Bernie Sanders continues to dodge questions about releasing his tax returns, even as he pressures Trump to do the same

(Matthew Putney/AP)

Sen. Bernie Sanders pledged in late February to release his tax returns and has still not done so.
As Sanders faced questions on when he’ll release his tax returns in an interview on Sunday, the senator said he’ll "absolutely" make them public and pressured Trump to do the same. But he didn’t say when they’ll be released.
Sanders has been ranked among the poorer members of the Senate, but has reportedly boosted his wealth in recent years via book royalties.

It’s been over a month since Sen. Bernie Sanders pledged to release his tax returns and there’s no updated timeline on when they’ll see the light of day.

Sanders has offered vague answers on when he’ll release the returns, even as he pressures President Donald Trump to do the same.

In an interview with Margaret Brennan of CBS’s "Face the Nation" on Sunday, the Vermont senator was asked if he will be releasing his tax returns. Brennan noted that Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand — who like Sanders is running for president in 2020 — released her 2018 tax returns earlier in the week.

"Yeah, we will. I mean, we have it all done and it’s just a question of dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s. Yes, we will, absolutely," Sanders said.

"And by the way, let me challenge President Trump to do the same," he added. "Trust me, we do not have investments in Russia or Saudi Arabia or anyplace else. Yes, we will be releasing them."

When Sanders was asked about his tax returns by CNN’s Wolf Blitzer during a town hall forum in late February, the senator also did not offer a specific timeline but said they would be released "soon." He pledged to release 10 years of returns.

"They’re very boring tax returns," Sanders said.

Sanders faced criticism during his 2016 campaign for not releasing more tax returns, and released his 2014 return after being pressured to do so by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in a presidential primary debate. The return showed Sanders and his wife, Jane Sanders, paid $27,653 in federal taxes on adjusted gross income of $205,271.

When asked about releasing his tax returns in April 2016, Sanders offered a similar response to what we heard from him on Sunday.

"You’ll get them, yes," he said at the time. "Yeah, look, I don’t want to get anybody very excited. They are very boring tax returns. No big money from speeches, no major investments. Unfortunately — unfortunately, I remain one of the poorer members of the United States Senate. And that’s what that will show."

Sanders is among the least wealthy members of Congress, and is the 12th-poorest member in the Senate, according to Roll Call. But despite the low-ranking, the senator’s net worth is still estimated to be somewhere around $2 million.

The Vermont senator’s 2020 campaign did not immediately respond to a request from INSIDER for an updated timeline on when he’ll release his tax returns.

Several 2020 Democrats have now released their tax returns.

Meanwhile, Trump continues to face criticism for refusing to release his. During his 2016 campaign, Trump claimed he could not release the returns due to an ongoing audit. Shortly after he was inaugurated, White House counselor Kellyanne Conway said Trump would not release his returns, contending the public didn’t care.

But polls have repeatedly shown that a majority of Americans would like Trump to release his tax returns.

Trump has broken roughly 40 years of precedentt by not releasing his tax returns, as virtually every major party presidential nominee has done since the mid-1970s.

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