House Democrats: Confidentiality should not apply to Trump bank records
House Democrats on Thursday argued that privacy laws should not block a German bank from releasing information about President Trump’s finances.
“Given President Trump’s repeated assertions that he does not have ties to Russia, such a disclosure would ostensibly be in his interest,” five House Democrats wrote in a letter to Deutsche Bank. The group was led by Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), the ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee.
Deutsche Bank cited the privacy laws that prevent them from sharing Trump’s finances, but the House Democrats also noted that a disclosure consent from the Trump family could bypass the laws, according to Reuters.
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Democrats are arguing that a request from Congress overrode the laws protecting bank customer confidentiality. The letter also requests that the bank respond by June 29.
Five House Financial Services Committee Democrats originally requested in May that Deutsche Bank provide information regarding possible Russian support for Trump’s real estate business.
“Congress remains in the dark on whether loans Deutsche Bank made to President Trump were guaranteed by the Russian government, or were in any way connected to Russia,” the Democrats wrote.
The bank’s law firm ,Akin Gump Strauss Hauer and Feld, responded to their initial letter, saying “we hope that you will understand Deutsche Bank’s need to respect the boundaries that Congress and the courts have set in an effort to protect confidential information.”
Deutsche Bank previously granted Trump large loans to use for real estate development.
Trump’s personal financial disclosure report, released last week, revealed a debt of $130 million to Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas, suggesting the bank to be one of the president’s major lenders.
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