The IRS Commissioner refused to show up stating he was busy as he just returned from China. What?
Committee Resolution for Censure
Congress produces film chronicling IRS scandal at John Koskinen impeachment hearing DailyWorldwideNews
‘Koskinen has misled us’: House weighs impeaching IRS chief
Westwood/Examiner: Members of the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday weighed evidence against Internal Revenue Service Commissioner John Koskinen, who faces an impeachment resolution in the House.
“On his watch, volumes of information crucial to the investigation into the IRS targeting scandal were destroyed,” said Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., chairman of the Judiciary Committee. “Before the tapes were destroyed, congressional demands, including subpoenas, for information about the IRS targeting scandal went unanswered.”
Michigan Rep. John Conyers, the panel’s ranking Democrat, said the seven-month-old impeachment measure had “virtually no chance of success” in the Senate and argued the charges against Koskinen have been “debunked” by previous probes.
Koskinen has faced opposition from Republican lawmakers for what they see as an insufficient response to congressional investigations into allegations that the IRS targeted conservative groups.
Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, served as a witness at Tuesday’s hearing alongside Rep. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., also a member of the oversight panel.
The pair of Republican lawmakers presented evidence from their committee’s investigation, which began under former Chairman Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif.
Issa objected to Democrats’ attempts to include Koskinen’s nine-page testimony, which he released ahead of the hearing along with a letter declining an invitation to appear, in the official record.
To be candid … this is sort of Lois Lerner revisited,” Issa said, calling Koskinen’s letter a “self-serving statement.” “The opportunity to say what you want to say and not be cross-examined would seem to be inappropriate.”
Lerner, former head of the tax agency’s nonprofit arm, drew fire when, in an appearance before Congress, she made an opening statement in her defense and then invoked her Fifth Amendment rights and declined to answer any additional questions.
Although House Republicans first voted to impeach Koskinen in October, they did not introduce a censure measure until last week.
Koskinen wrote in a letter to the committee Monday that he could not attend the hearing because his schedule is too “crowded” and he was not given sufficient notice that the hearing was taking place.
Chaffetz highlighted Koskinen’s failure to provide documents to his committee. Republican lawmakers have accused the IRS commissioner of intentionally misleading investigators by promising to hand over records he knew to be missing.
“Over the course of our investigation, Mr. Koskinen has misled us about the efforts taken to locate and preserve Lois Lerner’s emails,” Chaffetz said. “His actions are in contradiction of the initial promises he made during his Senate confirmation hearings.”
Chaffetz noted that, one month after discovering Lerner’s emails, IRS employees magnetically erased 422 backup tapes that contained thousands of the ousted official’s records. Congress had already requested copies of those emails.
Treasury Secretary Jack Lew issued a statement to the committee Tuesday in defense of Koskinen.
“John Koskinen is an outstanding public servant of the highest integrity with decades of experience leading both public and private institutions,” Lew said. “From the day he began his leadership of the IRS, John and his staff have cooperated with Congress. And despite facing massive budget cuts, the IRS continues to carry out its mission of enforcing our nation’s tax laws while striving to provide quality service to taxpayers.”
