House Democrats filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the Trump administration to compel the release of the president’s tax returns.

The move is sure to exacerbate ongoing tensions between congressional Democrats and the various administration officials who have flatly refused to comply with their oversight requests for documents and witness testimony. Democrats have long demanded Trump’s tax returns, citing a 1924 law that grants lawmakers the authority to review any American’s income-tax return. The administration and its allies, meanwhile, have adopted a more narrow view of congressional oversight, insisting that lawmakers lack a legitimate legislative purpose for requesting the documents because their actual motivation is to embarrass a political opponent. Trump broke with decades of tradition by refusing to publish his tax returns during the 2016 campaign — a breach of protocol he justified by suggesting an ongoing audit precluded him from releasing the documents.

The most recent lawsuit adds to a plethora of legal actions that congressional Democrats have resorted to in response to the administration’s stonewalling.

Trial-level judges have thus far ruled in favor of lawmakers, finding that they are entitled to review records that are clearly pertinent to their investigative duties. 22 “There can be no doubt as to the power of Congress, by itself or through its committees, to investigate matters,” federal judge Edgardo Ramos said at a court hearing in May. “Without the power to investigate . . . Congress could be seriously handicapped in its efforts to exercise its constitutional function wisely and effectively.” The Trump administration is in the process of appealing both court decisions.

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