Not necessarily.
During and interview with ABC’s David Muir, Republican VP pick, Mike Pence, explained how he was going to release his tax returns to the public soon, and that Trump would follow suit after a routine audit. Trump then weighed in.
“As far as my taxes are concerned, the only one that cares is the press, I will tell you. And even the press – I tell you, it’s not a big deal.” said Trump.
“You don’t think there are any voters out there who…” asked Muir.
“I don’t think so. No. I think people don’t care.” said Trump.
He severely underestimates the public’s ability to want to see what’s being hidden from them. A Monmouth University poll tells a different story than the one Trump wants us to believe.
“…Trump has faced renewed calls for the release of his personal tax returns, which has been a common practice of presidential candidates for more than 30 years. Nearly one-third of voters (31%) say it is very important to them that presidential candidates release their tax returns, 31% say it is somewhat important, and 36% say it is not important. Most Clinton supporters (54%) say this disclosure is very important to them while only 10% of Trump supporters feel the same.
Nearly 3-in-4 voters (73%) are aware that Trump has not released his tax returns, while 6% think he has actually done this already. By comparison, 56% are aware that Clinton has released her tax returns, while 15% believe she has not.
Trump has said that he cannot release his returns because they are under a routine IRS audit. Only 24% of voters believe this is the reason he is keeping his returns private. Most voters (52%) believe there is something in those returns he does not want the public to know.”
Trump keeping his taxes close to his chest has created something of a Streisand effect, where purposefully trying to hide something from the people has made them want to see it even more. The longer Trump holds out, the more his already false claim that nobody cares becomes less true.
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