House conservatives moved on Tuesday to impeach IRS Commissioner John Koskinen over allegations that he misled investigators over the agency’s inappropriate targeting of Tea Party groups.
Rep. John Fleming, R-La., introduced the resolution to impeach Koskinen on Tuesday afternoon. “[Koskinen] engaged in a pattern of conduct that is incompatible with his duties as an officer of the United States,” Fleming said on the floor.
The filing of the resolution is the culmination of years of investigation into how and why the IRS applied extra scrutiny of Tea Party groups that filed for tax-exempt status. His impeachment is chiefly favored by members of the House Freedom Caucus, who forced John Boehner into retirement last year, but it has spread beyond the caucus to include House Oversight and Government Reform Committee chairman Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, and others who believe Koskinen oversaw the destruction of evidence that lawmakers were seeking as they investigated the targeting scandal.
Fleming offered the motion as a privileged resolution, in order to force House Speaker Paul Ryan to take action on it. Under the rules of the House, GOP leaders have three options for a privileged resolution: they can table the resolution, refer it to the Judiciary Committee, or decide it is privileged and vote Koskinen’s impeachment.
Many Republicans are skeptical of the impeachment, however, and so the House Freedom Caucus isn’t optimistic that leadership will take up their cause.
“I believe they are going to do a motion to refer to the Judiciary Committee or they are going to do a motion to table,” Rep. Raul Labrador, R-Idaho, told reporters on Tuesday. “Either way, they are punting.”
The resolution still has to be recognized as “properly noticed” privileged resolution, however. Assuming it is, a vote will have to take place within two legislative days.
