Anna Eshoo: “I thank the gentleman for yielding time to me. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the rule and the underlying bill…”

“I thank the gentleman for yielding time to me. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the rule and the underlying bill, and I urge my colleagues to defeat the previous question so that the House can vote on my bipartisan legislation, the Presidential Tax Transparency Act. Mr. Speaker, in the last week, the President fired the FBI Director who was investigating him. We then learned that the President also pressured the Director to end his investigation of Michael Flynn's Russia entanglements. These revelations, added to so many others, make it abundantly clear that we must have disclosure of the President's tax returns in order to fully understand his connections to Russia. The Presidential Tax Transparency Act would require this disclosure for the current President, all future Presidents, and Presidential nominees. {time} 1245 This practice has never been required by law. But if there were ever a time for Congress to codify this bipartisan disclosure tradition, now is the time. The President's behavior has raised questions since before the election about what connections or exposure he may have to Russian officials.…”