Bill Barr Is The Sideshow, Steven Mnuchin Is The One Who Needs To Lose His Job And Go To Jail

Barr is violating norms, Mnuchin is violating laws.

Steve Mnuchin and other hucksters and charlatans. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

Bill Barr’s odious performance as President Donald Trump’s defense attorney is soaking up a lot of coverage. I get why: he’s stonewalling Congress over the release of the unredacted Mueller report, refusing to testify before the House, and oozing around the lying and obfuscating about what’s actually in the parts of the report we can all read for ourselves. He’s a travesty and the House is right to move to hold him in contempt.

But Barr is not the Trump administration official in open violation of federal law just at the moment. That dubious honor belongs to Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin. Mnuchin’s failure to hand over Donald Trump’s tax returns to the House Ways and Means Committee is a violation of a clear federal statute, and an unconstitutional violation of separation of powers. Mnuchin should be impeached from his position and thrown in jail for the dereliction of his duties.

Unlike the usual Team Trump strategy of violating norms or ethics or common decency, Mnuchin is in violation of a clear statute that governs the release of tax returns to Congressional committees:

26 U.S. Code § 6103

(f) Disclosure to Committees of Congress
(1) Committee on Ways and Means, Committee on Finance, and Joint Committee on Taxation
Upon written request from the chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives, the chairman of the Committee on Finance of the Senate, or the chairman of the Joint Committee on Taxation, the Secretary shall furnish such committee with any return or return information specified in such request, except that any return or return information which can be associated with, or otherwise identify, directly or indirectly, a particular taxpayer shall be furnished to such committee only when sitting in closed executive session unless such taxpayer otherwise consents in writing to such disclosure.

As statutes go, that’s clear as day. Mnuchin shall furnish Ways and Means with the tax returns they request. Mnuchin sent a letter to Congress explaining why he was not complying with their request. He says that Congress is requesting the returns for no legitimate legislative interest. But nowhere does such language appear as a limiting factor in the statute.

There is no limiting factor in the statute. Congress can see anybody’s tax returns it wants to, in a closed door session. That actually makes sense. Tax returns are information the executive branch has collected. Of course there needs to be a mechanism where the legislative branch can see the information the executive branch has collected, as those two bodies of government are supposed to be on equal footing.

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This core concept of CO-EQUAL branches of government has flummoxed Trump and his administration at every point since Democrats took control of the House of Representatives. The Trump administration hasn’t figured out yet that Paul Ryan was a spineless moron who failed at every turn to exercise the Constitutional duties of his office. Now that Democrats are in charge, Team Trump has done everything it can to violate the meaning of co-equal branches, and the spirit of separation of powers.

That’s why it’s so important the Mnuchin isn’t just held accountable, but made an example of. Every leaked memo and tell-all book about the Trump administration shows that Trump has shockingly little control over his underlings. Yes, they all say whatever it takes to pacify him and look like they’re playing along. But what he’s got is an administration of mercenaries, all here for their bigoted or ruinous pet projects. Trump inspires no loyalty; his minions are all out here for themselves.

Right now, it’s in Mnuchin’s self-interest to violate the laws of this country instead of pissing off Donald Trump. Congress has to change that calculus. Congress has to show Mnuchin, and all the other Trump administration officials, that it is in their rational self-interest to follow the law, even if that goes against the tyrannical impulses of their bloviating boss.

We can’t let that stand. We know that Trump has gone to great lengths to rid himself of people who have any concept of what a moral or ethical principle even is. He’s got a team of mercenaries now, and they’ll all do whatever Trump says so long as it’s easier than the alternative.

We have to make following Trump’s orders the dangerous, irrational choice for these men. Mnuchin is the easiest one to take out behind the woodshed, because the one who is most flagrantly violating the law.

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In fact, as David Cay Johnson writes, Mnuchin’s refusal to turn over the Trump tax returns to Congress could be construed as his participation in a conspiracy to commit tax fraud, should Trump’s tax returns be fraudulent.

Hold Barr in contempt, if you like. Mnuchin must be arrested and impeached. We need to find out, right now, if the Capitol Police are loyal to America or Donald Trump.

Mnuchin rejects Hill request to hand over Trump tax returns [NBC]


Elie Mystal is the Executive Editor of Above the Law and a contributor at The Nation. He can be reached @ElieNYC on Twitter, or at elie@abovethelaw.com. He will resist.