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turbinetree

(24,632 posts)
Mon Sep 30, 2019, 12:04 PM Sep 2019

Second whistleblower's allegations of 'inappropriate influence' surrounding Trump's IRS audit may be

released by House Dem

Published 1 min ago on September 30, 2019

By Sky Palma

House Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal (D-MA) says he’s looking into making public a complaint by another whistleblower who claims to have evidence of misconduct regarding the Internal revenue Service’s auditing of President Trump, Bloomberg reports.

The allegations, made by a federal employee, says there were “inappropriate efforts to influence” the audit process. According to Neal, the complaint’s release to the public hinges on whether or not House lawyers think it’s a good idea.

If the complaint is made public, it could be a positive step in Neal’s effort to have 6 years of Trump’s tax returns released.

On August 8, Neal sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin asking for communications between the IRS and Treasury employees who were involved in the agency’s audit of Trump and asked him to reply by August 13. It’s still not known if Mnuchin replied or not.

https://www.rawstory.com/2019/09/second-whistleblowers-allegations-of-inappropriate-influence-surrounding-trumps-irs-audit-may-be-released-by-house-dem/

Note: Bloomberg has a pay wall......................

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PoindexterOglethorpe

(25,750 posts)
1. I thought that back when Trump said he couldn't release
Mon Sep 30, 2019, 12:19 PM
Sep 2019

his returns because they were being audited, the IRS said that they weren't auditing him.

Quemado

(1,262 posts)
9. Probable reason(s) for why the current occupant of the WH is alway audited.
Mon Sep 30, 2019, 02:26 PM
Sep 2019

1. Income level: Generally speaking, and all other things are equal, the more income you have, the more likely you are audited.

2. DIF score: According to the IRS, tax returns are selected for audit based on computer scoring. The IRS states in Publication 556 that it uses a computer program called the Discriminant Inventory Function System (DIF). The Discriminant Inventory Function System assigns a numeric score to each individual and some corporate tax returns after they have been processed. If a return is selected because of a high score under the DIF system, the potential is high that an examination of that return will result in a change to the income tax liability.


I agree that the current occupant of the White House is bad, but his tax returns are not selected for audit because he is bad.

unblock

(51,974 posts)
11. well, once he became potus, audits became automatic.
Mon Sep 30, 2019, 02:32 PM
Sep 2019

potus's and vpotus's tax returns are always audited.

rsdsharp

(9,042 posts)
5. The IRS is required to audit a sitting president and vice president.
Mon Sep 30, 2019, 01:22 PM
Sep 2019

I suspect that the whistleblower is alleging that Trump, or someone on his behalf like Mnuchin, tried to interfere in the required audit of his taxes.

Pepsidog

(6,252 posts)
7. I have heard this but is it a law? I ask because I always believed presidents were, by law, required
Mon Sep 30, 2019, 01:46 PM
Sep 2019

to put their assets in a blind trust. That wasn’t a law rather tradition.

rsdsharp

(9,042 posts)
12. It's part of the IRS manual put in place after Nixon and Agnew both had tax issues.
Mon Sep 30, 2019, 02:34 PM
Sep 2019

Nixon's famous "I'm not a crook" statement wasn't about Watergate, but rather about a very large deduction he had attempted to claim for donating his papers. He subsequently released his tax returns, and audits by the Joint Committee on Taxation, and the IRS showed he owed nearly 1/2 million dollars in taxes and interest.

Politicub

(12,163 posts)
13. They need to hold off a bit on releasing this. Not because it isn't important. It is.
Mon Sep 30, 2019, 02:34 PM
Sep 2019

But because the story from Thursday continues to gather steam. The IRS stuff just gives the GOP a talking point so they can bridge away from Trump pushing a foreign power to come up with dirt on his political rival. Timing is everything.

Unless this report is as clear as the other whistleblower report, I don't see what the point would be to talk about it right now.

I'm not suggesting that it be pushed aside. On the contrary. It deserves a full airing, and the complaint would not get the attention it deserves.

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