President Trump continues to maintain, despite polling and protest evidence to the contrary, that Americans are apathetic about seeing his personal tax returns. Still, he said in an interview with The Economist published Thursday, he might release them someday because they're just so great.
Trump was responding to a question about whether he'd release his returns were that the price Democrats demanded to pass his tax reform agenda. "I doubt it," Trump said. "Because they're not going to … nobody cares about my tax return except for the reporters. Oh, at some point I'll release them. Maybe I'll release them after I'm finished because I'm very proud of them actually. I did a good job."
Hope Hicks, White House director of strategic communication, jumped in to suggest the returns could be released as soon as they are no longer under audit. (The IRS says that is not an impediment to releasing them now.) Trump immediately offered a revision of her timeline. "I might release them after I'm out of office," he said.
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The president is under no legal compunction to release his returns, but every president except Trump has done so since the Nixon administration. Critics suggest Trump's reticence may conceal conflicts of interest.
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