Trump Says Voters Don't Care About Seeing His Tax Returns. He Couldn't Be More Wrong.
President Donald Trump and his apologists have concocted an excuse for his refusal to release his tax returns. They claim that voters, by electing Trump president in 2016, gave him a mandate to keep his returns private. The tax question “was already litigated during the election,” acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney declared in a Fox News interview on Sunday. “Voters knew the president could have given his tax returns. They knew that he didn’t. And they elected him anyway.” On Monday, Trump’s deputy press secretary, Hogan Gidley, repeated that Democrats had “litigated this in 2016” and that voters had rejected their arguments. On Wednesday, Trump said the public had cleared him. “I got elected last time with this same issue,” said Trump, “because, frankly, the people don’t care.”
Candidates for president should release their taxes regardless of public opinion, because every voter has the right to know whether the country’s most powerful officeholder has financial conflicts of interest. Trump’s vast holdings and his shady business history make that concern all the more apt. But for now, let’s stick to a simpler question: Is it true that voters gave Trump a mandate to hide his tax returns? No, it’s false. Every poll shows that Americans think he should release his returns—and that if he doesn’t, Congress should pry the returns from him.
Looking back over the past three years, I found roughly 20 surveys on this subject. In each one, most respondents said Trump should cough up his returns. In 2016, the question was posed in various ways, always with the same result. “Do you think it is necessary for presidential candidates to publicly release their tax returns, or don’t you think that’s necessary?” Necessary, 59 percent to 38 percent. “Do you think it is necessary for Donald Trump to publicly release his tax returns, or don’t you think that is necessary?” Necessary, 59 percent to 37 percent. “Do you think Donald Trump should publicly release his tax returns, or not?” Should, 74 percent to 21 percent. “Do you think Donald Trump should or should not release his tax returns for public review?” Should, 73 percent to 24 percent.
Polls taken this year show that little has changed. “Do you think Donald Trump should publicly release his tax returns, or not?” Should, 64 percent to 29 percent. “Do you think Donald Trump should or should not release his tax returns for public review?” Should, 67 percent to 27 percent. “Do you think Donald Trump should or should not release his tax returns to the public?” Should, 56 percent to 27 percent. “Do you think Trump has a responsibility to publicly release his tax returns, or does he not have this responsibility?” Has a responsibility, 64 percent to 32 percent.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/trump-says-voters-don-t-care-about-seeing-his-tax-returns-he-couldn-t-be-more-wrong/ar-BBVRkdt?ocid=msn360
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