[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 50 (Wednesday, March 22, 2017)]
[House]
[Pages H2308-H2311]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1300
           RAISING A QUESTION OF THE PRIVILEGES OF THE HOUSE

  Mr. POLIS. Mr. Speaker, I have a privileged resolution at the desk.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the resolution.
  The Clerk read as follows:
  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 can be influenced by foreign entities and reveal any 
conflicts of interest;
  Whereas, Article I, section 9 of the Constitution states that no 
person holding any office of profit or trust under them, shall, without 
the consent of Congress, accept any present, emolument, Office or 
Title, of any kind whatever from any King, Prince, or foreign State;

[[Page H2309]]

  Whereas, disclosure of the President's tax returns is important 
towards investigating Russian influence in the 2016 election, 
understanding 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 Russian nationals, formally or informally 
associated with Vladmir Putin;
  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, General Michael Flynn, former national security adviser of 
President Trump, received almost $68,000 in fees and expenses from 
Russian entities in 2015, including by an entity recognized by U.S. 
intelligence agencies as an arm of the Russian Government;
  Whereas, FBI Director Comey stated in the Select Intelligence 
Committee hearing on the Russian interference with the November 2016 
election that ``there is no information to support those tweets,'' 
relating to President Trump's allegations that President Obama 
illegally wiretapped the Trump campaign;
  Whereas, distracting investigators with dead-end leads and outrageous 
statements is a common tactic from those with a guilty conscience or in 
a deliberate effort to throw off investigators;
  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, according to The Washington Post, the Trump International 
Hotel in Washington, DC, has hired a ``director of diplomatic sales'' 
to generate high-priced business among foreign leaders and diplomatic 
delegations;
  Whereas, the chairman on 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 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.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Does the gentleman from Colorado wish to 
present argument on the parliamentary question whether the resolution 
presents a question of the privileges of the House?
  Mr. POLIS. Yes, Mr. Speaker.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Colorado is recognized.
  Mr. POLIS. Mr. Speaker, under rule IX, clause 1, questions of the 
privileges of the House and those affecting the rights of the House, 
its safety, dignity, and the integrity of its proceedings, that is the 
section we are talking about here today when we are talking about 
privilege.
  Mr. Speaker, truly, there is nothing more of a threat to the very 
integrity of the legislative branch in the House than ignoring our duty 
to provide a check and balance on the executive branch.
  To restore the dignity of the House inherent in rule IX, clause 1, we 
absolutely must use our authority to request that President Trump's tax 
returns are given to the American people. The American people demand to 
know the full scope of the President's financial background because 
there are legitimate concerns which, frankly, were worsened this very 
week by the hearing in the Select Intelligence Committee where the FBI 
and NSA testified there is an ongoing investigation to determine if 
there was coordination between the President's campaign and Russia.
  The Internal Revenue Code already has language that lays out a path 
for the Ways and Means Committee to obtain those tax returns and review 
them in a respectful manner; and, frankly, there is precedent for that 
provision being used. Fifty-one tax returns of Americans were requested 
the last time they used it.
  The House needs to demonstrate that our Members are listening to the 
valid concerns about the integrity of the Republic. The House needs to 
show that we care about protecting our Constitution and our system of 
checks and balances.
  When I look at the language, the privileges of the House, those 
affecting the rights of the House collectively, its safety, dignity, 
and the integrity of its proceedings, I can see nothing that fits that 
language more than this motion before you today.
  Let's shine a light on the President's conflicts so we, as a 
Congress, and the American people can judge what is occurring, where 
the conflicts lie, whether his decisions are being made for himself or 
his business interests or foreign interests or for the greater good of 
the American people.
  I call upon the Speaker to rule in favor of allowing this privileged 
resolution to move forward and for the President to disclose his tax 
returns immediately.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Does any other Member wish to be heard on 
the question of order?
  Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Speaker, I do.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from New Jersey is recognized.
  Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Speaker, on a question of the privileges of the 
House 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. Congressional oversight 
is a power granted by the Constitution in public law and in House 
rules.
  Mr. Speaker, just 2 days ago, FBI Director James Comey confirmed that 
there was an investigation of Donald Trump's campaign's ties to the 
Russian agents.
  We know that, following six bankruptcies, Donald Trump had trouble 
getting loans and financing for his real estate businesses. We know 
that German Bank Deutsche stepped in when Wall Street stopped lending, 
giving at least $300 million in loans for those properties and, more 
personally, to his daughter, Ivanka, and son-in-law.
  We know that Deutsche Bank has been fined for criminally transferring 
$10 billion out of Russia. We also know that Donald Trump, Jr. said 
that the Trump organization saw money ``pouring in from Russia'' and 
that ``Russians make up a pretty disproportionate cross-section of a 
lot of our assets.''
  We know that Donald Trump repeatedly attempted to secure trademarks 
in Russia--the record is the record--to develop real estate in Russia--
the record is the record--and to sell products in Russia--the record is 
the record. We have seen how just two pages summarizing the President's 
2005 tax returns, which many laughed off, showed that he paid a low 
rate of 25 percent. He has proposed tax changes that would 
significantly lower his own personal tax bill.
  We need to see how the President----
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman will suspend.
  The gentleman's remarks must be confined to the question of order.
  The gentleman from New Jersey is recognized.
  Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Speaker, nothing could be more of a threat to the 
integrity of this House than ignoring our duty to fully examine the 
personal financial entanglements any President,

