Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump says he won’t release his tax returns so long as they’re being audited. This week, Trump told the Associated Press he probably won’t be releasing any returns before November, which suggests he doesn’t expect the audits to be wrapped up anytime soon. That means Trump could potentially become the first major party candidate in 40 years to not release his taxes.
Why wouldn’t Trump at least release old returns no longer under IRS scrutiny? A March letter written to Trump by his accountants notes that “your tax returns for the years 2002 through 2008 have been closed administratively.” That leads one to believe there shouldn’t be any issue with at least releasing those returns.
But not so fast. The same letter says, “Your returns for these years [2009–2015] report items that are attributable to continuing transactions on activities that were also reported on returns for 2008 and earlier. In this sense, the pending examinations are continuations of prior, closed examinations.”
In short, the letter asserts that transactions included in pre-2009 returns are part of a never-ending link that continues into the recent returns. Since Trump’s accountants regard all the returns as connected in this way, the letter not only provides Trump with a ready-made excuse for refusing to release returns dating back to 2002, but it could also be used to refuse to release any tax returns altogether.
There’s no good reason for Trump to refuse to release under-audit tax returns in the first place. As Paul Krugman writes in his Friday column, “the fact that he’s being audited (or at least that he says he’s being audited) should make it easier for him to go public — after all, he needn’t fear triggering an audit!”
On Wednesday, 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney published a Facebook post opining that “It is disqualifying for a modern-day presidential nominee to refuse to release tax returns to the voters, especially one who has not been subject to public scrutiny in either military or public service… Further, while not a likely circumstance, the potential for hidden inappropriate associations with foreign entities, criminal organizations, or other unsavory groups is simply too great a risk to ignore for someone who is seeking to become commander-in-chief.”
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The “potential for hidden inappropriate associations with… criminal organizations” line is more than just idle chatter in this case. In February, then-presidential candidate Ted Cruz noted, “There have been multiple media reports about Donald’s business dealings with the mob, with the mafia. Maybe his taxes show those business dealings are a lot more extensive than has been reported.” Fast Company reports that in 1992, the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement looked into multiple allegations about Trump’s links to organized crime, but didn’t take any action.
Another explanation for Trump’s refusal to release his taxes is that it could represent an attempt to hide the fact he’s not as “really rich” as he says. After all, Trump’s primary case for the presidency is that he’s a wildly successful businessman who would bring his shrewd deal-making skills to the Oval Office. If his returns reveal he’s not as successful as he portrays himself to be, that could undercut his fundamental narrative.
Whatever the reason, Trump’s stonewalling extends beyond his tax returns to questions about how much he pays in taxes.
During a Friday morning phone interview on Good Morning America, George Stephanopoulos asked Trump, “What is your tax rate?”
“It’s none of your business,” Trump responded. “You’ll see it when I release [my returns] but I fight very hard to pay as little tax as possible.”
In 2012, Romney’s tax returns became politically problematic in part because they revealed he paid an effective tax rate of 13.9 percent — a rate not only less than what many middle-class Americans pay, but also well below what wealthy people pay.
But during his interview with Stephanopoulos, Trump indicated he has no shame about the fact he tries to pay as little taxes as possible.
“This country wastes our money,” Trump said. “They take our tax money and throw it down the drain. They spend $4 trillion in the Middle East and we can’t fix a road or a bridge… that’s part of the problem so I fight very hard to pay as little tax as possible.”
Just how successful Trump’s fight is toward that end will remain a mystery unless he releases his returns.