Donald Trump, who has been fighting for years to keep his tax returns confidential, obtained yet another respite from the United States Supreme Court on Tuesday.
A committee of the House of Representatives, in the hands of the Democrats, has been demanding since 2019 the documents sent to the tax authorities by the former Republican president between 2015 and 2020.
But, unlike all tenants of the White House since the 1970s, Donald Trump has always refused to release his tax returns and fought fiercely in court to block Congress’s request.
After many episodes, a federal appeals court finally authorized the tax authorities last week to hand over these documents to the commission, which could have taken place just before the November 8 midterm elections.
The real estate magnate then sent a final urgent appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States.
In accordance with its practices, it suspended the transfer on Tuesday while waiting to have the elements to decide on the merits. She asked the commission to provide her with her arguments by November 10 and should make her decision in stride.
Although it has been deeply overhauled by Donald Trump, the High Court has inflicted several setbacks on the matter, and in particular authorized in 2020 the transfer of financial documents to the New York justice which is investigating its affairs.
The lack of transparency of the real estate magnate, who has made his wealth a campaign argument, has fueled speculation for years about the extent of his fortune or potential conflicts of interest.
In addition, the Trump Organization family group has been on criminal trial for alleged tax fraud and evasion for a few days in New York.
After a week of jury selection, New York state prosecutors on Monday accused the group’s leaders of ‘cheating’ and ‘greed’ over irregularities in the accounts from 2005 to 2021 as well as concealed compensation to the taxman.
Neither Donald Trump nor his sons Donald Jr and Eric are personally targeted in this trial and former CFO Allen Weisselberg, loyal to the Trump clan, reached an agreement with justice in August to plead guilty to 15 counts. tax evasion and evasion involving $1.76 million in unreported income between 2005 and 2021.
Unindicted, Mr. Weisselberg is to be a key witness in the trial before whom the Trumps could come to testify.
On Tuesday, a first witness, Jeffrey McConney, financial controller of the Trump Organization, was questioned. But, in a fit of coughing, he tested positive for COVID-19 and the trial was suspended until at least next week.