- The Washington Times - Wednesday, March 27, 2019

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand became the first 2020 presidential candidate to release her tax returns, saying Wednesday she publicized 12 years of financial information to offer “transparency” to her campaign.

“I think transparency and accountability is so important in government. … The American people have a right to know, particularly people who are running for president and our president today who have not disclosed his tax returns. It allows people to know that you’re working for them and nobody else,” the New York Democrat said on CNN’s “New Day” show, referencing President Trump being the first president post-Watergate to not make his tax returns public. 

She has encouraged her fellow Democratic candidates to do the same. 

Ms. Gillibrand announced she was officially entering the race on Sunday with an event in front of one of Mr. Trump’s properties, adding that she chose this location as a statement against the president, who she says is “tearing apart the moral fabric of this country.”

“It’s a tower that represents greed and division and vanity and all things that are not who we are on our best days. … We should be, being a stronger country, and what makes us great is the diversity and the entrepreneurialism and this ability to do this and solve big problems.”

In her interview, she also addressed a controversy earlier this month for a reported mishandling of a sexual harassment complaint in her office despite her campaign’s focus on fighting against such harassment.

Ms. Gillibrand said they “believed all of her allegations,” despite a former aide alleging she resigned in protest due to the inaction of the senator’s office.

• Bailey Vogt can be reached at bvogt@washingtontimes.com.

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