President Donald Trump requested an extension on his 2016 tax return, according to multiple reports.
NBC News’ Kristin Donnelly first reported the news, citing an unnamed White House official, followed by ABC News and CNN, each also citing an unnamed White House official.
An extension would give Trump until October to file his return.
The President has consistently refused to honor his campaign promise to release his tax returns, breaking with a presidential tradition that had been honored consistently since Richard Nixon’s presidency.
He has frequently changed excuses for why he will not release the returns.
In an interview with The Economist in May, CNN noted, Trump said he doubted he would release his tax returns in exchange for Democratic support for his tax plan. He added: “Oh, at some point I’ll release them. Maybe I’ll release them after I’m finished because I’m very proud of them actually. I did a good job.”
However, White House did release summary information on Trump’s 2005 taxes immediately before DC Report’s David Cay Johnston published summary pages of Trump’s tax returns from the same year, discussing them with MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow on her show.
Among other things, Johnston reported, Trump would have saved $31 million that year if the Alternative Minimum Tax had been abolished.
In a summary page outlining its promised tax plan in late April, the White House proposed repealing the Alternative Minimum Tax, calling it a “simplification” of the tax code.
