MAKING STUFF UP

Manhattan DA: Trump Inventing ‘Tax Return Privilege’ to Block Subpoena

Trump and his legal team have previously asked a judge to declare a subpoena for his tax returns invalid until he leaves office.

The Manhattan District Attorney's Office accused President Trump and his legal team of making up a new presidential privilege in order to block their subpoena for several years worth of personal and business tex returns, The New York Times reports. In a Monday filing, the DA's office said Trump's request for a judge to make the subpoena against accounting firm Mazars USA invalid until he leaves office was the president “seeking to invent and enforce a new presidential ‘tax return privilege.’” Trump has sued to block the DA’s subpoena against accounting firm Mazars USA for eight years worth of his personal and business tax returns, and Bloomberg reports that the DA's office reportedly agreed to not enforce the subpoena before a scheduled Wednesday hearing on the case.

The Trump Organization also reportedly gave 3,376 documents to the DA's office in recent weeks, who is probing whether he Trump Organization falsified business records in relation to hush-money payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal. Assistant District Attorney Solomon Shinerock reportedly wrote that none of the documents were tax records.