IRS chief Koskinen says he was misled, doesn’t deserve impeachment

[unknown]

IRS chief Koskinen says he was misled, doesn’t deserve impeachment

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/sep/21/john-koskinen-irs-chief-says-he-was-misled/

Stephen Dinan
September 21, 2016

While acknowledging that the IRS bungled tea party applications, and that he himself gave wrong information to Congress, agency Commissioner John Koskinen told lawmakers Wednesday he needs to remain at the IRS in order to clean it up.

At a hearing designed to lay the ground for his possible impeachment, Mr. Koskinen implied he was let down by his subordinates, who allowed hundreds of backup tapes to be destroyed, losing tens of thousands of emails from former senior executive Lois G. Lerner.

It is the loss of those emails, even as they were under a subpoena issued by Congress, that has landed Mr. Koskinen in the hot seat, with conservative Republicans demanding he be ousted from office for his behavior.

{.. snip ..}

[Sanguine]

If he was that easily misled, he's too stupid to stay.

[Bigun]

IRS chief Koskinen says he was misled, doesn’t deserve impeachment

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/sep/21/john-koskinen-irs-chief-says-he-was-misled/

Stephen Dinan
September 21, 2016

While acknowledging that the IRS bungled tea party applications, and that he himself gave wrong information to Congress, agency Commissioner John Koskinen told lawmakers Wednesday he needs to remain at the IRS in order to clean it up.

At a hearing designed to lay the ground for his possible impeachment, Mr. Koskinen implied he was let down by his subordinates, who allowed hundreds of backup tapes to be destroyed, losing tens of thousands of emails from former senior executive Lois G. Lerner.

It is the loss of those emails, even as they were under a subpoena issued by Congress, that has landed Mr. Koskinen in the hot seat, with conservative Republicans demanding he be ousted from office for his behavior.

{.. snip ..}

IMHO trying to impeach the IRS commissioner is just more swinging at the branches of a problem when they should be hacking at the root! The IRS is and always has been a thoroughly corrupt and political organization and the ONLY way to properly deal with it permanently is to GET RID OF IT entirely!  That can best be done by passing legislation courrently pending in both houses of congress. Specifically HR25/S122.

[austingirl]

IMHO trying to impeach the IRS commissioner is just more swinging at the branches of a problem when they should be hacking at the root! The IRS is and always has been a thoroughly corrupt and political organization and the ONLY way to properly deal with it permanently is to GET RID OF IT entirely!  That can best be done by passing legislation courrently pending in both houses of congress. Specifically HR25/S122.

 

Koskinen deserves a lot worse then impeachment- like a nice long prison sentence and stripping him of his juicy federal benefits.

[corbe]

   Some of us are OLD enough to remember Nixon's Enemy List and how he 'implied'  that the IRS could be used against them and how bent out of shape the libs/dems got.  We have come full circle to the gates of hell.

[Cyber Liberty]

He's not going to be impeached.  There are too many Republicans who privately like what he and Lerner did to the Tea Party people.  Most GOP in DeeCee don't like Tea Party in the first place.  McCain called them "Wacko Birds."  Show of hands:  Does anybody here think McCain would vote to convict, assuming this clears the House?

[Sanguine]

He's not going to be impeached.  There are too many Republicans who privately like what he and Lerner did to the Tea Party people.  Most GOP in DeeCee don't like Tea Party in the first place.  McCain called them "Wacko Birds."  Show of hands:  Does anybody here think McCain would vote to convict, assuming this clears the House?

Good points....sadly.

[Cyber Liberty]

   Some of us are OLD enough to remember Nixon's Enemy List and how he 'implied'  that the IRS could be used against them and how bent out of shape the libs/dems got.  We have come full circle to the gates of hell.

One doesn't need to be old enough.  One can simply use Google to look up the Articles of Impeachment (passed out of committee) against Nixon to see that one of the charges was threatening to use the IRS to punish his enemies. 

Years later, Democrat Presidents Clinton and Obama actually weaponized the IRS and nobody batted an eye.

[Bigun]

This is what I noted from the committee hearing this morning which I watched in it's entirety:

Mr. Kostinen at no time issued a department wide order saying that no records of any kind will be destroyed by anyone in this agency until such time as I personally am fully convinced that the material to be destroyed contains no material that would be responsive to any subpoena for material by any agency of government.

IMHO that alone is an impeachable offence!

[Cyber Liberty]

This is what I noted from the committee hearing this moring which I watched in it's entirety:

Mr. Kostinen at no time issued a department wide order saying that no records of any kind will be destroyed by anyone in this agency until such time as I personally am fully convinced that the material to be destroyed contains no material that would be responsive to any subpoena for material by any agency of government.

IMHO that alone is an impeachable offence!

You don't even need to look at possible motive to make that call.

[Bigun]

You don't even need to look at possible motive to make that call.

Entirely agree!