Supreme Court temporarily blocks House panel from obtaining Trump tax records

The Supreme Court issued a temporary order on Tuesday blocking the House Ways and Means Committee from obtaining former President Donald Trump's tax returns while it considers next steps in the case. Trump asked the court Monday to block the move.

The D.C. Circuit previously ruled that the panel may access the records.

The Supreme Court's order is a temporary administrative stay. This does not mean the court is necessarily going to grant Trump's request, but it does give him time while the further briefings continue at the Supreme Court.

The tax records cover the years 2015 through 2020. Trump for years has sought to keep his records private.

Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass., chair of the House Ways and Means Committee, requested the records from the IRS in 2019, but the Treasury Department declined the request. The issue has been tied up in litigation since then.

Trump is the only president in the last 40 years to not release his taxes. The documents have been sought after by legislators and voters since he first announced his run for the White House in 2015. The former president has long argued that the effort to acquire his taxes is a part of a politically motivated plot against him. [Copyright 2022 NPR]