Would you support a law that requires presidential candidates release tax returns?

[Toastytoy]

nah, we have too many laws as it is. we should erase about 50 laws before making any new ones

 

[AnGrYcRoW]

Yes, yes I would.

When can we expect to see yours ?

 

[HomerThompson]

When can we expect to see yours ?

I'll release them next week.

 

[Mark Hunts FIST]

Would you support a law that requires a presidential candidate release his/her tax returns before he can be put on a ballot?

Would it be legal to create such a law?

I don't see why there isn't a push for such a law.

No. So it can be misconstrued by the media? oh you're too rich... you're too poor..oh you made more than you said..oh you made less than you said.

 

[Ophydian]

No. So it can be misconstrued by the media? oh you're too rich... you're too poor..oh you made more than you said..oh you made less than you said.

I'd have a big issue and so should you if someone lies about how much they make. I know the last two examples are how people attack Trump but they aren't without merit and people like you who marginalize the issue don't realize what precedents you are allowing.

 

[M3t4tr0n]

Yes, they should have nothing to hide.

 

[panamaican]

I think that's a fair burden for someone seeking high office. It's not like they release their SSN to everyone or something. People are too worried about keeping financial information secret.

"Oh no, we know how much money someone made in a given set of years. How will they ever move forward with their lives?!"

I think it speaks to the very nature of privacy within our government. Our personal financial information has never been public information. I just don't see how knowing that Candidate X made $50k and Candidate Y made $500k better informs the voting public enough to outweigh the individual's financial privacy.

 

[panamaican]

Fair enough, but its still more than is required for the president. I wouldn't be opposed to the to the president having a greater standard of accountability.

I really don't see any major issue with losing candidates having their tax information out in the public. Pretty much all candidates in the modern era before Trump have released their taxes, including the losers and as far as I know, there haven't been any big problems for them as a result.

No there haven't been any problems but it is a permanent invasion of their privacy.

Let me ask a question - how does knowing a candidate's tax information influence who you will vote for? How has it impacted your voting decisions in the past?

On my side, I've honestly never based any part of my voting decisions on people's tax information. I appreciate that they put them out there as a sign of good faith but it's the voluntary disclosure that I valued, not the actual tax contents.

 

[panamaican]

thats assuming the senate isnt full of crooked partisans

And the general public isn't full of partisans? I think we can mostly agree that very few people will be looking at the documents with a completely neutral eye.

 

[HomerThompson]

I think it speaks to the very nature of privacy within our government. Our personal financial information has never been public information. I just don't see how knowing that Candidate X made $50k and Candidate Y made $500k better informs the voting public enough to outweigh the individual's financial privacy.

I think it's more about preventing conflicts of interest, and abuse of office.

Would you like to know if Trump has dummy corporations set up in Moscow? I'd like to know stuff like that.

 

[curryjunkie]

And the general public isn't full of partisans? I think we can mostly agree that very few people will be looking at the documents with a completely neutral eye.

the general public are the ones who vote , they decide as a nation if the candidate is trustworthy or not, on the whole id rather they see the returns instead of politicians looking for an angle, or ignoring blatant conflicts of interest.
the privacy argument is moot, when you run for president you should be prepared for the highest level of scrutiny .
the government has the power and ability to conduct a forensic examination of an individuals personal and financial life, its only right that the man or woman in charge of it is subject to the same.
they work for you, after all, and if its too much for them , then dont run.

 

[curryjunkie]

not really related to US politics, but speaking of corruption i saw a tweet the other day
"My favourite fact about Robert Mugabe: in 2000, Mugabe's 13th year as President, he won the jackpot in the Zimbabwean National Lottery draw."

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

Would you support a law that requires a presidential candidate release his/her tax returns before he can be put on a ballot?

Would it be legal to create such a law?

I don't see why there isn't a push for such a law.

Considering the multitude of background checks required for my low-level job I wouldn't have a problem with it.

 

[Mark Hunts FIST]

I'd have a big issue and so should you if someone lies about how much they make. I know the last two examples are how people attack Trump but they aren't without merit and people like you who marginalize the issue don't realize what precedents you are allowing.

stand by what I said. it would only be used against a candidate by media that has shown how biased they are.

"Trump has one more scoop of ice cream than everyone else"

 

[Cubo de Sangre]

If you require it of the President it should be required for All government positions above a certain level. Mayors, governors, senators, judges, etc and it should be provided yearly.

Not sure that logically follows, but nothing stops state and local jurisdictions from requiring them.

 

[Ophydian]

No there haven't been any problems but it is a permanent invasion of their privacy.

Let me ask a question - how does knowing a candidate's tax information influence who you will vote for? How has it impacted your voting decisions in the past?

On my side, I've honestly never based any part of my voting decisions on people's tax information. I appreciate that they put them out there as a sign of good faith but it's the voluntary disclosure that I valued, not the actual tax contents.

One could say that Trumps wealth be it real or made up by him influenced a great number of people as it was an excuse to why he would be the better President.

"Trump is worth X amount because he said so, it just proves he's a really good businessman."

 

[Mark Hunts FIST]

I'd have a big issue and so should you if someone lies about how much they make. I know the last two examples are how people attack Trump but they aren't without merit and people like you who marginalize the issue don't realize what precedents you are allowing.

Here are a few articles after Romney released his taxes.

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/mitt-romney-s-tax-dodge-20121012

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2015/01/what-we-still-dont-know-about-mitt-romneys-tax-returns/

http://www.politifact.com/punditfac...-michigan-gov-romney-pays-less-tax-guys-who-/

no thank you

 

[BEER]

People's financial information should not be mandatory to disclose. It has nothing to do with running for office.

We need less government intervention, not more.

 

[Fawlty]

Absolutely. It is in the public's interest and the hit to privacy for ex-presidents or losing candidates is negligible. If an employer gets to check my credit, I get to check the President's taxes.

 

[Revolver]

Yeah let's just let @Revolver know exactly how poor everyone is. That will go over well.

This would be the collapse of Sherdog as we know it.

What's next, verified Height measurements and bench-press videos.

It's actually not that hard figuring who is poor and who isn't just by reading their posts.