The Biden administration has another month to decide what their next move will be in the court fight over former President Donald Trump‘s tax-returns, after a ruling given by a federal judge on Wednesday in the case.
The administration asked Judge Trevor McFadden to wait until March 3 for their decision because of the “still-ongoing transition to new leadership at the Department of the Treasury and the Department of Justice.”
House Democrats are suing the Treasury on the basis of a law that allows heads of Congress’ tax committees to investigate individuals’ private tax records. Enforcing this arcane law would allow the Treasury Department to subpoena six years’ worth of Trump’s tax-returns. During Trump’s time in office, such requests were denied and ruled illegitimate by the Treasury.
It still remains unclear what Biden’s ultimate decision will be regarding the returns. The issue appears to conflict with Biden’s attempts to unify the country. It could also simply be a distraction from other important issues on Biden’s agenda.
McFadden has also agreed to grant an extension on his previous order, agreed upon by both Biden and Trump’s respective teams, to notify Trump’s attorneys 72 hours in advance if the administration decides to hand over the tax-returns to lawmakers. This order would give Trump’s lawyers the opportunity to block this action in court.
