Congressional Democrats sue for President Trump's tax returns

Democrats with the House Ways and Means Committee have filed a lawsuit in an attempt to obtain President Donald Trump's tax returns. The lawsuit was filed on Tuesday.

The committee is chaired by Rep. Richard Neal (D-Mass.). Neal had previously requested the records from the IRS commissioner, and subpoenaed both the IRS commissioner and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin for them. However, these requests and subpoenas were ignored.

In a letter from April refusing to hand over the returns, Mnuchin said that the "legal implications of this request could affect protections for all Americans against politically-motivated disclosures of personal tax information regardless of which party is in power."

"As part of the Ways and Means Committee's investigation into the mandatory audit program at the IRS, I used my authority under Section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code to request six years of the President's tax returns," Neal said in a news release. "Despite its mandatory obligation, the Treasury Department failed to comply with the law and denied the Committee's request. The Administration also refused to comply with the subpoenas I subsequently issued in an effort to obtain the materials. Due to that noncompliance, the Committee is now pursuing this matter in the federal courts."

Democrats have been trying to get Trump's tax returns since the campaign, but without success. The House Oversight Committee, Financial Services Committee, and Intelligence Committee have all also tried to obtain Trump's tax returns. Trump's legal team has so far been able to prevent this.

In April, White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney told Fox News anchor Bill Hemmer that Democrats would "never see" Trump's tax returns.

"Nor should they," he added.