"it’s simply nobody’s business what is in his personal tax returns, because Trump, even when acting as president, was still a private citizen"
I'm going to disagree with this, and suggest that ALL of our presidents' financial pictures should be made 100% public OR they should be forced to sell off or divest business holdings while they are POTUS. Trump's own self-dealing while in office[1] provides the surface level justification for this, AND I think Americans should have as much information as possible by the time of the General Election to make an informed decision about POTUS and financial background and status is a BIG part of that picture.
If you're unwilling to make that part of your life public, I'm unwilling to give you the nuclear codes.
I was discussing the Ukraine-Russia war with my in-laws (ex-Ukrainian SSR [they came in the 70s]) this past Sunday while eating latkes, and one of the things they agreed with was that Russia is not a reliable negotiating partner: there have been multiple agreements between Ukraine and Russia, and Russia has violated every one of them. Russia cannot be trusted to uphold any agreement long-term.
If Trump is found guilty of bilking the taxpayers, lock him up. I believe we would uncover far more graft and corruption if we investigated career politicians who can stay in office forever. Career politicians spend half of each term in office campaigning for reelection. They spend their campaign money in questionable ways on themselves and relatives. I'm convinced that many are thoroughly corrupt and act more in their own self-interest than on the taxpayers' behalf. Presidents are limited to two terms, but some have a long record of profitable "public service". Joe Biden is the most obvious example. I do not recall any other president being an office holder for so long. Even LBJ served only 32 years total as a member of Congress and as President. Career politicians are destroying this nation.
"it’s simply nobody’s business what is in his personal tax returns, because Trump, even when acting as president, was still a private citizen"
I'm going to disagree with this, and suggest that ALL of our presidents' financial pictures should be made 100% public OR they should be forced to sell off or divest business holdings while they are POTUS. Trump's own self-dealing while in office[1] provides the surface level justification for this, AND I think Americans should have as much information as possible by the time of the General Election to make an informed decision about POTUS and financial background and status is a BIG part of that picture.
If you're unwilling to make that part of your life public, I'm unwilling to give you the nuclear codes.
[1] https://www.politico.com/news/2022/10/17/trump-organization-excessively-charged-secret-service-for-hotel-stays-house-panel-00062101
I was discussing the Ukraine-Russia war with my in-laws (ex-Ukrainian SSR [they came in the 70s]) this past Sunday while eating latkes, and one of the things they agreed with was that Russia is not a reliable negotiating partner: there have been multiple agreements between Ukraine and Russia, and Russia has violated every one of them. Russia cannot be trusted to uphold any agreement long-term.
If Trump is found guilty of bilking the taxpayers, lock him up. I believe we would uncover far more graft and corruption if we investigated career politicians who can stay in office forever. Career politicians spend half of each term in office campaigning for reelection. They spend their campaign money in questionable ways on themselves and relatives. I'm convinced that many are thoroughly corrupt and act more in their own self-interest than on the taxpayers' behalf. Presidents are limited to two terms, but some have a long record of profitable "public service". Joe Biden is the most obvious example. I do not recall any other president being an office holder for so long. Even LBJ served only 32 years total as a member of Congress and as President. Career politicians are destroying this nation.