While the President-elect’s refusal to release his taxes remains a point of contention with his critics, Donald Trump’s fans maintain it’s not an issue.
“What’s the purpose of releasing his taxes anyway?” supporter John Hikel asked CNN’s Alisyn Camerota as part of a panel interviewing Trump voters.
Camerota replied that seeking the tax disclosures is to examine if there are conflicts of interest, a concern that has only increased since Election Day.
“Who cares?” Trump supporter Paula Johnson added.
The latest installment of an interview Camerota did with a group of longtime Trump supporters proved, if nothing else, that they trust him.
“People trust Donald Trump,” DiBartolo said. “Even if they don’t admit to it.”
Camerota has been speaking with members of this group since last year, when they declared their steadfast support for the candidate before he even won a primary.
Three of them have political experience. Hikel and Johnson are former New Hampshire state representatives and Susan Delemus is one of 400 part-time members of the New Hampshire House of representatives. Delemus’ term ends Tuesday. Johnson was also a convention delegate for Trump’s campaign and Delemus was an alternative.
Their message isn’t much different now than it was a year ago: They believe Trump can get the job done because of his business experience.
“Trump is the new hero for America,” Paul DiBartolo said.
Their opinions are just as favorable of the Trump children, who Trump says will take over his businesses to avoid conflicts of interest.
This promise has not quelled the concerns of critics, who fear inevitable involvement from Trump. However, his supporters told Camerota that they trust his children.
“When you look at his kids, talk about being raised right,” DiBartolo said.
They acknowledged, however, that if Hillary Clinton were putting her daughter, Chelsea, in charge of the Clinton Global Initiative or the Clinton Foundation, they would have a problem with that.
“Because Chelsea is a product of the government,” Delemus said.
The panelists also cited the recent deal with Carrier that resulted in the company agreeing to keep 1,000 jobs at an Indiana plant. However, the interview was taped before it had been revealed that the company was getting $7 million in financial incentives over the next 10 years to stay.
Subsidies or not, they appreciated that Trump made a deal before even being inaugurated.
“Trump’s primary focus is putting the American people first,” DiBartolo said. “That’s all he cares about.”