IRS Commissioner John Koskinen has declined an offer to appear at a congressional hearing about misconduct charges levied against him by the lawmakers who have been investigating the agency’s targeting of Tea Party groups.
“[W]hile I must regrettably decline your invitation, I remain willing to appear before the committee in the future,” Koskinen wrote in a May 23 letter to House Judiciary Committee chairman Bob Goodlatte.
Koskinen has been heavily criticized by Republican members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, who have accused him of stonewalling their attempts to obtain key IRS documents related to the targeting scandal. Koskinen was intended to testify alongside one of his chief critics in a preliminary hearing that would air out the accusations for a broader swath of Republicans.
But Koskinen said an overseas work trip made it impossible to prepare for that hearing and a previously-scheduled appearance before the House Ways and Means Committee, set for Wednesday.
Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, who chairs the oversight committee, introduced a resolution censuring Koskinen, after previously filing for impeachment. “I view censure as a precursor to impeachment as it allows the House the opportunity to formally condemn Mr. Koskinen,” he explained last week.
Not all Republicans are so eager for an impeachment. Goodlatte and House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., are skeptical of the maneuver, according to a House Republican familiar with internal debate about the move. No member of the executive branch below the level of the president has been impeached since 1876; that case involved the war secretary, who was discovered to be taking kickbacks in exchange for government contracts.
Koskinen included a statement to the committee denying all charges that he has stonewalled oversight panel’s investigation.
“If the committee were to go forward and pursue impeachment in this instance, especially in light of the utter lack of support for the allegations, it would set an unfortunate precedent, diminishing the ability of the federal government to attract experienced, dedicated people to positions of leadership,” he wrote.
Rep. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., one of the lead investigators of the IRS scandal, was scheduled to testify against Koskinen at Tuesday’s hearing.
