USA | Newly empowered Dems take aim at Trump business conflicts

Beyond trying to get their hands on the Holy Grail of President Donald Trump’s business dealings — his tax returns — House Democrats are prepared to use their newfound majority and subpoena power to go after all manner of financial records that could back up their claims that he’s using his presidency to enrich himself and his family.

After two years of being blocked by the White House and the Trump Organization at every turn, Democrats hope the new year brings a new day on such issues as foreign government spending at Trump properties, Trump’s foreign licensing deals, Trump administration ties to lobbyists and special interests, and spending by Trump’s charitable foundation.

Rep. Elijah Cummings, the Maryland Democrat who is poised to take charge of the House Oversight Committee, said in a statement to The Associated Press that he intends to use the panel as “a check on the executive branch — not merely for potential criminal violations, but for much broader concerns, such as conflicts of interest, emoluments violations and waste, fraud and abuse.”

While Democrats taking over key House committees have not specifically telegraphed their targets, Cummings’ committee would likely seek Trump’s business tax returns and other company-related financial records, according to two Democratic congressional staffers who spoke on condition of anonymity in order to discuss post-election plans.

Trump’s personal income taxes, which he withheld during the 2016 campaign and in his two years in office, are expected to be the purview of the House Ways and Means Committee.

Internal Revenue Service law allows House and Senate tax-writing committees to request federal returns, and the ranking Ways and Means Democrat, Rep. Richard Neal of Massachusetts, has signaled publicly he would ask for them — a move the White House might fight.

Trump said in a wide- ranging news conference Wednesday that he doesn’t want to release his taxes because they are under a “continuous audit.” He also said: “They’re extremely complex. People wouldn’t understand them.”

For the past two years, White House lawyers and the Trump Organization have repeatedly rebuffed Democratic efforts to get even the most basic financial information on Trump’s businesses.

When Cummings and other Democrats asked last year for records detailing Trump’s separation from his businesses, they received an eight-page glossy pamphlet and a single email. When they asked how the Trump Organization arrived at the USD151,470 in profits it paid back to the Treasury for foreign stays at his hotels, they got silence.

Now with Democrats in control of the House, if Trump’s companies or other interests ignore their subpoenas or try legal maneuvers to delay or spurn them, they could face a contempt citation to the House floor. Such citations could be taken to federal court for possible legal action.

Any records Democrats manage to shake out could potentially have an impact on federal lawsuits Democrats are already pursuing against the president. AP