[[Page H2310]]

and this President, may have had with Russian entities and individuals. 
If and when such conflicts are revealed, I do not want to say to our 
constituents that we had the power to review these conflicts, but, 
instead, we sat on our hands and did nothing. I, for one, do not want 
my integrity or the integrity of my colleagues in this body on both 
sides of the aisle to be demeaned by such a shameful failure.
  To restore the dignity of the House, we must use our authority to 
request President Trump's tax returns to give the American people--the 
75 percent who say ``give it up,''--75 percent of the American people, 
the transparency they deserve.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman's remarks must be confined to 
the question of order.
  Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Does the gentleman from Tennessee wish to be 
heard on the question of order?
  Mr. COHEN. Yes, Mr. Speaker.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Tennessee is recognized.
  Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Polis and Mr. Pascrell have made the 
point, and it is the same point I want to make. There is a shadow 
hanging over the United States of America, over our government, and 
over this House; and only we can lift it.
  The Trump campaign said that if Hillary Clinton was the President 
with a Federal investigation overlooking her, which it looked like 
there was with Mr. Comey's comments before the election, that it would 
be unheard of, unprecedented, and the Government couldn't go on.
  Well, there is a Federal investigation of the present President of 
the United States--something that has never happened before--and that 
has put a dark cloud that can only be lifted by showing in the light of 
day what the President's involvements were with his income taxes, whom 
he owes money to. And if he doesn't owe money to people that have a 
conflict, that is good for the government because it relieves the 
President of any suspicion.
  Like Caesar's wife, he should be beyond suspicion and beyond 
reproach, and, right now, there is a serious cloud. So I would ask the 
Chair to rule in favor of this motion so we can do our job to make the 
light shine on this government and on this House and give more respect 
for us.
  I thank the Speaker who is an honorable man and I am proud to say is 
my friend.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Does any other Member wish to be heard on 
the question of order?


                         Parliamentary Inquiry

  Mr. POLIS. Point of parliamentary inquiry, Mr. Speaker.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman will state his parliamentary 
inquiry.
  Mr. POLIS. Mr. Speaker, how many Members must come before the Speaker 
establishing that this qualifies under the privileges of the House 
affecting the integrity of the House until the Speaker rules in our 
favor?
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair is prepared to rule.
  Mr. POLIS. Mr. Speaker, I hope that the Chair will rule favorably on 
behalf of the American people.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Colorado seeks to offer a 
resolution as a question of the privileges of the House under rule IX.
  As the Chair ruled on February 27, 2017; March 7, 2017; and March 15, 
2017, the resolution 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 and, therefore, does not qualify as a question of the 
privileges of the House.
  Mr. POLIS. 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

