Mnuchin says courts need to settle fight over Trump's taxes

By ANDREW TAYLOR Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin says it's up to the courts to referee his dispute with House Democrats demanding access to President Donald Trump's tax returns.

Mnuchin tells a Senate panel that the fight between the administration and Rep. Richard Neal, the House Ways and Means Committee chairman, "will go to the third branch of government to be resolved."

Mnuchin is sticking to earlier arguments that Neal's demand for Trump's taxes would set a precedent that lawmakers could pursue confidential tax information for political purposes.

Mnuchin calls it "a very important issue that has a precedent way beyond any one president and Congress."

Neal, a Massachusetts Democrat, has subpoenaed six years' worth of Trump's returns. He's set a Friday deadline for the IRS to deliver them.