# Why would Congress make Trump's tax returns public? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [December 20, 2022, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859 "2022-12-20T18:29:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/1 "2022-12-20T18:29:29Z")
I understand the needs for Congress to get Trump’s tax returns. But how could they justify making them public? I read they will be voting on whether to do that today (Dec 20). Don’t get me wrong, I’d love to see them published. I just don’t understand the rationale. ---
**Author:** ![Thing.Fish](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thing.fish/32/9168_2.png) [@Thing.Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing.Fish)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/2 "2022-12-20T18:34:39Z")
Hopefully because there are things in there that will further increase public support for his prosecution. ---
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/3 "2022-12-20T18:39:49Z")
Because most US presidents already do it as a courtesy since they have nothing to hide. Trump promised to release his tax returns and then never did claiming he was under IRS audit. He could have released them years ago if he wanted to. Perhaps he’s hiding something he doesn’t want the American people to see, but that’s just a wild ass guess. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/4 "2022-12-20T19:25:16Z")
the committee will give their decision around 3pm today… this year’s solstice just keeps getting better! ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/5 "2022-12-20T20:18:45Z")
> [@rocking\_chair](#): > > committee will give their decision around 3pm today There was a live feed but I think it just shut down as they cleared the room. > **[WATCH: House committee to release report on Trump's tax returns](https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-live-house-ways-and-means-committee-votes-on-release-of-donald-trumps-tax-returns)** > > The Democratic-controlled House Ways and Means Committee has voted along party lines to publicly release a report on Donald Trump's tax returns, which the former president has long tried to shield. ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/6 "2022-12-20T20:36:52Z")
Because Fuck 'em. That’s why. (I don’t think they have any rationale beyond that I’m ok with that) ---
**Author:** ![slicedalone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slicedalone/32/12515_2.png) [@slicedalone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slicedalone)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/7 "2022-12-20T20:38:19Z")
I thought they were legally enjoined from releasing them. For the committee’s eyes only, sort of thing. Tell ya this–if they have no legal reason to keep them under wraps, and they decide for reasons of taste or decorum or dignity or some other bullshit not to release them, it will go very bad for them. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/8 "2022-12-20T20:44:10Z")
> [@slicedalone](#): > > …for reasons of taste or decorum or dignity or some other bullshit… That’s quite a sad phrase, isn’t it? I’m no fan of Trump, and wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if his returns show evidence of malfeasance or even outright fraud. If the committee doesn’t have a valid legal basis to release the returns, they shouldn’t. It would be easy to release them; that doesn’t mean it’s the right thing to do. ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/9 "2022-12-20T20:56:46Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > It would be easy to release them; that doesn’t mean it’s the right thing to do. Yes. I was kind of waiting for them to leak. ---
**Author:** ![slicedalone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slicedalone/32/12515_2.png) [@slicedalone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slicedalone)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/10 "2022-12-20T20:57:30Z")
What would constitute “a legal basis”? Until found guilty in a court of law, he’s innocent as a fetal lamb. I mean, even if he’s scrawled “$$$ for Vlad bots in '16 Election” under “expenses,” it still has to be proven to a jury’s unanimous satisfaction before you can say he’s broken the law. ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/11 "2022-12-20T20:59:03Z")
" \* Almost immediately after Representative Richard E. Neal, the committee chairman, began the hearing at 3 p.m., the committee went into a closed session to debate the public release of Mr. Trump’s tax documents, so it could be hours before there’s a vote. And then it could take some time after that for anything to be released." > **[I.R.S. Didn’t Audit Trump for 2 Years in Office, House Committee Says](https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/12/20/us/trump-taxes-news)** > > The House Ways and Means Committee voted to release six years of Mr. Trump’s tax returns, and members revealed that the I.R.S. failed to follow its own policy because it did not audit Mr. Trump during his first two years in office. It may be days... I’m still looking around, but I think this is going to be a slow one. ---
