Two former top FBI officials who were frequently the objects of former President Donald Trump’s wrath were both chosen for a “unique” IRS audit program, the New York Times reported on Wednesday.
The two people who the IRS audited were former FBI Director James Comey and former Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe.
As FBI director, Comey was ousted by Trump in 2017, and McCabe was later removed from the agency and threatened with legal action.
Comey and McCabe, who have recently published books and are also analysts for CNN, started openly criticizing Trump.
“The tiny possibilities of the two highest-ranking F.B.I. officials—who made some of the most politically significant law enforcement decisions in a generation—being haphazardly subjected to a full scrub of their tax returns begs enormous questions,” the Times investigation stated.
Former IRS Commissioner John A. Koskinen described getting chosen for one of these audits as “like lightning striking, and that’s unique, and that’s what it’s like.”
Is lightning then likely to hit the same place again? Is this true? You don’t have to be anti-Trumper to look at this and think it’s strange because most people will not see that in their lives.
Donald Trump named Charles P. Rettig as the commissioner of the IRS, and he is still in that position; his tenure is slated to end in November. Any knowledge of the audits was denied by him.
In a response to the Times, Commissioner Rettig stressed that professional civil officials were in charge of handling individual audits and taxpayer situations.
He has never spoken with the White House on I.R.S. enforcement or specific taxpayer issues while serving as I.R.S. commissioner, under either administration.
He has vowed to manage the Internal Revenue Service in a totally neutral manner.
to the Tax Administration for evaluation. After getting a press query, IRS Commissioner (Charles) Rettig personally contacted TIGTA, according to a statement sent to CNN by the IRS.
There were claims that the IRS singled out conservative organizations for greater examination while President Obama was in office, though the validity of that claim has been called into question.
Commentary on the Comey and McCabe announcement was provided by Republicans on the House Ways and Means Committee.
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The Republican chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX), said in a statement that Commissioner Rettig had made it clear that he had not spoken to President Trump. He also noted that the research audits were produced statistically.
“He has referred this matter to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, and I support the investigation of all claims of political targeting—in line with the standard established by the House Ways and Committee when looking into President Obama’s disgraced former IRS director Lois Lerner, who the committee confirmed had engaged in this abuse.
