Time’s up on Trump’s taxes

The nonstop news out of the Trump administration has distracted from what should be a relentless question – when will Donald Trump release his tax returns?

The president has dismissed the question as a fixation confined to the media. At a Jan. 11 news conference, he said, “You know, the only one that cares about my tax returns are the reporters, okay? They’re the only ones.” He said release of his tax returns are not an issue for the American people because he won the election. “I won; I mean, I became president. No, I don’t think they care at all. I don’t think they care at all. I think you care.”

It was a pronouncement, once again, at odds with the facts. An ABC News/Washington Post poll released Jan. 15 showed that 74 percent of Americans want the president to release his returns just as every commander in chief has done since the mid-1970s. Nearly 500,000 people have signed a petition on the White House websites calling for release of the president’s returns.

The audit excuse

White House aides say the returns may yet be released, but ignoring the issue seems to be the operative policy. Trump has said he’ll release his taxes after the IRS completes an audit, but the IRS says he’s free to release them now. President Nixon released his returns while they were under audit. Why can’t the public see what Trump already has presented to the government as an honest accounting of his finances?

This issue isn’t merely one of public curiosity about the financial dealings of an alleged billionaire. It’s a matter of public confidence in the president and, given the entanglements of his global investments and obligations, it may well be a matter of national security.

This huge gap in knowledge about the new president is a recurring issue. It has come up in questions about the Middle East countries he did not include in his executive order of a travel ban affecting seven countries from the region. Were some countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt not on the list because the president has business interests in those countries?

Business interests were in the background as Trump hosted Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at Trump’s Florida estate at his personal expense over the weekend. Trump’s daughter Ivanka has a fashion business that involves a Japanese company supported by a government-owned development bank. Was Abe’s visit only about international relations, or did it include discussion of Ivanka’s and Donald Trump’s investments? The public doesn’t know, but it should.

Russian connections

What makes release of the tax returns most compelling is what the documents might reveal about Trump’s connections to Russia. Trump has criticized people from the head of the National Park Service to Pope Francis, but he is unfailingly complimentary toward Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump’s odd and uncharacteristic deference to the leader of a historic adversary raises questions about whether he owes Russian lenders or has investments there.

That plot thickened last week when The Washington Post revealed that Trump’s national security adviser, Michael Flynn, had discussed U.S. sanctions against Russia with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak prior to Trump taking office. One conversation came just after President Obama further penalized Russia by expelling Russian diplomats because Russian hackers had tried to affect the U.S. presidential election.

Putin did not respond in kind. Was it because of assurances from Flynn that the sanctions would be eased or lifted after Trump assumed office?

America is an open democracy. Its people should not have to wonder about whether its president is beholden to a foreign nation, especially one as dangerous and duplicitous as Russia.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi called last week for House Committee on Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady to use his authority to request Trump’s tax returns, which the committee could then vote to make public. She said, “The president continues to hide his tax returns which could provide vital insights into what financial influence Russia has on him — whether it’s personal, political or financial.”

The public also has a right to know whether its president pays taxes, contributes to charity as much as he claims and really has the wealth he boasts about.

Trump’s tax mystery should be met with a demand for disclosure from Congress, the media and the public.

It’s time, well beyond time, for President Trump to release his tax returns.

This story was originally published February 11, 2017 at 6:02 PM with the headline "Time’s up on Trump’s taxes."