Trump’s attempted to conceal his tax returns is revealed by a US House committee.

(Reuters) Democrats in Congress gave the public access to six years’ worth of Donald Trump’s tax returns on Friday, releasing information the former president has long fought to keep private and giving him another blow as he runs for office again in 2024.

Trump’s redacted tax returns for the years 2015 through 2020 were made public by a Democratic-controlled committee of the US House of Representatives, capping a multi-year legal dispute between the Republican former president and Democratic lawmakers that was only recently resolved by the US Supreme Court.

The only new material in the release was the returns themselves. In reaction, Trump issued a grave warning and used the opportunity to ask for funds for his campaign.

During the run-up to the 2024 presidential election, journalists, independent tax experts, and others will have access to Trump’s tax data for in-depth investigations. These investigations could provide information on Trump’s wealth, the performance of his businesses, and how he minimised his tax liability.

Over 2,700 pages of personal tax returns from Trump and his wife Melania are included in the over 6,000 pages of papers, along with over 3,000 pages of corporate returns.

The data reveal that from 2015 and 2020, during his first run for president and subsequent tenure in office, Trump’s income and tax liabilities changed wildly. In some of those years, he and his wife claimed significant losses and deductions while paying little to no income tax.

Trump was the first presidential candidate in decades to not reveal his tax returns. He was a businessman who assumed public office for the first time when he was elected president in 2017. In an effort to keep them secret, he sued the committee, but the US Supreme Court decided in the committee’s favour.

The committee’s conclusions, which were made public last week, said that the Internal Revenue Service, which collects taxes, violated its own regulations by failing to audit Trump for three of his four years in office.

Richard Neal, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, stated in a statement that “our findings turned out to be clear – IRS did not commence its required audit of the former president until I made my first request.”

Neal originally asked for the returns in 2019. He said that Congress need them to decide whether or not legislation pertaining to presidential tax returns was necessary.
The 76-year-old Trump, who was twice impeached by the Democratic-controlled House before being cleared both times by the U.S. Senate, suffered yet another setback as he prepares to run for reelection in 2024.

The House committee looking into his followers’ assault on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, requested that he be charged with four offences, including obstruction and insurrection for his part in the tragic riot, earlier this month.

TRUMP COMMENTS

“The Democrats should have never done it, the Supreme Court should have never allowed it, and it’s going to lead to bad things for so many people,” Trump said in a statement.

“Now there will be a far greater gulf between the USAs. Everything has been weaponized by the Radical Left Democrats, but keep in mind that this is a risky two-way street! “said he.

The committee’s senior Republican, Representative Kevin Brady, cautioned that future committee chairs would have “almost limitless” authority to release the tax returns of private individuals, including “political opponents.”

“This will further polarise and demoralise American politics and is a shameful stain on the Ways and Means Committee and Congress. Democrats would regret it in the long term, “According to Brady’s remarks.

Trump did not pay income tax in 2020, his last full year in office, despite making millions from his vast commercial empire, according to information previously made public by the panel.

Given that Republicans would assume control of the House on Tuesday after obtaining a narrow majority in the midterm elections in November, Democrats were under pressure to figure out how to handle the numbers as soon as they acquired them.

Before adjourning for the Christmas break, the Democratic-controlled House enacted a measure requiring the Internal Revenue Service, which collects taxes, to finish audits of presidents’ tax returns 90 days after their inaugurations.