Republican Party nominee for Vice President Mike Pence said he will release his tax returns soon.
"Donald Trump and I are both going to release our tax returns. I'll release mine in the next week. Donald Trump will be releasing his tax returns at the completion of an audit," Republican vice presidential nominee Pence said Saturday.
Pence's statement brings more attention to the fact that his running mate hasn't released his tax returns yet. The Indiana governor is going the traditional route and releasing his returns for transparency with voters and the press.
And it makes sense that Pence is releasing his returns. He's a more traditional candidate who likely won't be done seeking higher office after the November election, so being more conventional and mainstream may help his long-term career.
But it's just another reminder that Trump has skirted precedent by not letting Americans see his returns.
Trump claims that he can't release his returns because of an IRS audit, even though the IRS said "nothing prevents individuals from sharing their own tax information," including an audit.
Every presidential nominee since 1976 has released some form of a tax return or at least tax summary.
Trump has been hit on all sides for not releasing the returns for months. Hillary Clinton, who has decades of tax returns in the public sphere, has made it a campaign issue; even Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and other Republicans have called on the nominee to make the returns public.
Trump has also refused to release tax returns that aren't covered by the audit, leaving questions about how low Trump's tax rate might be or even how much he's worth.
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