WASHINGTON _ President Donald Trump's lawyer pressed a federal judge in Washington to nix efforts by a Democratic-led congressional committee to obtain tax records from the president's longtime accounting firm, calling the document request invalid.
"They've made clear this is not about legislation," William Consovoy told U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta Tuesday.
Even legislative reasons offered by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee for looking into the finances of the president and his businesses, including the umbrella Trump Organization, are unconstitutional, Consovoy said, suggesting the judge rule that way.
Mehta was openly skeptical, telling the president's lawyer, "I just can't imagine that that's what I'm supposed to do."
The judge, a 2014 appointee of President Barack Obama, opened the hearing by making it clear he considers the issues raised by Trump and his business as serious and vowed he would only issue a ruling after due consideration and not at the end of Tuesday's hearing. No judge would make a hasty decision "for the sake of expediency," Mehta said.
Trump and his businesses sued last month to block the House committee from obtaining records from the Mazars USA LLP accounting firm dating back to 2011. The firm has taken no position on the request.
