[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 34 (Monday, February 27, 2017)]
[House]
[Pages H1337-H1339]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
NOTICE OF INTENTION TO OFFER RESOLUTION RAISING A QUESTION OF THE
PRIVILEGES OF THE HOUSE
Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to clause 2(a)(1) of rule IX, I
rise to give notice of my intent to raise a question of the privileges
of the House.
The form of the resolution is as follows:
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the
President shall immediately disclose his tax return information to
Congress and the American people.
Whereas, in the United States' system of checks and balances,
Congress has a responsibility to hold the executive branch of
government to the highest standard of transparency to ensure the public
interest is placed first;
Whereas, according to the Tax History Project, every President since
Gerald Ford has disclosed their tax return information to the public;
Whereas, tax returns provide an important baseline disclosure because
they contain highly instructive information including whether the
candidate paid taxes, what they own, what they have borrowed and from
whom, whether they have made any charitable donations, and whether they
have taken advantage of tax loopholes;
Whereas, disclosure of the President's tax returns could help those
investigating Russian influence in the 2016 election understand the
President's financial ties to the Russian Federation and Russian
citizens, including debts owed and whether he shares any partnership
interests, equity interests, joint ventures or licensing agreements
with Russia or Russians;
Whereas, The New York Times has reported that President Trump's close
senior advisers, including Carter Page, Paul Manafort, Roger Stone, and
General Michael Flynn, have been under investigation by the Federal
Bureau of Investigation for their ties to the Russian Federation;
Whereas, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told
Interfax, a Russian media outlet, on November 10, 2016 that ``there
were contacts'' with Donald Trump's 2016 campaign, and it has been
reported that members of President Trump's inner circle were in contact
with senior Russian officials throughout the 2016 campaign;
Whereas, according to his 2016 candidate filing with the Federal
Election Commission, the President has 564 financial positions in
companies located in the United States and around the world;
Whereas, against the advice of ethics attorneys and the Office of
Government Ethics, the President has refused to divest his ownership
stake in his businesses;
[[Page H1338]]
Whereas, the director of the nonpartisan Office of Government Ethics
said that the President's plan to transfer his business holdings to a
trust managed by family members is ``meaningless'' and ``does not meet
the standards that . . . every president in the past four decades has
met'';
Whereas, the Emoluments Clause was included in the U.S. Constitution
for the express purpose of preventing federal officials from accepting
any ``present, Emolument, Office, or Title . . . from any King, Prince,
or foreign state'';
Whereas, according to The Washington Post, the Trump International
Hotel in Washington, D.C., has hired a ``director of diplomatic sales''
to generate high-priced business among foreign leaders and diplomatic
delegations;
Whereas, according to The New York Times, the President used a
legally dubious tax maneuver in 1995 that could have allowed him to
avoid paying federal taxes for 18 years;
Whereas, the most signed petition on the White House website calls
for the release of the President's tax return information to verify
compliance with the Emoluments Clause, with 1,074,000 signatures as of
date of this resolution;
Whereas, the chairmen of the Ways and Means Committee, Joint
Committee on Taxation, and Senate Finance Committee have the authority
to request the President's tax returns under,Section 6103 of the tax
code;
Whereas, the Joint Committee on Taxation reviewed the tax returns of
President Richard Nixon in 1974 and made the information public;
Whereas, the Ways and Means Committee used IRC 6103 authority in 2014
to make public the confidential tax information of 51 taxpayers;
Whereas, the American people have the right to know whether or not
their President is operating under conflicts of interest related to
international affairs, tax reform, government contracts, or otherwise:
Now, therefore, be it resolved, that the House of Representatives
shall, one, immediately request the tax return information of Donald J.
Trump for tax years 2006 through 2015 for review in closed executive
session by the Committee on Ways and Means, as provided under section
6103 of the Internal Revenue Code, and vote to report the information
therein to the full House of Representatives; two, support transparency
in government and the longstanding tradition of Presidents and
Presidential candidates disclosing their tax returns.
=========================== NOTE ===========================
February 27, 2017, on page H1338, the following appeared:
Whereas, the American people have the right to know whether or not
their President is operating under conflicts of interest related
to international affairs, tax reform, government contracts,or
otherwise: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, that the House of
Representatives shall, one, Immediately request the tax return
information of Donald J. Trump for tax years 2006 . . .
The online version has been corrected to read: Whereas, the
American people have the right to know whether or not their
President is operating under conflicts of interest related to
international affairs, tax reform, government contracts, or
otherwise: Now, therefore, be it resolved, that the House of
Representatives shall, one, immediately request the tax return
information of Donald J. Trump for tax years 2006 . . .
========================= END NOTE =========================
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Simpson). The Chair will now recognize
the gentleman from New Jersey to offer the resolution just noticed.
