CA Trying to Keep Trump off the Ballot for 2020?

California's attempts to require additional qualifications for presidency other than what is laid out in the Constitution is stirring up controversy. 

Take a look at this tweet expressing that concern:

The Hill has more details on the bill:

The California state Senate on Thursday approved a bill to require candidates appearing on the presidential primary ballot — including President Trump — to release five years' worth of income tax returns.

The measure was approved in a 27-10 vote, according to The Associated Press. California, for the first time, will be one of the first states to hold its presidential primary in the 2020 cycle.

The bill is a response to Trump's insistence that he will not release his tax returns as presidential candidates traditionally have done, claiming he is under audit. If the bill becomes law and Trump does not release his returns, he may not appear on the California primary ballot.  

"We believe that President Trump, if he truly doesn’t have anything to hide, should step up and release his tax returns,” said state Sen. Mike McGuire (D) who co-authored the bill, according to the AP. 

All 10 Republicans in the state Senate voted against the bill's passage. 

“I get that playing the resistance card may be good politics for the majority party, but I would submit that it’s bad policy for Californians,” Sen. Brian Jones (R) told the wire service. 

The Washington Times also commented:

The California Legislature is trying again to force presidential candidates to publicly disclose their tax returns, hoping a new Democratic governor known for his clashes with President Donald Trump won’t block them this time.                               

The state Senate voted 27-10 on Thursday to require anyone appearing on the state’s presidential primary ballot to publicly release five years’ worth of income tax returns. The proposal is in response to Trump, who bucked 40 years of tradition by refusing to release his tax returns prior to his election in 2016.

                               

California’s presidential primary is scheduled for March 3. If the bill becomes law, Trump could not appear on the state’s primary ballot without filing his tax returns with the California secretary of state.

Newsweek had the following to say about the controvery of California's attempts to keep President Trump off the ballot:

For over three years Donald Trump has refused to release his highly-coveted tax returns, citing reasons that include being audited or choosing to withhold them until Hillary Clinton releases her emails. But now nearly 20 states, sick of the excuses, have considered legislation to keep his name off the ballot until he does.

This week, the California Senate voted 27-10 on a measure that would require anyone appearing on the state’s presidential primary ballot to make five years’ worth of income tax returns available to the public. If the bill becomes law, Trump would need to file his tax returns with the state before March 3, 2020.

The legislation will now go to Governor Gavin Newsom's desk, a newly-elected Democrat who has positioned himself as a "resistance" leader to Trump and his administration. While Newsom has released his own tax returns, he hasn’t indicated whether he will sign the bill or veto it.

According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, 18 states have considered proposals so far this year that would force all presidential and vice presidential candidates to release their tax returns before appearing on the ballot during a primary or general election.

“I’m in favor of the idea in terms of sending the message that [Trump] ought to release his tax returns,” Richard Painter, the chief ethics lawyer under President George W. Bush, told Newsweek. “But there is a significant risk that they could lose to him in court on that.”

If such a law prohibiting ballot access was passed by a state, the president and his attorneys would likely immediately challenge that the act is unconstitutional—which, on one level, is true.

The Constitution specifically outlines certain requirements needed to run for president, like having to be a natural born citizen and at least 35 years of age or older. But there is no language demanding the disclosure of a candidate’s financial information.

If states can require a candidate to release their tax returns, they could make other changes as well. What if a state decided that 35 is too young to be president and they want to raise the minimum age to 40? What if a state wanted to impose a one-term limit on all presidential candidates or mandate that all candidates at the federal level (including members of Congress) be natural born citizens.

“The constitutional argument that Trump’s people would make would be: ‘Well where do you draw the line?’” Painter said, adding that the president will absolutely challenge any state laws requiring the release of tax returns in order to appear on the ballot.

“My biggest concern is that if he challenged it and he won … I’d hate to have the public get the impression that somehow the courts think it’s okay that he doesn’t disclose his taxes,” Painter said.