"His worst day" - Trump's tax records are released
Created: 2022-12-21Updated: 2022-12-21 07:49
By: Helena Gries, Sebastian Richter, Daniel Dillmann, Nadja Austel
The world will soon learn how much taxes Donald Trump paid in the past.
The US Congress decided that.
This is a bitter defeat for the ex-president.
Tax documents are released:
Public is informed about Donald Trump's tax documents
Last session:
US House of Representatives committee recommends indictment of Donald Trump on four counts
Horror week:
All news and developments from the USA about Donald Trump in our new ticker.
+++ 7.40 a.m .:
For more than six years, Donald Trump has successfully resisted the fact that the public how much taxes he has paid in the past.
Now the US Congress has decided to put an end to this.
Trump tax filings are set to be released in the coming days.
In a video clip, the TV broadcaster CNN summarized how often Donald Trump had promised in the past to publish his tax documents.
"He did everything he could to stop people looking at his tax returns, so today could potentially be the worst day for the former president," commented CNN host Don Lemon.
Boxes of documents are rolled out of the hearing of the committee that decided to release Donald Trump's tax records.
© DREW ANGERER/AFP
Donald Trump's tax records are released
Update from Wednesday, December 21, 6:30 a.m.:
For years, Donald Trump had legally refused to hand over the tax documents to the Finance Committee.
Contrary to usual practice in the USA, the real estate entrepreneur had not made his tax returns public either as a presidential candidate or after moving into the White House.
On Tuesday evening, the congressional committee voted to make at least parts of Trump's tax documents publicly available.
The publication is a sensitive defeat for the 76-year-old and could provide new insights into the ex-president's finances.
A first report from the committee was published late Tuesday evening.
It states, among other things, that Trump was not properly checked by the tax authority IRS.
All tax documents that were requested in court would now be published, Republican committee member Lloyd Doggett told
CNN
after the vote .
The publication could take a few more days, since sensitive data such as social security numbers would have to be blacked out.
These are Trump's tax records from 2015 to 2020.
Donald Trump: The biggest scandals and missteps
View photo gallery
Donald Trump: Tax documents and investigations are getting him into trouble
+++ 16:54:
The US Department of Justice has appointed prosecutor Jack Smith as a special representative for the investigation of former President Donald Trump.
This isn't Smith's first investigation into a head of state.
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Smith was already the chief prosecutor of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers, an international tribunal in The Hague.
He brought war criminals from the Kosovo war to justice, including Hashim Thaçi, the former and first prime minister of the Republic of Kosovo after the declaration of independence.
Potential lawsuits against Trump 'change history'
+++ 3.20 p.m .:
It is unclear what effects the possible charges will have on Donald Trump.
For journalist Bob Woodward, the House inquiry has at least made a convincing case that Donald Trump broke the law, Woodward said on MSNBC's Morning Joe.
Trump trial has 'changed history'
The committee interviewed 1,000 people for the investigation and thus collected evidence for an indictment (see update 7.00 a.m.).
That evidence may now have little or no bearing on the Justice Department's investigation, Woodward suspects.
At the same time, the entire process "changed history."
Above all, the climate of opinion in the current investigation is different than it was at Nixon and Watergate.
It "started the discussion" and "reached many Republicans".
Woodward wants a Republican look back at Trump's presidency.
"Let's revisit Trump's legacy and whether we want this truly criminal mismanagement of the presidency again."
Trump writes criminal history - are the tax documents coming too?
+++ 1:04 p.m .:
A new record in Donald Trump’s summary: never before had the US Congress recommended that the Department of Justice bring charges against a US President.
But it is far from clear whether charges will actually be filed.
Because before the Justice Department files charges, they must be satisfied that a jury would find the accused guilty.
That's what US law requires.
The recommendation that the committee made is not covered by the law.
+++ 10.40 a.m .:
A former FBI attorney general commented on the possible indictment against Donald Trump after the last meeting of the committee in the US Congress.
Andrew Weissmann sees "clear signs" for a lawsuit.
The legal expert, who was also part of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's team, told news channel MSNBC.
It is unclear, however, on how many counts charges will be brought.
The investigative committee had recommended four different charges.
1. Disturbance of an official act (deliberate obstruction of a sovereign measure)
2. Conspiracy to Defraud the United States of America
3. Conspiracy to perjure the government and its agencies
4. Incitement to riot
Donald Trump calls committee statement politically motivated
+++ 8.05 a.m .:
Former US President Donald Trump has accused the committee of inquiry into the storming of the US Capitol of wanting to prevent Trump’s candidacy for the presidential elections in 2024 by demanding criminal proceedings.
"This whole story of prosecuting me is the same as impeachment -- a partisan attempt to sideline me and the Republican Party," Trump said on his online platform Truth Social on Monday.