Does the gentleman offer the resolution?
Mr. PASCRELL. Yes, Mr. Speaker, I offer my resolution.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the resolution.
The Clerk read as follows:
Resolution
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that
the President shall immediately disclose his tax return
information to Congress and the American people.
Whereas, in the United States' system of checks and
balances, Congress has a responsibility to hold the Executive
Branch of government to the highest standard of transparency
to ensure the public interest is placed first;
Whereas, according to the Tax History Project, every
President since Gerald Ford has disclosed their tax return
information to the public;
Whereas, tax returns provide an important baseline
disclosure/because they contain highly instructive
information including whether the candidate paid taxes, what
they own, what they have borrowed and from whom, whether they
have made any charitable donations, and whether they have
taken advantage of tax loopholes;
Whereas, disclosure of the President's tax returns could
help those investigating Russian influence in the 2016
election understand the President's financial ties to the
Russian Federation and Russian citizens, including debts owed
and whether he shares any partnership interests, equity
interests, joint ventures or licensing agreements with Russia
or Russians;
Whereas, the New York Times has reported that President
Trump's close senior advisers, including Carter Page, Paul
Manafort, Roger Stone, and General Michael Flynn, have been
under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation
for their ties to the Russian Federation;
Whereas, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov
told Interfax, a Russian media outlet, on November 10, 2016
that ``there were contacts'' with Donald Trump's 2016
campaign, and it has been reported that members of President
Trump's inner circle were in contact with senior Russian
officials throughout the 2016 campaign;
Whereas, according to his 2016 candidate filing with the
Federal Election Commission, the President has 564 financial
positions in companies located in the United States and
around the world;
Whereas, against the advice of ethics attorneys and the
Office of Government Ethics, the President has refused to
divest his ownership stake in his businesses;
Whereas, the director of the nonpartisan Office of
Government Ethics said that the President's plan to transfer
his business holdings to a trust managed by family members is
``meaningless'' and ``does not meet the standards . . . that
every president in the past four decades has met'';
Whereas, the Emoluments Clause was included in the U.S.
Constitution for the express purpose of preventing federal
officials from accepting any ``present, Emolument, Office, or
Title . . . from any King, Prince, or foreign state'';
Whereas, according to the Washington Post, the Trump
International Hotel in Washington, D.C. has hired a
``director of diplomatic sales'' to generate high-priced
business among foreign leaders and diplomatic delegations;
Whereas, according to the New York Times, the President
used a legally dubious tax maneuver in 1995 that could have
allowed him to avoid paying federal taxes for 18 years;
Whereas, the most signed petition on the White House
website calls for the release of the President's tax return
information to verify compliance with the Emoluments Clause,
with 1 million, 74 thousand signatures as of date of this
resolution;
Whereas, the Chairmen of the Ways and Means Committee,
Joint Committee on Taxation, and Senate Finance Committee
have the authority to request the President's tax returns
under Section 6103 of the tax code;
Whereas, the Joint Committee on Taxation reviewed the tax
returns of President Richard Nixon in 1974 and made the
information public;
Whereas, the Ways and Means Committee used IRC 6103
authority in 2014 to make public the confidential tax
information of 51 taxpayers;
Whereas, the American people have the right to know whether
or not their President is operating under conflicts of
interest related to international affairs, tax reform,
government contracts, or otherwise: Now, therefore, be it:
Resolved, That the House of Representatives shall--
1. Immediately request the tax return information of Donald
J. Trump for tax years 2006 through 2015 for review in closed
executive session by the Committee on Ways and Means, as
provided under Section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code, and
vote to report the information therein to the full House of
Representatives
2. Support transparency in government and the longstanding
tradition of Presidents and Presidential candidates
disclosing their tax returns.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Does the gentleman from New Jersey wish to
present argument on the parliamentary question whether the resolution
presents a question of the privileges of the House?
Mr. PASCRELL. Yes, Mr. Speaker.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New
Jersey.
Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Speaker, under rule IX, clause 1, questions of the
privileges of the House are ``those affecting the rights of the House
collectively, its safety, dignity, and the integrity of its
proceedings.''
There is nothing more of a threat to the integrity of this House than
ignoring our duty to provide a check and balance to the executive
branch. To restore the dignity of the House, we must use our authority
to request President Trump's tax returns and give the American people
the transparency they deserve.
The American people demand, Mr. Speaker, to know the full scope of
the President's financial background. Article I, Section 9 of the
Constitution includes a clause prohibiting foreign emoluments to the
President.
The Office of Government Ethics--I can't stress this enough--has
warned us about the President's decision not to divest or set up a
blind trust. And there is a need to fully understand the President's
ties to Russia.
