By Lawrence Hurley and Jan Wolfe
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court is due on Thursday to rule on whether Democratic-led congressional committees and a New York City prosecutor can get hold of President Donald Trump’s financial records, including his tax returns, that he has tenaciously sought to keep secret.
The high court will issue the final rulings of its current term, which began last October. They include three cases focused on Trump lawsuits intended to block subpoenas issued to third parties – not the Republican president himself – to hand over his financial records. The rulings are expected shortly after 10 a.m. EDT (1400 GMT).
Unlike other recent presidents, Trump has refused to release his tax returns and other documents that could provide details on his wealth and the activities of his family real-estate company, the Trump Organization. The content of these records has remained a persistent mystery even as he seeks re-election on Nov. 3. The rulings represent another milestone in Trump’s tumultuous presidency.
Two of the cases involve subpoenas issued by House of Representatives committees seeking Trump’s financial records from his longtime accounting firm Mazars LLP and two banks, Deutsche Bank
The third involves subpoenas issued to Mazars for financial records including nearly a decade of Trump’s tax returns to be turned over to a grand jury in New York City as part of a criminal investigation by the office of Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, a Democrat.
The investigation launched by Vance’s office in 2018 into Trump and the Trump Organization was spurred by disclosures of hush payments to two women who said they had past sexual relationships with him, pornographic film actress Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal. Trump and his aides have denied the relationships.
In the litigation over the House subpoenas, Trump argued that Congress lacked a valid purpose for seeking his records and that disclosure of the material would compromise his and his family’s privacy and distract him from his duties.
In the New York case, Trump’s lawyers argued that under the Constitution he is immune from any criminal proceeding while serving as president. They also cited Justice Department guidance that a sitting president cannot be indicted or prosecuted.
In a lower court hearing, Trump’s lawyers went so far as to argue that law enforcement officials would not have the power to investigate Trump even if he shot someone on New York’s Fifth Avenue.
The House Oversight Committee in April 2019 issued a subpoena to Mazars seeking eight years of accounting and other financial information in response to the congressional testimony of Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer. Cohen said Trump had inflated and deflated certain assets on financial statements between 2011 and 2013 in part to reduce his real estate taxes.
The House Financial Services Committee has been examining possible money laundering in U.S. property deals involving Trump. In a separate investigation, the House Intelligence Committee is investigating whether Trump’s dealings left him vulnerable to the influence of foreign individuals or governments.
[For a graphic on major cases before the Supreme Court, click https://tmsnrt.rs/2mZn6MJ]
(Reporting by Jan Wolfe and Lawrence Hurley in Washington; Editing by Will Dunham)
