Thursday on CNN, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) speculated on why Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump has been reluctant to do release his taxes.
According to South Carolina’s senior senator, who was also once a candidate for the 2016 GOP nod, suggested Trump was “hiding something or he was “embarrassed” by the taxes.
Graham said, “I think Donald Trump will be the gold standard for stupid Republican candidates. I just want to be on the record for that.”
He continued, “Well, I know that he’s not going to turn them over, and in 2015, February, he said he would turn over his tax returns. We’re not asking him to prepare a new tax return. We’re asking him to give the American people and the Republican voters his tax returns, because I find it highly unusual that you can get more information about buying a house or the homeowner than you can for Donald Trump. He claims to be worth $10 billion. Forbes says he’s worth $4.8 [billion]. That’s still a lot of money, but is he exaggerating? If he wants to be a new politician then share with people your tax returns. Share with the American people your tax returns. How hard is that?
When asked why Trump would resist releasing his taxes, Graham said, “I think he’s probably hiding something. He would be embarrassed by what he showed us.”
He added, “He doesn’t want to show us his financial situation. He’s either exaggerated his wealth or there is some transaction in there that he may be embarrassed about. I don’t know. But we should not as Republicans accept this from a man who has such a tainted past and background when it comes to finances. A man who has filed bankruptcy four times. We should not accept him at his word. I would not accept Hillary Clinton at her word about her e-mails. Why should we accept Donald Trump at his word about his taxes, given his financial past?”
Follow Pam Key on Twitter @pamkeyNEN