Biden’s Justice Department says Trump’s tax returns can be turned over to Congress

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The Justice Department said Friday that former President Trump’s tax returns should be released by the IRS to the House Ways and Means Committee.

The Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel said the panel – which first requested the reinstatement in more than two years – showed “sufficient grounds” to verify its attempt to review the former president’s taxes.

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“The Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee has provided sufficient reasons to request tax information for the former president,” Acting Assistant Attorney General Don Johnson wrote in an opinion Friday. “Under Section 6103(f) (1), the Treasury must provide the information to the Commission.”

The Office of Legal Counsel has argued that when a committee requests access to the president’s tax returns, “the executive branch must conclude that the request lacks a legitimate legislative purpose only in exceptional circumstances.”

The Justice Department’s opinion is a reflection of the Trump administration’s 2019 ruling, which argued that the congressional committee lacked a legitimate justification for reviewing tax returns.

The Chair of the Ways and Means Commission, Richard Neal, D-Mass., praised the decision and claimed the commission had a “strong” case.

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“As I’ve indicated for years, the commission’s case is very strong and the law is on our side. I am pleased that the Department of Justice agrees with that and that we can move forward,” Neil said.

The committee sued the Trump administration in July 2019 after it refused to hand over six years of Trump’s personal tax returns, along with six years of proceeds from eight of his businesses.

Later, Trump sued the commission in an effort to prevent disclosure of any proceeds it might receive, alleging that the purpose of the request was partisan and illegitimate.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi backed the Justice Department’s decision and said opinion “was a victory for the rule of law.”

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“Access to former President Trump’s tax returns is a matter of national security,” she added. “The American people deserve to know the realities of their conflicts of interest and undermining of our security and democracy as president.”

Trump has not yet publicly commented on the Justice Department’s opinion.

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