Trump says he can’t release tax returns because of audits

But there’s actually no rule preventing Trump form releasing them, whether he’s being audited or not – something the IRS can’t confirm. “The IRS stresses that audits of tax returns are based on the information contained on the taxpayer’s return and the underlying tax law – nothing else”, the statement continued.

This time, Mr. Romney is playing the role of antagonist, warning of a “bombshell” in Mr. Trump’s tax returns and urging him to release them.

But that didn’t stop Trump from bringing up his faith as a possible reason why he believes he is audited every year by the Internal Revenue Service. Twelve years or something like that.

“Generally, the IRS can include returns filed within the last three years in an audit”, the agency’s website says.

More than a year after ending his flirtation with a third presidential bid, 2012 “Republican” presidential nominee Mitt Romney is back in the news – bashing his party’s frontrunner for the 2016 presidential nomination.

When rivals Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz – who spent tonight’s debate playing whack-a-mole with Trump – got their turn to talk taxes, they turned it back on the billionaire. Cruz accused Trump of having the same stance as Hillary Clinton, with both wanting to be “neutral”, and said he stands “unapologetically with the nation of Israel”.

“But the one problem I have is I am always audited by the IRS, which I think is very unfair”, Trump said.

“But I think the reason why Donald won’t release his taxes is because he hasn’t made almost as much money as he claims he does”, Rubio said. He was unable to hand over any years’ tax return.

“I think it’s a mistake to underestimate his political intelligence”, he adds. “I’ve had it for years, I get audited”. “I have big returns, as you know, and I have everything all approved and very lovely and we’ll be working that over in the next period of time”, he said then. “While it’s not necessarily routine for somebody to be audited that many years right in a row, given the way he has accrued his wealth and some of the turbulence he’s hit by being such an entrepreneur, I can’t say I’m shocked”.

He also told Anderson Cooper on Wednesday that “there is no bombshell at all other than I pay a lot of tax and the government wastes the money”. Reid zeroed in on his taxes, saying he hadn’t paid any in a decade without offering any evidence to support the claim. Similar questions dogged Romney until late in the general election — suggesting that the focus on Trump’s taxes may not quickly abate.

“I agree we should have won and I wished we would have, but, in fact, you did criticize him for using the term ‘self-deportation'”.

Trump also suggested that these types of filings were more informative than a candidate giving over his or her tax returns.

But Shaviro conceded, as other tax experts have, that Trump’s lawyers may advise him not to release the returns for legal strategy purposes.