Opinion | Sorry, Mr. Mnuchin. Congress Has a Right to See Trumpʼs Tax Returns.

- The New York Times 5/7/19, 11(09 AM

Sorry, Mr. Mnuchin. Congress Has a

Right to See Trump’s Tax Returns.
The Treasury secretary is defying the law and Supreme Court
precedent.
By The Editorial Board
The editorial board represents the opinions of the board, its editor and the publisher. It is
separate from the newsroom and the Op-Ed section.

May 7, 2019

As to whether Congress may obtain a president’s tax returns, there is no ambiguity:

Federal law empowers the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee to
submit a written request to the Treasury Department, which oversees the Internal
Revenue Service, for “any return or return information.” The Treasury secretary
then “shall furnish” the requested information to the committee so that it may
conduct its legislative functions.

Perhaps that statute is not clear enough for Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.
The secretary on Monday rebuffed just such a request from Representative Richard
Neal, the Democratic chairman of the Ways and Means Committee. In April, Mr. Neal
requested six years’ worth of federal tax returns for President Trump and several of
his companies.

The purpose of the request was not “harassment” of the president, as Mr. Trump and
his defenders have branded efforts by Democratic House members to perform
legitimate oversight functions. Rather, as Mr. Neal told the I.R.S., the committee “is

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Opinion | Sorry, Mr. Mnuchin. Congress Has a Right to See Trumpʼs Tax Returns. - The New York Times 5/7/19, 11(09 AM

considering legislative proposals and conducting oversight related to our Federal tax
laws, including, but not limited to, the extent to which the I.R.S. audits and enforces
the Federal tax laws against a President.”

In a letter responding to Mr. Neal on Monday, Mr. Mnuchin said he consulted with
the Justice Department and determined that the chairman’s request “lacks a
legitimate legislative purpose” and that the Treasury Department “may not lawfully
fulfill the committee’s request.”

The Treasury secretary cited no authority for this stonewalling, which is consistent
with the Trump administration’s broad resistance to congressional oversight and the
president’s push to quash any investigation into his finances. Instead, Mr. Mnuchin
noted that the Justice Department expects to publish a legal opinion soon setting out
the administration’s fuller rationale. Hinting at what’s to come, Mr. Mnuchin
volunteered that Mr. Neal’s otherwise straightforward request “presents serious
constitutional questions” and that fulfilling it “may have lasting consequences for all
taxpayers.”

Just as the law is clear on this matter, so too is Supreme Court precedent. The court
has repeatedly affirmed the validity of congressional actions taken within the
“sphere of legitimate legislative activity” — and it has recognized that this sphere is
far-reaching, encompassing “inquiries concerning the administration of existing
laws as well as proposed or possibly needed statutes.”

In examining Mr. Trump’s tax returns, Congress could determine that legislation
forcing disclosure of a candidate’s tax returns is necessary to guard against future
presidential corruption and conflicts of interests.

Or it might not. As the Supreme Court put it in an instructive 1975 opinion largely
upholding congressional prerogatives, “To be a valid legislative inquiry there need
be no predictable end result.” It is also true that the court has elsewhere

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Opinion | Sorry, Mr. Mnuchin. Congress Has a Right to See Trumpʼs Tax Returns. - The New York Times 5/7/19, 11(09 AM

acknowledged that there is no such thing as the power on the part of Congress “to
expose the private affairs of individuals without justification.” Then, as now, the
search for specific records must be tied to “a legitimate task of the Congress.”

Mr. Neal is well aware of these precedents, which he cited in a follow-up letter to the
I.R.S. 10 days after his initial request for Mr. Trump’s records. He seems to be
preparing for a showdown in the courts, which, if history serves as a guide, should
give him and his committee the latitude to continue their legislative functions
unimpeded.

Related
More on President Trump’s tax returns

Democrats Threaten to Hold Barr in Contempt as White House

Guards Tax Returns May 6, 2019

Steven Mnuchin Refuses to Release Trump’s Tax Returns to

Congress May 6, 2019

Opinion | David Leonhardt

We Need Trump’s Tax Returns Feb. 21, 2019

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