IRS impeachment effort loses steam

WASHINGTON—Republicans continue seeking to punish the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for illegally targeting conservative political groups, but efforts to fire its commissioner may be too partisan to win full congressional consideration.

Today, the House Judiciary Committee held its second hearing exploring the viability of impeaching IRS Commissioner John Koskinen. Republicans claim he obstructed justice, lied to Congress, and at the least should get the boot for gross negligence.

The committee brought in law professors and constitutional scholars to confirm grounds to impeach Koskinen. Each acknowledged the effort has some merit, assuming the accusations are true, but following through is no simple task. Congress needs to do its due diligence, they warned. And the motivation to go forward falls along party lines—Democrats want nothing to do with the effort and have ignored ardent pleas from across the aisle.

“The underlying offense here was the most egregious thing you can do, going after people’s political free speech rights,” said Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio. “And John Koskinen as head of the agency, brought in to clean it up—in the president’s words ‘restore confidence’—allowed 422 backup tapes to be destroyed, [with] preservation orders and two subpoenas in place. If all that doesn’t warrant us taking this action, I do not know what does.”

In 2013, word started to spread that the IRS was causing undue burden for conservative non-profits seeking tax-exempt status. Conservatives blasted the agency for being a weapon of the Obama administration to silence groups it disagrees with. Lois Lerner, then head of the IRS tax exempt division, acknowledged to Congress the IRS delayed applications from groups using “tea party” or other political terms in their names. Further investigation prompted Lerner to retire. She retained her pension and has never been punished for her role in the scandal.

President Barack Obama disavowed the conduct and appointed Koskinen to take over as IRS head at the end of 2013.

Since then, Republicans have turned their frustration toward Koskinen for stonewalling the congressional investigation into the targeting scandal.

Congress filed subpoenas to review email correspondence and ordered Koskinen to preserve all evidence related to the investigation.

But under Koskinen’s supervision, 422 backup tapes containing as many as 24,000 emails vanished. GOP lawmakers contend Koskinen lied about their disappearance and refuses to take responsibility.

Democrats claim there’s no way to determine whether Koskinen had the evidence destroyed or simply misplaced the tapes due to negligence—and without proof, impeachment talks are a waste of time.

“With less than 30 legislative days left before a near two-month recess, we have more pressing matters to deal with,” said Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y.

Impeachment is a rare and usually long process. It has only occurred 19 times in U.S. history and never for someone at a sub-cabinet level position like Koskinen, who serves under the Treasury Department. Such an effort would need broad support from both the House and Senate to see it through. That would be an uphill battle for Republicans since Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, doesn’t support the effort.

Reasons for impeachment include “treason, bribery, or other high crimes or misdemeanors,” according to the Constitution. Michael Gerhardt, a constitutional law professor at the University of North Carolina School of Law, said impeaching Koskinen would set a bad precedent.

“In my opinion, and I’m just a law professor, I think gross negligence and gross incompetence doesn’t qualify as an impeachable offense,” he said. “That is a step onto the slippery slope of offenses I don’t think the framers and I don’t think the common law support.”

But Koskinen’s accusers said they won’t let him off the hook any time soon. And Koskinen won’t get a reprieve with the election of a new president—his term doesn’t end until November 2017.

“There was clearly false testimony and the destruction of evidence under a duly issued subpoena, and I think there should be a consequence for that,” Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, told me after the hearing. “With close examination of the facts it becomes crystal clear: [Koskinen] is not the right person to lead the IRS.”