DEMS/TREASURY/TRUMP TAXES: “Democrats are hoping that President Trump’s federal tax returns will serve as a Rosetta stone to unlock the secrets of his murky finances. Mr. Trump, on the other hand, has spent the past three years refusing to divulge the returns and even dismissing them as boring. Now, the fight over whether members of Congress have the right to see the president’s tax returns is intensifying. The House tax-writing committee has demanded them, and late Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said his department would not comply with the request by the date set by the committee. Earlier in the day, Mr. Trump repeated that he would not disclose his returns, falsely claiming that there is no law that gives Congress the authority to obtain them. Mr. Trump is the first president in four decades to not publicly release his tax returns. The refusal — coupled with his continued ownership of a far-flung network of closely held businesses — has fanned suspicions that he has something to hide.”
–Susanne Craig and Jesse Drucker, “Donald Trump’s Tax Returns: What We Might Learn,” The New York Times online, April 10, 2019