Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., asked the Internal Revenue Service on Tuesday a series of questions about a confidential memo concerning Congress’ ability to request tax returns, The Hill reports.
The Washington Post reported last month that an IRS legal memo asserts that tax returns must be given to Congress when requested, unless the president decides to assert executive privilege. This goes against the Trump administration’s argument that the IRS does not have to turn over the president’s tax returns because Congress does not have a legislative reason for making the request.
Wyden, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, wrote a letter to IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig, asking a series of questions about the memo.
In testimony before a House Appropriations subcommittee, Rettig, "intimated that you had not discussed with IRS legal staff whether you as IRS Commissioner have discretion over whether to comply with a request for tax information,” according to Wyden.
He added that the memo, which was reportedly prepared in 2018, "may have significant implications on your House Appropriations subcommittee testimony" and in a previous response to a letter from Wyden.
“Congress needs to investigate to know whether Trump appointees have engaged in a cover up to conceal political interference inside the IRS,” the senator wrote.
"Career IRS officials prepared a legal analysis stating that the agency was required to provide the returns, and it was buried. We need to know who saw this memo and when," he said.
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