**Author:** ![Thing.Fish](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thing.fish/32/9168_2.png) [@Thing.Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing.Fish)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/12 "2022-12-20T21:29:07Z")
In general, is Congress prohibited from making public information which they have gained through subpoenas in the course of Congressional investigations? If not, then, given that Congress is already on record as believing that Trump ought to be prosecuted for multiple felonies, I don’t see why they would be concerned about his privacy. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/13 "2022-12-20T21:53:42Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > I’m no fan of Trump, and wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if his returns show evidence of malfeasance or even outright fraud. That would raise the question of why the IRS didn’t nail him (or at least refer him to DOJ), wouldn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/14 "2022-12-20T21:54:49Z")
> [@slicedalone](#): > > What would constitute “a legal basis”? Until found guilty in a court of law, he’s innocent as a fetal lamb. I don’t know what would be a legal basis for releasing the returns; I’m not a lawyer. I don’t think he necessarily has to be convicted of a crime, first. The January 6th Committee looked at evidence and interviewed witnesses, and based on what they learned they interviewed more witnesses, etc., eventually leading to public hearings and testimony. Trumps taxes could follow a similar course. As I said, I’m not a lawyer. I don’t know what grounds the Ways and Means Committee used to get access to the records, or what they’re allowed to with them. But using official channels to get access to Trump’s returns, and then making them public just to embarrass Trump seems unethical. No one should use their powers of office just to smear a political opponent. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/15 "2022-12-20T22:03:07Z")
Trump isn’t merely their political opponent, though. Their goal is not to harm Trump politically. It is to inform the general public about his crimes (and other suspicious activity). If they don’t release it, then they’re effectively saying he was on the up and up. Which I guess is fine if he was. But, given his unwillingness to share and his own penchant for shady practices, it seems unlike there’s nothing hinky in his tax returns. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/16 "2022-12-20T22:05:02Z")
Well, that’s the debate, isn’t it? It’s not simply to embarrass him. There’s the legitimate question of whether or not a public figure, which Trump clearly is at this point, has major debts or other financial entanglements, especially to foreign powers or just scummy people in general, and how these may affect their judgment and behavior if placed in a position of power. Ideally, such people would release such records themselves, as all candidates for POTUS have done for decades now, or we would enact legislation to require such of all candidates. But we are far from an ideal world. That said, optics matter and privacy also matters. It is true that just because there is no legal obligation to keep them private should not mean the committee should feel emboldened to release them at will. I can see why there may be a protracted and perhaps contentious debate. And it’s one which has not really come up in the past because candidates recognized it was in their own best interest and that of the nation to release such records themselves. Again, we don’t live in an ideal world. ---
**Author:** ![Dandan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a87d85/32.png) [@Dandan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dandan)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/17 "2022-12-20T22:05:56Z")
# [Why would Congress make Trump’s tax returns public?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859) Entertainment value? To reward everyone for the last six or seven years? Dan ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/18 "2022-12-20T22:12:35Z")
> [@slicedalone](#): > > I mean, even if he’s scrawled “$$$ for Vlad bots in '16 Election” under “expenses,” it still has to be proven to a jury’s unanimous satisfaction before you can say he’s broken the law. As I said in one of the Pit threads, I wonder if his income tax records contain evidence regarding Trump Org’s payroll and/or property tax shenanigans. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/19 "2022-12-20T22:14:47Z")
You can start from the premise that, absent some compelling reason to the contrary, everything Congress does should be made public knowledge. The question then becomes whether there’s any compelling reason to not release the tax returns. Trump’s personal privacy might be a reason, but is it a compelling one? ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2022, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859/20 "2022-12-20T22:15:07Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Their goal is not to harm Trump politically. It is to inform the general public about his crimes… If the Ways and Means Committee wants to punish a lawbreaker, they would give the returns to someone who can build a case and prosecute Trump. The only point of releasing them to the public is to harm Trump politically. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-congress-make-trumps-tax-returns-public/976859.md?page=2)