  Ms. CHENEY. Mr. Speaker, I have a motion at the desk.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the motion.
  The Clerk read as follows:

       Ms. Cheney moves that the appeal be laid on the table.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion to lay the 
appeal on the table.
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the ayes appeared to have it.
  Mr. POLIS. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, this 15-
minute vote on the motion to lay the appeal on the table will be 
followed by 5-minute votes on the motion to recommit on H.R. 372 and 
passage of H.R. 372, if ordered.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 230, 
nays 189, answered ``present'' 1, not voting 9, as follows:

                             [Roll No. 182]

                               YEAS--230

     Abraham
     Aderholt
     Allen
     Amash
     Amodei
     Arrington
     Babin
     Bacon
     Banks (IN)
     Barletta
     Barr
     Barton
     Bergman
     Biggs
     Bilirakis
     Bishop (MI)
     Black
     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
     Crawford
     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
     Hunter
     Hurd
     Issa
     Jenkins (KS)
     Jenkins (WV)
     Johnson (LA)
     Johnson (OH)
     Johnson, Sam
     Jordan
     Joyce (OH)
     Katko
     Kelly (MS)
     Kelly (PA)
     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
     Messer
     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)
     Rohrabacher
     Rokita
     Rooney, Francis
     Rooney, Thomas J.
     Ros-Lehtinen
     Roskam
     Ross
     Rothfus
     Rouzer
     Royce (CA)
     Russell
     Rutherford
     Scalise
     Schweikert
     Scott, Austin
     Sensenbrenner
     Sessions
     Shimkus
     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

                               NAYS--189

     Adams
     Aguilar
     Barragan
     Bass
     Beatty
     Bera
     Beyer
     Bishop (GA)
     Blumenauer
     Blunt Rochester
     Bonamici
     Boyle, Brendan F.
     Brady (PA)
     Brown (MD)
     Brownley (CA)
     Bustos
     Butterfield
     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.
     Ellison
     Engel
     Eshoo
     Espaillat
     Esty
     Evans
     Foster
     Frankel (FL)
     Fudge
     Gabbard
     Gallego
     Garamendi
     Gonzalez (TX)
     Gottheimer
     Green, Al
     Green, Gene
     Grijalva
     Gutierrez
     Hanabusa
     Hastings
     Heck
     Higgins (NY)
     Himes
     Hoyer
     Huffman
     Jackson Lee
     Jayapal
     Jeffries
     Johnson (GA)
     Johnson, E. B.
     Jones
     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
     Lofgren
     Lowenthal
     Lowey
     Lujan Grisham, M.
     Lujan, Ben Ray
     Lynch

[[Page H2311]]


     Maloney, Carolyn B.
     Maloney, Sean
     Matsui
     McCollum
     McEachin
     McGovern
     McNerney
     Meeks
     Meng
     Moore
     Moulton
     Murphy (FL)
     Nadler
     Napolitano
     Neal
     Nolan
     Norcross
     O'Halleran
     O'Rourke
     Pallone
     Panetta
     Pascrell
     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
     Sires
     Smith (WA)
     Soto
     Speier
     Suozzi
     Swalwell (CA)
     Takano
     Thompson (CA)
     Thompson (MS)
     Titus
     Tonko
     Torres
     Vargas
     Veasey
     Vela
     Velazquez
     Visclosky
     Walz
     Wasserman Schultz
     Waters, Maxine
     Watson Coleman
     Welch
     Wilson (FL)
     Yarmuth

                        ANSWERED ``PRESENT''--1

       
     Sanford
       

                             NOT VOTING--9

     Bishop (UT)
     Blackburn
     King (IA)
     Payne
     Rush
     Shuster
     Sinema
     Slaughter
     Tsongas

                              {time}  1336

  Mr. CRIST changed his vote from ``yea'' to ``nay.''
  Mr. HUNTER changed his vote from ``nay'' to ``yea.''
  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.

                          ____________________