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U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts on Tuesday temporarily blocked access to former President Donald Trump’s tax returns by a U.S. House of Representatives committee, effectively suspending the fight against the lawmakers’ demands, which he claimed were politically motivated.
The chief justice’s order maintains the status quo while the Supreme Court assesses Trump’s emergency request Monday to block a lower court ruling that upheld a House panel’s request for tax materials as a legitimate part of its legislative work, while his lawyers prepared appeal.
Roberts ordered the Democratic-led House Ways and Means Committee to respond to Trump’s bid by Nov. 10. That came two days after the U.S. midterm elections in which Trump’s fellow Republicans sought to regain control of Congress.
The legal battle has been ongoing since the committee sued Trump in 2019 over mandatory disclosure of tax returns. Trump is the first president in four years not to release his tax returns as he aims to keep details of his wealth and the activities of his company, the Trump Organization, secret.
Allowing the lower court’s ruling to uphold would “undermine the separation of powers and make the Office of the President vulnerable to intrusive requests for information from political opponents in the legislative branch,” Trump’s lawyers wrote, referring to the division of power between the three branches. American government.
The lawyers added that the purpose of the committee was to “release President Trump’s tax information to the public for the sake of publicity.”
In its request, the committee cited a federal law that empowers its chairman to request anyone’s tax return from the IRS.
House Democrats have said they need Trump’s tax returns to see whether the IRS properly audited the president’s tax returns and to assess whether new legislation is needed. Trump’s lawyers called the explanation “excuse” and “dishonest,” saying its real purpose was to unearth politically damaging information about Trump, who is considering running for president again in 2024.
Trump-appointed U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden sided with Congress in December 2021 and dismissed the case, finding the committee has broad powers over the former president’s tax returns.
McFadden wrote in his ruling that Trump was “legally wrong.”
“The Supreme Court’s long list of cases requires great deference to ostensibly valid congressional investigations. Even a special focus on the former president won’t change the outcome,” McFadden added.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit also ruled against Trump in August, concluding that “every president comes into office knowing that he will be treated the same as all other citizens when he leaves office.” the law.” On October 27, the DC Circuit declined to rehearse.
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