Pascrell Praises Supreme Court Finally Opening Door for Trump Tax Returns Release

Manhattan District Attorney conducting wide-ranging criminal probe

PATERSON, NJ – U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ-09) today praised action by the U.S. Supreme Court refusing to shield Donald Trump’s tax returns from a criminal inquiry by the Manhattan New York District Attorney. This Court’s move sets aside the latest delaying tactic by Trump’s lawyers and allows prosecutors to obtain Trump’s returns.

“It has taken exactly four years to reach this moment,” said Rep. Pascrell, who has led efforts in Congress to obtain Trump’s tax returns since February 2017. “I’ve said it before and I’ll say again that it should have never gotten this far or taken so long. Trump’s tax returns should have been publicly disclosed years ago. The returns have remained hidden from light through an unprecedented level of obstruction in Trump’s regime, and by his enablers in the legislature, his dishonest lawyers, and a raft of political judges. Today’s action by the High Court finally opens the door for prosecutors to review the extent of Donald Trump’s criminality. Let’s hope there are no more delays. Americans have waited long enough.

“The pursuit of Trump’s tax returns has never been about one man but the very nature of our constitutional system. The United States is not a monarchy. Our government must not be marshalled to protect the executive against all law and transparency. America will not long survive if this continues. While I applaud movement of District Attorney Cy Vance’s probe, Congress must continue with our own oversight of Trump’s tax returns. I will not forget that Treasury and the IRS broke the law for two years shielding Trump’s returns from Congress.”

Rep. Pascrell has been the most vocal proponent of the Congress reviewing President Trump’s tax returns. Since February 2017, Pascrell has led the call for the chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means to invoke Section 6103 of the tax code to obtain Trump’s tax returns. In the 115th Congress, Republicans voted 18 times to block Democratic resolutions seeking the tax returns. In March 2020, Pascrell had a fiery exchange with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin’s illegal refusal to provide Trump’s tax returns to the House Ways and Means Committee.