Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts granted former President Donald Trump temporary relief from handing over his tax returns to a congressional committee after he appealed to the high court justice on Monday.
The emergency request from Trump was made directly to Roberts after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit rejected his bid to reconsider its previous ruling that paved the way for his tax information to be sent to the House Ways and Means Committee.
TRUMP APPEALS TO SUPREME COURT TO BLOCK CONGRESS FROM OBTAINING TAX RETURNS
Roberts, who handles emergency appeals stemming from the District of Columbia, asked for a response from the committee by Nov. 10 — two days after the midterm elections. The appeals court ruling was due to take effect on Thursday.
Under federal law, tax returns are typically confidential but have certain exceptions, such as allowing the chairman of the committee to request them.
The fight for Trump’s tax returns began in April 2019, when Rep. Richard Neal (D-MA), the chairman of the committee, requested Trump’s returns and those related to his businesses. Neal has maintained the pursuit of records is part of the committee’s investigation into whether tax law surrounding presidents should be amended.
Neal had requested six years of Trump’s tax returns and those of eight Trump-associated businesses, including his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club, from the Internal Revenue Service.
Upon President Joe Biden taking office in 2021, the U.S. Treasury Department said it would comply with the committee’s inquiry, though Trump attempted to block the release in courts.
A Trump-appointed federal judge ruled in December that the request was lawful, prompting him to appeal.
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Trump claims that the request is invalid because it is overly broad and that the Biden administration’s decision to disclose the materials was an overreach of power and a form of retaliation that violates the former president’s First Amendment rights.
Democrats have long called for the release of Trump’s tax returns since his 2016 presidential campaign. There are no laws requiring candidates to release tax returns, though it has become a more common and bipartisan practice since President Richard Nixon.
