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Sometimes we can learn from History. Assuming we got past the 6th grade, like Al Capone never did.
Al Capone reportedly boasted, “They can't collect legal taxes from illegal money.”
He found that wasn’t true on this day [October 27] in 1931 when he was sentenced to prison for tax evasion.
[...]
Capone was a natural at making money and quickly expanded the business. By the mid-1920s, Capone was reportedly taking home nearly $60 million annually ($878 million in today’s dollars), and his wealth continued to grow, reportedly topping $100 million ($1.5 billion in today’s dollars).
www.forbes.com — Oct 17, 2018
Trump is doing a similar full-court press, to evade the Tax Law.
Acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney said Sunday that Democrats will "never" see President Trump's tax returns.
"Nor should they. That’s an issue that was already litigated during the election.
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He added that Democrats "know they're not going to" get the tax returns.
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One of Trump's personal lawyers later urged the IRS not to release the tax returns, arguing that Democrats can't legally request them. Neal made the request under a provision of the federal tax code that states the Treasury secretary "shall furnish" tax returns upon request from the chairmen of Congress’s tax committees, provided that the documents associated with a particular taxpayer are viewed in a closed session.
by Zack Budryk, TheHill — 04/07/19
The Supreme Court “has said congressional oversight cannot become law enforcement,” Sekulow told Stephanopoulos, saying the request would be using the IRS as “a political weapon” and suggesting it could set a precedent where Republicans could demand Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) tax returns.
In a letter Friday, William Consovoy, an outside
attorney for Trump, wrote to the Treasury Department’s general counsel that the IRS should not release Trump’s tax returns without an opinion from the Justice Department. Trump has claimed an ongoing audit prevents him from releasing the returns.
The IRS says it does not prevent individuals under audit from releasing their personal returns.
Only their own instinct to hide their financial history compels that lack of transparency.
If Trump has ‘nothing to hide’ — no conflicts of interests, no illegal activities — then he would have released his Tax Returns VOLUNTARILY a long time ago — during the heat of the Campaign.
But since he still STUBBORNLY refuses to let the American people know about his Businessman ‘wheelings and dealings’ … well. It would seem like Trump does ‘have SOMETHING to hide’.
Very much so, given the PR push-back by his loyal lieutenants, this weekend.
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Wasn’t Trump the same guy that led the movement to force Obama to release his Birth Certificate — twice! Presidential transparency was damn important then. Presidential transparency should be damn important now. Let’s see his grades too, while the Stonewalling Genius is at it.
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The way I see it, the renown Gangster Capone, and the slippery Conman Donald Trump, have at least 2 things very much in common (and probably much more):
1) Neither one gave a damn about making an honest buck.
and
2) Neither one gives a damn about following the Law.
the federal tax code that states the Treasury secretary "shall furnish" tax returns upon request from the chairmen of Congress’s tax committees, provided that the documents associated with a particular taxpayer are viewed in a closed session.
Well as the notorious Capone put it:
“They can't collect legal taxes from illegal money.”
From his on-going stonewalling “vows” — it would seem like the duplicitous Donald Trump — agrees with that Capone rule of thumb!
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Release the full Mueller Report!
Release the Trump Tax Returns!
Like they used to claim with their chants for Clinton’s Emails — our National Security could very well be at stake. (Except it’s true this time.)
So why does Donald Trump NOT demand Transparency of himself ???
(Ask Al Capone ...)
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