long-term Democrats were “petrified of her,” a “young bartender, wonderful young woman.”