The resolution I am offering can provide the transparency to help
ease the concerns of Americans across the Nation. The Internal Revenue
Code includes language laying out a path for the Ways and Means
Committee to obtain the tax returns and review them in a respectful
manner, and there is the precedent of that provision being used.
Mr. Speaker, that decision to put this into the code in 1924 was a
result of the very famous scandal of 1923, the Teapot Dome, from Teapot
Rock, Wyoming, under President Harding. He died, unfortunately, and
never saw the end of this scandal.
[[Page H1339]]
People committed murder in this scandal. People sold off American
reserves in this scandal. So, they put it into the IRS Code for a very,
very specific reason, so the people have a right to know.
A growing number of Members and Senators from both parties have been
saying we should have the President's tax returns. The House must
demonstrate--and this is my deep feeling here, not as a Democrat, but
as an American citizen, Mr. Speaker--we must demonstrate that its
Members are listening to our constituents' concerns. The House must
demonstrate that it cares about protecting the integrity of our
government, of our Constitution, of our system of checks and balances.
Let's shine a bright light on the President's conflicts together,
together, as we, as a Congress, and the broader American public can
judge whether his decisions are being made for himself, his business
interests, or for the greater good of the American people.
Mr. Speaker, I thank you for your indulgences, and I yield back the
balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair is prepared to rule.
The gentleman from New Jersey seeks to offer a resolution as a
question of the privileges of the House under rule IX.
In evaluating the resolution under rule IX, the Chair must determine
whether the resolution affects ``the rights of the House collectively,
its safety, its dignity, and the integrity of its proceedings.''
As demonstrated by section 706 of the House Rules and Manual, a
resolution providing an order of business, such as by directing a
committee to meet and conduct certain business, does not qualify as a
question of the privileges of the House.
The resolution offered by the gentleman from New Jersey directs the
Committee on Ways and Means to meet and consider an item of business
under the procedures set forth in 26 U.S.C. 6103. Accordingly, the
resolution does not qualify as a question of the privileges of the
House.
Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Speaker, I appeal the ruling of the Chair.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is, Shall the decision of the
Chair stand as the judgment of the House?
Motion to Table
Mr. McCARTHY. Mr. Speaker, I have a motion at the desk.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the motion.
The Clerk read as follows:
Mr. McCarthy moves that the appeal be laid on the table.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion to table.
The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that
the ayes appeared to have it.
Recorded Vote
Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.
A recorded vote was ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, this 15-
minute vote on the motion to table will be followed by a 5-minute vote
on suspending the rules and passing H.R. 863.
The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--ayes 229,
noes 185, answered ``present'' 2, not voting 14, as follows:
[Roll No. 101]
AYES--229
Abraham
Aderholt
Allen
Amash
Amodei
Arrington
Babin
Bacon
Banks (IN)
Barletta
Barr
Bergman
Biggs
Bilirakis
Bishop (MI)
Bishop (UT)
Black
Blackburn
Blum
Bost
Brady (TX)
Brat
Bridenstine
Brooks (AL)
Brooks (IN)
Buchanan
Buck
Bucshon
Budd
Burgess
Byrne
Calvert
Carter (GA)
Carter (TX)
Chabot
Chaffetz
Cheney
Coffman
Cole
Collins (GA)
Collins (NY)
Comer
Comstock
Conaway
Cook
Costello (PA)
Cramer
Culberson
Curbelo (FL)
Davidson
Davis, Rodney
Denham
Dent
DeSantis
DesJarlais
Diaz-Balart
Donovan
Duffy
Duncan (SC)
Duncan (TN)
Dunn
Emmer
Farenthold
Faso
Ferguson
Fitzpatrick
Fleischmann
Flores
Fortenberry
Foxx
Franks (AZ)
Frelinghuysen
Gaetz
Gallagher
Garrett
Gibbs
Gohmert
Goodlatte
Gosar
Gowdy
Granger
Graves (GA)
Graves (LA)
Graves (MO)
Griffith
Grothman
Guthrie
Harper
Harris
Hartzler
Hensarling
Herrera Beutler
Hice, Jody B.
