White House wages war on transparency: Weekend Edition

Why Mnuchin Doesn't Want You to See Trump's Tax Returns – Timothy L. O'Brien Surprising absolutely no one, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin thumbed his nose at the House of Representatives and decided not to turn over President Donald Trump's business and personal tax returns after weeks of saying he just needed a little more time to think about it. In a letter to House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal, Mnuchin, citing guidance he received from the Justice Department, said the committee's request for Trump's returns "lacks a legitimate legislative purpose" and he was "therefore not authorized" to release them. With that, Mnuchin said he was "informing" Neal that Treasury "may not lawfully fulfill the Committee's request." If it wasn't clear before, then it is now: Trump's White House has decided to wage war on the principles of transparency and oversight, arguing in a series of recent confrontations with the law enforcement community and Congress that the executive branch has the authority and independence to decide for itself whether it has to respond to — and even recognize — checks on its power. Read the whole thing. Executive Privilege Isn't a Magic Wand to Protect Trump – Noah Feldman Trump Could Cost Future Retirees Billions – Ethan Schwartz American Students Have Changed Their Majors – Justin Fox The Theory That (Might) Explain Trump's Trade War – Karl W. Smith Trump's Trade Threats Hurt the U.S. More Than China – David Fickling This Is the Wrong Way to Deal With China – Andrew Browne Trump Can't Let Erdogan Get Away With This – Eli Lake Tariffs Are a Smokescreen for Shrinking China Footprint – Tim Culpan The Mighty U.S. Consumer Is Struggling – Danielle DiMartino Booth Saturday New Music Here are seven new albums you can stream right now, including from Mac DeMarco and Ciara. This is the Weekend Edition of Bloomberg Opinion Today, a roundup of the 10 most popular stories Bloomberg Opinion published this week, based on web readership, with some other stuff thrown in. FOLLOW US SEND TO A FRIEND You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Bloomberg Opinion Today newsletter. Unsubscribe | Bloomberg.com | Contact Us Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington, New York, NY, 10022