House Republicans launch effort to impeach IRS commissioner


The House Benghazi Committee may have gotten all the attention recently, but House Republicans want you to remember that they have more than one iron in the fire. On Tuesday, Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, announced that he and 18 Republican colleagues had filed a motion to impeach IRS Commissioner John Koskinen. The resolution, which accuses Koskinen of violating the public trust and misleading Congress about IRS targeting of conservative groups, will go next to the House Judiciary Committee.
Chaffetz and his committee Republicans filed their motion four days after the Justice Department closed its investigation into the IRS scandal — which involved scrutiny of mostly conservative and Tea Party groups seeking tax-exempt status — without filing criminal charges. Koskinen was appointed after the scandal broke, but Chaffetz accuses him of erasing backup tapes with emails from Lois Lerner, the central IRS figure targeted by Republicans. "Impeachment is the appropriate tool to restore public confidence in the IRS and to protect the institutional interests of Congress," Chaffetz said.
House Democrats opposed the impeachment resolution and called it politically motivated. There's no evidence that Koskinen defied Congress or misled the public, said Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), the ranking Democrat on Chaffetz's committee. The IRS has spent $20 million and 160,000 employee hours cooperating with investigations, including the "ridiculous" one by the House Oversight Committee, Cummings said, and "calling this resolution a 'stunt' or a 'joke' would be insulting to stunts and jokes." Impeachment of an agency head is a step above holding him or her in contempt, The Washington Post notes, calling it "highly unusual," perhaps last used against War Secretary William Belknap in 1876.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Trump uses tariffs to upend Brazil's domestic politics
IN THE SPOTLIGHT By slapping a 50% tariff on Brazil for its criminal investigation into Bolsonaro, the Trump administration is brazenly putting its fingers on the scales of a key foreign election
-
3 questions to ask when deciding whether to repair or replace your broken appliance
the explainer There may be merit to fixing what you already have, but sometimes buying new is even more cost-effective
-
'Trump's authoritarian manipulation of language'
Instant Opinion Vienna has become a 'convenient target for populists' | Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Trump set to hit Canada with 35% tariffs
Speed Read The president accused Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney of failing to stop the cross-border flow of fentanyl
-
Mahmoud Khalil files $20M claim over ICE detention
Speed Read This is the 'first damages complaint' brought by an individual targeted by the Trump's administration's 'crackdown' on Gaza war protesters
-
Trump threatens Brazil with 50% tariffs
Speed Read He accused Brazil's current president of leading a 'witch hunt' against far-right former leader Jair Bolsonaro
-
AI scammer fakes Rubio messages to top officials
Speed Read The unknown individual mimicked Rubio in voice and text messages sent to multiple government officials
-
SCOTUS greenlights Trump's federal firings
speed read The Trump administration can conduct mass federal firings without Congress' permission, the Supreme Court ruled
-
New tariffs set on 14 trading partners
Speed Read A new slate of tariffs will begin August 1 on imports from Japan, South Korea, Thailand and more
-
Elon Musk launching 'America Party'
Speed Read The tech mogul promised to form a new political party if Trump's megabill passed Congress
-
Judge blocks Trump's asylum ban at US border
Speed Read The president violated federal law by shutting down the US-Mexico border to asylum seekers, said the ruling