Will President Donald Trump be listed on the ballots of all 50 states in the 2020 presidential election? Not if lawmakers in one New England state have anything to say about it.
Rhode Island’s State Senate voted overwhelmingly last week in favor of a measure which would prohibit presidential candidates from being listed on the state’s ballot if they have not released their tax returns to the public.
While releasing tax returns has become an informal tradition maintained by presidential nominees for more than four decades, President Trump refused calls to release his full tax returns, citing an ongoing audit.
“In interview I told @AP that my taxes are under routine audit and I would release my tax returns when audit is complete, not after election,” Trump tweeted in 2016.
A new bill in Rhode Island, however, would make the release of tax returns a requirement for any candidate wishing to appear on that state’s presidential ballot.
“Tax returns provide essential information about candidates’ conflicts of interest,” said Democratic state senator Gayle Goldin, the bill’s sponsor.
“We just have no idea how much of his policymaking is driven by his own financial gain,” Goldin said in reference to the president.
On Tuesday, the 38-member Rhode Island Senate passed the bill 34 to 3.
The bill is currently being considered in committee by the Rhode Island House of Representatives.