A federal judge in New York ruled that President Trump must turn over eight years of tax returns as part of an investigation into alleged hush money payments made to women with whom he is accused of having affairs.
In a 75-page ruling Monday, U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero rejected a lawsuit from Trump seeking to block Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance from obtaining the records. Trump had argued that his role as president gives him immunity from investigators.
“This Court cannot endorse such a categorical and limitless assertion of presidential immunity from judicial process,” Marrero wrote in the ruling, calling Trump’s claim “extraordinary.”
Trump’s attorneys were already bracing for such a decision and indicated that there would be a quick appeal to Marrero’s decision, which would bring the case up to the U.S. Court of Appeals, according to the Washington Post.
The 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals granted a request from Trump’s attorneys to temporarily halt enforcement of the subpoena for his records “pending an expedited review” by a three-judge panel, meaning that the president will not immediately be compelled to hand over his tax records.
Vance is looking into payments made to two women during the end of the 2016 presidential election. Former Trump attorney Michael Cohen pleaded guilty to campaign finance violations for his part in the hush money payments, but that investigation wrapped up without additional arrests or charges for others in Trump’s sphere who might have been involved.
