Yashar Ali was the first to report a few minutes ago that California Gov. Gavin Newsom will sign a bill into law that will require presidential and gubernatorial candidates to submit five years worth of tax returns as a condition for getting on the primary ballot:
1. Exclusive: Governor @GavinNewsom, my former boss, tells me he is signing a bill that would require presidential and gubernatorial candidates to submit tax returns in order to qualify for the primary ballot
I have requested comment from the White Househttps://t.co/1j0c7wW7qn
— Yashar Ali ? (@yashar) July 30, 2019
Ladies and gentlemen, this one’s going to court:
New: Gov. Gavin Newsom just signed a law that would disqualify President Trump for California’s primary ballot next year unless Trump releases his tax returns. Expect a big, ugly court fight. https://t.co/mL8cyN7HZ6
— Matt Pearce ? (@mattdpearce) July 30, 2019
FWIW, this is for the primary only:
Important to note, as the LAT points out, this is for the primary only.
If the law withstands court challenge and Trump still refuses to release his tax returns, he would still be on the ballot for the general election.
— Tom Dreisbach (@TomDreisbach) July 30, 2019
And here’s Nate Silver telling voters to boot Newsom out of office over it:
This remains a terrible, anti-democratic idea and California should be embarassed. https://t.co/dYHAEtrnE5
— Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) July 30, 2019
If any politician tries to restrict who you can vote for when they meet Constitutional requirements for the office, you should vote them out of office while you still have the chance.
— Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) July 30, 2019
More from Yashar Ali who writes that former Gov. Jerry Brown refused to sign a similar bill as it “would lead to a slippery slope of disclosure”:
In 2017, Newsom’s predecessor, Gov. Jerry Brown, vetoed a similar bill that would have required presidential candidates to submit five years of tax returns in order to qualify for the California primary ballot. That bill, however, did not require the same disclosure requirements for gubernatorial candidates as the bill that Newsom plans on signing does.
Brown, who didn’t release his tax returns when he ran for governor in 2010 or reelection in 2014, said in his veto message at the time that he was worried that the bill would lead to a slippery slope of disclosure, saying, in part, “Today we require tax returns, but what would be next? Five years of health records? A certified birth certificate? High school report cards? And will these requirements vary depending on which political party is in power?”
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