House Republicans have been staunch in their counterattack on the IRS, and with the victory in hand to move forward with impeachment hearings, the pummeling isn't going to end anytime soon.
The House Judiciary Committee's decision to hold impeachment hearings for IRS Commissioner John Koskinen next week was another positive step for the chamber's conservative caucus, still angry about the IRS' handling of tax-exempt applications of tea party groups five years ago,
The Washington Post reports.
"A lot of people have to warm up to the idea" of impeachment, Government Reform Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, told The Washington Post. "But we're not letting go of this one."
Since the IRS' actions of employing extra scrutiny to conservative groups applying for tax exempt status surfaced, Republicans have forced out former IRS Commissioner Lois Lerner, slashed the agency's budget, passed bills on IRS personnel maters and excoriated the agency at every misstep, the Post reports.
Now, they have convinced House leadership to begin unusual impeachment proceedings on removing Koskinen, the current commissioner. The last time Congress took similar actions on an agency leader was 1876.
The Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing May 24, but it's unclear at this point if Koskinen will accept the invitation to appear and testify.
Republicans believe Koskinen was complicit in the cover-up of Lerner's emails that detailed agency misdeeds, and accused the 76-year-old of impeding the investigation.
"Despite repeated congressional efforts to get to the bottom of this matter, Obama Administration officials, including the IRS Commissioner, have consistently undermined the investigation," Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) said in a statement on the Judiciary Committee website, according to the Post.
Short of bringing impeachment to the House floor, Chaffetz is also exploring a censure of Koskinen.
The Justice Department concluded its investigation late 2015 without filing criminal charges.
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