Texas Republican Warns of ‘dangerous Precedent' as Dems Take First Step to Get Trump's Tax Returns

WASHINGTON -- House Democrats on Thursday made their first tentative step toward demanding President Donald Trump's tax returns, holding a high-profile hearing on the law that allows Congress to inspect those documents.A key Texas Republican warned them to not go any further.Rep. Kevin Brady of The Woodlands cautioned Democrats against using the tax code to pry free Trump's returns, with the top Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee saying that "weaponizing the tax code for political purposes sets a dangerous precedent.""If Democrats or any party can abuse their power to rummage through the tax returns of the president, what will stop them from abusing that power in the future to, frankly, target any individual American that they see as a political enemy?" he told reporters.That view is unlikely to dissuade Democrats, who've clamored to peek at Trump's financial information ever since he broke modern presidential tradition by not releasing his tax returns.Many Democrats are actually prodding their party's leadership in the House to move more quickly in chasing down Trump's documents -- one of several areas in which there are nascent investigations into the president's personal and political dealings."It's time to act," said Austin Rep. Lloyd Doggett, a senior Democrat on the House Ways and Means Committee.  Continue reading...