Demanding Trump's Tax Returns, Thousands To March In Civic Center This Weekend

Demanding Trump's Tax Returns, Thousands To March In Civic Center This WeekendTrump Chicken | Photo: Danelle Morton/Tax March San Francisco
David-Elijah Nahmod
Published on April 13, 2017

This Saturday, as part of a nationwide series of protests, thousands are expected to gather at Civic Center for the Tax March, demanding President Donald Trump release his tax returns.

""It's a transparency issue," said Danelle Morton, organizer of the San Francisco march. "We need to know if he is benefiting from any of the decisions he's makes while he's in office."

More than a million people signed a petition at WhiteHouse.gov asking the President to release his taxes. Morton says that 74% of all Americans, Democrats and Republicans alike, feel that Trump should release his taxes.

She also points out that Trump once owned stock in Raytheon, which produced the Tomahawk missiles the president ordered dropped on Syria last week. "We don't know if he sold those stocks," Morton said. "It's possible he benefited from the rise in Raytheon stocks after the bombings."   

Image: Tax March San Francisco

Over the past 40 years, both Democratic and Republican presidents have released their tax returns and divested from their business holdings. President Jimmy Carter, for example, put his peanut farm into a blind trust, while President George W Bush had his investments transferred into federal treasury bonds.

Questioning what connections or obligations Trump might have to China or Russia, Morton referred to the constitution’s Emoluments Clause, which prevents anyone holding an Office from accepting presents or emoluments from "any King, Prince or Foreign State." 

Tax March San Francisco will feature special guests House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Pulitzer prize-winning investigative journalist David Cay Johnston, and floating Trump Chickens.

Created by Seattle-based artist Casey Latiolais, the Trump Chicken is a 14-foot-tall inflatable chicken that bears a noticeable resemblance to the president.

The San Francisco rally will include four of the chickens, with at least one 33 feet tall.

The chickens, Morton told us, are meant to send a message to the president: that he's too chicken to release his taxes.

"We have to mix seriousness with fun," she said. "It's going to be a long four years. If we don't have a little fun, we'll go crazy."

A Valentine's Day protest also called attention to the president's refusal to release his tax returns. | Photo: David Andrews/Hoodline

After the City Hall rally, protesters will march down Market Street towards Justin Herman Plaza.

"We're not under the illusion that he's going to release his taxes because he sees thousands of people in the streets," Morton said. "The point of the march is to keep pressure on Congress to subpoena his taxes, which they have the authority to do."

To join the march, visit Tax March San Francisco's Facebook page.