Donald Trump rails against Congressional Committee
Update from Tuesday, December 20, 7 a.m.:
Donald Trump faces criminal consequences.
The allegations against the former US President for his role in the storming of the US Capitol on January 6, 2021 weigh heavily: the panel accuses him, among other things, of inciting the crowd to riot.
Trump himself railed against the committee's work and dismissed the allegations as politically motivated.
After Monday's hearing, the ex-president again attacked the committee, repeating his lie about voter fraud.
"What doesn't kill me makes me stronger," he wrote on Truth Social, a platform he co-founded.
Donald Trump faces charges: Department of Justice wants to examine evidence
The Justice Department must now check whether it has enough evidence to take further steps against the Republican: Trump could ultimately be charged.
The rare offense of rioting is the most serious: it is committed under US law when instigating or participating in insurrection against the authority of the state or the law.
This is punishable by a fine or imprisonment for up to ten years or both.
If Trump is convicted of sedition, he would no longer be allowed to hold political office.
Donald Trump is to be charged – on four counts
+++ 8:55 p.m .:
The committee of inquiry into the storming of the US Capitol unanimously passed its historic final report on the riots of January 6, 2021 and on the criminal consequences for former President Donald Trump at its last meeting on Monday.
The committee recommended that Donald Trump be prosecuted on four counts: obstructing an official process, aiding a riot, conspiring to defraud the United States, and making false statements.
This was announced by the committee at the end of its meeting.
The full final report will not be released to the public until Wednesday, but the committee published a summary of the findings after its meeting.
Committee of Inquiry: Trump called “a mob to Washington”
+++ 8:15 p.m .:
Chairman Thompson said in his opening speech at the last meeting of the committee of inquiry that the future of democracy is in the hands of the American people.
"It's up to the people of this country to decide who deserves the public's trust," Thompson said.
Committee of Inquiry: Criminal charges against Trump will be filed after today's meeting
+++ 7.40 p.m .:
The chairman of the special committee of the House of Representatives, Bennie Thompson, told
CNN
that the committee will send the criminal propositions to the Department of Justice "soon after we do our job today".
The committee's findings would show that former President Donald Trump was responsible for the riot in the US Capitol.
Donald Trump has to reckon with bad news this week
+++ 18:08:
In view of the problems that Donald Trump is facing, the former US President needs good news.
An employee who accompanies Trump on his regular golf tours, among other things, provides these "encouraging" messages.
She is looking for positive reporting, which she shows the 76-year-old, as reported by the
Washington Post
.
During the rounds of golf, it is sometimes even said to be equipped with a printer so that Trump can print out the reports on the spot.
Committee of Inquiry meets – Donald Trump rages at the start of the week
Update from Monday, December 19, 3:30 p.m .:
Even before the congressional committee has even issued a statement, Donald Trump has already shot at it: “You say that the unelected committee of Democrats, losers and criminals, without any Republican participation in good standing preparing to recommend criminal charges to the highly partisan, political and corrupt 'Justice' department [...] for a speech I delivered on Jan. 6," Trump wrote on his short message service Truth Social.
Said speech was "gentle and loving".
Trump also asked, "Why didn't they investigate the massive voter fraud?
FRAUD [sic]!”
Donald Trump: Deadline for the committee of inquiry into the storming of the Capitol
First report from Monday, December 19:
Washington – It is getting serious for Donald Trump.
Weeks of bad news surrounding the former US President may now be reaching a climax.
The parliamentary committee of inquiry into the storming of the US Capitol in early 2021 is holding its final public meeting this Monday (7 p.m. CET).
Lawmakers will decide whether to call on the US Department of Justice to open criminal investigations into Trump and several of his associates.
There are serious allegations in the room.
Donald Trump and his confidants are said to have called for an uprising and obstructed the authorities before and during the storming of the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
The committee of inquiry will present its final report on Wednesday.
In the run-up, Adam Schiff, a member of the committee of inquiry, had already hinted at the US broadcaster
CNN
what the committee would recommend.
"I think there is evidence that Donald Trump committed criminal acts in connection with his efforts to overturn the election," the Democrat said.
Donald Trump is threatened with further trouble – tax documents are to be published
As a candidate for the 2016 US election, Trump refused to release his tax records, breaking with a tradition that all candidates had followed since the 1970s.
A court ruled in November that Trump must make his tax records available to the US Chamber of Congress.
Trump had lodged an appeal with the US Supreme Court.
For Donald Trump, this threatens a week of horror that will probably surpass the previous reports.
The former president was even criticized by allies for his “big announcement” that he would now sell digital trading cards of himself.
Polls also see Trump well behind his closest competitor, Ron DeSantis, for the Republican nomination in the upcoming US primaries.
(Daniel Dillmann)