Higgins (LA)
Hill
Holding
Hollingsworth
Hudson
Huizenga
Hultgren
Hurd
Issa
Jenkins (KS)
Jenkins (WV)
Johnson (LA)
Johnson (OH)
Johnson, Sam
Jordan
Joyce (OH)
Katko
Kelly (MS)
Kelly (PA)
King (IA)
King (NY)
Kinzinger
Knight
Kustoff (TN)
Labrador
LaHood
LaMalfa
Lamborn
Lance
Latta
Lewis (MN)
LoBiondo
Long
Loudermilk
Love
Lucas
Luetkemeyer
MacArthur
Marchant
Marino
Marshall
Massie
Mast
McCarthy
McCaul
McClintock
McHenry
McKinley
McMorris Rodgers
McSally
Meadows
Meehan
Mitchell
Moolenaar
Mooney (WV)
Mullin
Murphy (PA)
Newhouse
Noem
Nunes
Olson
Palazzo
Palmer
Paulsen
Pearce
Perry
Pittenger
Poe (TX)
Poliquin
Posey
Ratcliffe
Reed
Reichert
Renacci
Rice (SC)
Roby
Roe (TN)
Rogers (AL)
Rogers (KY)
Rokita
Rooney, Francis
Rooney, Thomas J.
Ros-Lehtinen
Roskam
Ross
Rothfus
Rouzer
Royce (CA)
Russell
Rutherford
Scalise
Schweikert
Scott, Austin
Sensenbrenner
Sessions
Shimkus
Shuster
Simpson
Smith (MO)
Smith (NE)
Smith (NJ)
Smith (TX)
Smucker
Stefanik
Stewart
Stivers
Taylor
Tenney
Thompson (PA)
Thornberry
Tiberi
Tipton
Trott
Turner
Upton
Valadao
Wagner
Walberg
Walden
Walker
Walorski
Walters, Mimi
Weber (TX)
Webster (FL)
Wenstrup
Westerman
Williams
Wilson (SC)
Wittman
Womack
Woodall
Yoder
Yoho
Young (AK)
Young (IA)
Zeldin
NOES--185
Adams
Aguilar
Barragan
Bass
Beatty
Bera
Beyer
Bishop (GA)
Blumenauer
Blunt Rochester
Bonamici
Boyle, Brendan F.
Brady (PA)
Brown (MD)
Brownley (CA)
Bustos
Capuano
Carbajal
Cardenas
Carson (IN)
Cartwright
Castor (FL)
Castro (TX)
Chu, Judy
Cicilline
Clark (MA)
Clarke (NY)
Clay
Cleaver
Clyburn
Cohen
Connolly
Conyers
Cooper
Correa
Costa
Courtney
Crist
Crowley
Cuellar
Cummings
Davis (CA)
Davis, Danny
DeFazio
DeGette
Delaney
DeLauro
DelBene
Demings
DeSaulnier
Deutch
Dingell
Doggett
Doyle, Michael F.
Engel
Eshoo
Espaillat
Esty
Evans
Foster
Frankel (FL)
Fudge
Gabbard
Gallego
Garamendi
Gonzalez (TX)
Gottheimer
Green, Al
Green, Gene
Hanabusa
Hastings
Heck
Higgins (NY)
Himes
Hoyer
Huffman
Jackson Lee
Jayapal
Jeffries
Johnson (GA)
Johnson, E. B.
Kaptur
Keating
Kelly (IL)
Kennedy
Khanna
Kihuen
Kildee
Kilmer
Kind
Krishnamoorthi
Kuster (NH)
Langevin
Larsen (WA)
Larson (CT)
Lawrence
Lawson (FL)
Lee
Levin
Lewis (GA)
Lieu, Ted
Lipinski
Loebsack
Lowenthal
Lowey
Lujan Grisham, M.
Lujan, Ben Ray
Lynch
Maloney, Carolyn B.
Maloney, Sean
Matsui
McCollum
McEachin
McGovern
McNerney
Meeks
Moore
Moulton
Murphy (FL)
Nadler
Napolitano
Neal
Nolan
Norcross
O'Halleran
O'Rourke
Pallone
Panetta
Pascrell
Payne
Pelosi
Perlmutter
Peters
Peterson
Pingree
Pocan
Polis
Price (NC)
Quigley
Raskin
Rice (NY)
Richmond
Rosen
Roybal-Allard
Ruiz
Ruppersberger
Ryan (OH)
Sanchez
Sarbanes
Schakowsky
Schiff
Schneider
Schrader
Scott (VA)
Scott, David
Serrano
Sewell (AL)
Shea-Porter
Sherman
Sinema
Sires
Slaughter
Smith (WA)
Soto
Speier
Suozzi
Swalwell (CA)
Takano
Thompson (CA)
Thompson (MS)
Titus
Tonko
Torres
Tsongas
Vargas
Veasey
Vela
Velazquez
Visclosky
Walz
Wasserman Schultz
Waters, Maxine
Watson Coleman
Welch
Yarmuth
ANSWERED ``PRESENT''--2
Jones
Sanford
NOT VOTING--14
Barton
Butterfield
Crawford
Ellison
Grijalva
Gutierrez
Hunter
Lofgren
Meng
Messer
Rohrabacher
Rush
Wilson (FL)
Zinke
{time} 1927
So the motion to table was agreed to.
The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________