IRS, White House clashed over immigrants' data before tax chief was ousted

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Washington Post

August 9, 2025 at 12:16 p.m. EDT


The Internal Revenue Service clashed with the White House over using tax data to help locate suspected undocumented immigrants hours before Trump administration officials forced IRS Commissioner Billy Long from his post Friday, according to two people familiar with the situation.

The Department of Homeland Security sent the IRS a list Thursday of 40,000 names of people DHS officials thought were in the country illegally and asked the IRS to use confidential taxpayer data to verify their addresses, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals. The Treasury Department, the parent agency of the IRS, and DHS agreed to an arrangement in April to facilitate such data sharing — over the objections of the tax service’s privacy lawyers.

DHS officials have suggested they’d eventually ask the IRS for help locating 7 million people. There are about 11 million undocumented immigrants in the United States, according to federal estimates. On Friday, though, the IRS responded that it was able to verify fewer than 3 percent of the names immigration enforcement officials submitted, the people said. The names the agency could match were mainly the individuals for whom DHS provided an individual taxpayer identification number. An ITIN is an IRS-specific ID that immigrants often use in place of a Social Security number on a tax filing.

Undocumented immigrants pay tens of billions of dollars in taxes each year, which the ITINs help facilitate. White House officials requested additional information on the taxpayers the IRS identified, the people said — specifically, if any of them had claimed the earned income tax credit, which can reduce the tax bill for some low-income filers. The IRS declined to provide that information, citing taxpayer privacy rights.

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/08/09/trump-administration-irs-data-dispute/

---

No paywall (gift)

[mahatmakanejeeves]

1. Amazing. The guy had a shred of decency. No wonder he was fired. NT

[BumRushDaShow]

2. I was shocked that someone in there

had a tiny flicker of ethics that hadn't winked out yet - and of all people!

[sheshe2]

3. They pay "tens of billions of dollars in taxes each year."

I guess we don't need their money or the jobs the perform.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

4. Billy Long lasted roughly five Scaramuccis as the IRS commissioner

The former congressman was confirmed to lead the tax agency in June. Less than two month later, he’s out, which is every bit as weird as it seems.

Billy Long lasted roughly five Scaramuccis as the IRS commissioner — becoming the sixth person to exit the office so far this year.

We don't know why, though it's notable that Trump has been eager to sic the IRS on his perceived political foes. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2025-08-08T19:54:38.340Z

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/trump-ousts-billy-long-handpicked-irs-director-just-53-days-job-rcna223951

Exactly three weeks ago, Donald Trump — who picked Long despite his complete lack of qualifications — held a ceremonial swearing-in ceremony for the Missouri Republican in the Oval Office. It was a provocative move in its own right: Since Watergate, presidents from both parties have taken a hands-off attitude toward the IRS, treating it as an apolitical and largely independent agency. The incumbent president, in contrast, seemed eager to signal his control over the IRS.

Just 21 days after that White House event, Trump has apparently decided it is time for a new commissioner. The New York Times reported:

President Trump is removing Billy Long from his job leading the Internal Revenue Service just two months after he was confirmed as commissioner, according to four people familiar with the matter. Mr. Long, a former Republican congressman and staunch ally of Mr. Trump, is expected to be nominated to an ambassadorship, the people said.

......What’s more, The New York Times reported late last year that Long has a problematic record of peddling a pandemic-era tax credit that the IRS warned was “a magnet for fraud.” Long’s record was so controversial that Senate Democrats suggested he face a criminal investigation.

For his part, Long told NBC News he'll soon be nominated to serve as the U.S. ambassador to Iceland, which will also require Senate confirmation.

As for why the president, who's appeared eager to sic the IRS on his perceived political foes, decided to oust Long so quickly, the story is still coming into focus. For now, the motivation behind the developments are a mystery, though it’s unlikely to remain a mystery for long. Watch this space..

[LetMyPeopleVote]

5. I am shocked that a trump appointee would do the right thing

The Trump administration’s move to push out IRS Commissioner Billy Long came after the agency said it couldn’t release some information on taxpayers suspected of being here illegally.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/08/09/trump-administration-irs-data-dispute/

The Internal Revenue Service clashed with the White House over using tax data to help locate suspected undocumented immigrants hours before Trump administration officials forced IRS Commissioner Billy Long from his post Friday, according to two people familiar with the situation.

The Department of Homeland Security sent the IRS a list Thursday of 40,000 names of people DHS officials thought were in the country illegally and asked the IRS to use confidential taxpayer data to verify their addresses, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals......

White House officials requested additional information on the taxpayers the IRS identified, the people said — specifically, if any of them had claimed the earned income tax credit, which can reduce the tax bill for some low-income filers. The IRS declined to provide that information, citing taxpayer privacy rights.

Long had previously told agency executives that his agency would not furnish confidential taxpayer information outside of the confines of the IRS’s agreement with DHS, the people said.

Still, the people did not know if tension over the IRS’s role in President Donald Trump’s mass deportation drive contributed to Long’s departure from the IRS......

He was the sixth IRS leader since the start of the year. One early acting commissioner left amid churn at the agency due to the administration’s cost-cutting campaign led by Elon Musk’s U.S. DOGE Service, while another left after the agency agreed to the DHS data-sharing arrangement. A third acting commissioner was pushed out after only two days because of an internal conflict between Musk and Bessent.

I am shocked that any trump appointee would do the right thing