Trump asks Supreme Court to block House Democrats from seeing his tax returns

Mr Trump has been fighting to keep his taxes from the House Ways and Means committee since 2019

Former president Donald Trump has launched a last-ditch appeal to keep the House Ways and Means committee from gaining access to tax returns he has taken pains to keep secret since he started his 2016 presidential campaign.

In an emergency appeal filed with the Supreme Court on Monday, lawyers for the twice-impeached former president claim allowing the Department of the Treasury to follow US law by turning over six years of his tax returns at the request of House Ways and Means chairman Ritchie Neal, a Democrat, would “undermine the separation of powers and render the office of the Presidency vulnerable to invasive information demands from political opponents in the legislative branch”.

Mr Trump’s attorneys also argue that the a three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia erred in not intervening on his behalf to overturn a district court ruling which will allow the Treasury to turn over his taxes to the House within days.

The district court had ruled that it could not take into account statements by members of Congress regarding Mr Trump’s tax returns when considering whether the House committee’s request was valid.

But Mr Trump’s lawyers said the committee’s request has no valid legislative purpose and is instead part of an attempt to expose the ex-president’s financial information.

“The Committee’s purpose in requesting President Trump’s tax returns has nothing to do with funding or staffing issues at the IRS and everything to do with releasing the President’s tax information to the public,” they said.