Petition demanding Trump tax returns has enough signatures for White House response
The Trump transition team gutted most of President Obama's White House website but left one innovative feature intact: The "We the People" petition site that "empowers the American public to take this action like never before."
The first petition of the Trump era: "Immediately release Donald Trump's full tax returns, with all information needed to verify emoluments clause compliance." And as of Sunday, it already had twice the number of signatures necessary to trigger a formal response from the White House.
The petitioner, identified only by the initials A.D., explained that potential conflicts of interest "need to be visible to the American people." The petition seeks the release of "any pertinent documentation which can reveal the foreign influences and financial interests which may put Donald Trump in conflict with the emoluments clause of the Constitution."
The emoluments clause prohibits government officials from receiving gifts from foreign governments.
While the release of tax returns is not required by law, Trump has defied 40 years of presidential tradition by refusing to voluntarily release his, saying that it would be inappropriate while they're under audit by the Internal Revenue Service. "The only one that cares about my tax returns are the reporters," Trump said in a news conference in New York this month.
An ABC News/Washington Post poll last week showed 74% of Americans want Trump to release his tax returns.
The Trump administration retained Obama's rules for the petition site: If a petition gathers 100,000 signature in 30 days, the White House will review the petition, make sure and issue an official response.
By noon Sunday, it had more than 206,000.
A second petition had a similar theme: "Divest or put in a blind trust all of the President's business and financial assets."
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