Trump is looking to use the IRS for his own political ends. Nixon tried it too

From utilizing taxation information to hint immigrants without ineligible presumption to threatening Harvard University's taxation exemption, President Trump has been trying to usage the IRS for his ain governmental purposes, successful ways that whitethorn look unprecedented.

But they're not. Former President Richard Nixon laid the groundwork much than 4 decades ago, erstwhile helium tried to usage the taxation collector to punish his enemies and assistance his friends.

"One of the things that Nixon did see was threatening the tax-exemptions of universities," says Joseph Thorndike, manager of the Tax History Project astatine Tax Analysts. "And that sounds precise acquainted if you're speechmaking the insubstantial these days."

Nixon was aggravated astatine universities for not cracking down connected Vietnam warfare protesters. Trump has likewise complained astir Harvard and different Ivy League schools not doing much to soundlessness protests against the warfare successful Gaza, amid an medication crackdown connected antisemitism connected assemblage campuses.

"We are going to beryllium taking distant Harvard's Tax Exempt Status," Trump wrote successful a social media post. "It's what they deserve!"

Trump is drafting connected Nixon's aged playbook, contempt laws enactment successful spot aft Watergate to forestall that benignant of meddling by the White House.

Congress has protections successful spot for the IRS

Oval Office recordings from 1971 uncover however Nixon sought to instal a hand-picked enforcer astatine the IRS to bash his governmental bidding.

"I privation to beryllium definite he's a ruthless lad of a bitch," Nixon told aides astir a imaginable IRS nominee. "That helium volition bash what he's told. That each income taxation instrumentality I privation to see, I see. That he'll spell aft our enemies and not spell aft our friends. It's arsenic elemental arsenic that."

Nixon's plans to snoop connected taxation returns, oregon person the IRS analyse targets from his "enemies list," were not ever successful, Thorndike says.

But not for deficiency of trying.

"Nixon tried precise hard to misuse the IRS," Thorndike says. "Congress surely saw that arsenic a information afterwards. If the president is processing enemies lists and sending them to the IRS and fundamentally saying, 'I privation you to audit each these radical I don't like,' that's worrisome. And truthful Congress was precise funny successful preventing that."

After Nixon near office, Congress passed laws to support the IRS — and taxpayers — from governmental interference from the White House. Those laws are present being tested by the Trump administration.

Sharing taxation accusation with agencies extracurricular the IRS

For example, Congress passed a instrumentality to strictly bounds who tin entree accusation that taxpayers voluntarily supply to the IRS.

But past month, the taxation postulation bureau struck a woody to stock immoderate of that payer information with migration officials to assistance find and deport radical who are successful the state illegally.

Immigration advocates are seeking a tribunal bid to artifact the IRS from sharing information with different authorities agencies.

In effect to an enquiry from NPR astir the data-sharing agreement, a Treasury Department spokesperson defended the inaugural arsenic "breaking down information silos." But critics accidental those silos were enactment determination for a crushed aft the Nixon era.

"If the IRS is present forced to stock information with radical who it's not expected to, that increases the risks of governmental targeting," says Mike Kaercher, lawman manager of the Tax Law Center astatine New York University.

An acting commissioner astatine the IRS resigned soon aft the data-sharing statement was reached. Trump is present connected his 4th acting commissioner since taking bureau little than 4 months ago. His nominee for the imperishable job, erstwhile Rep. Billy Long, R-Mo., is inactive awaiting a confirmation hearing.

Seeking to usage the IRS to people groups

Congress besides tried to forestall a rerun of Nixon's enemies database by prohibiting the president and radical astir him from requesting oregon interfering with an IRS investigation.

"I utilized to enactment astatine the IRS," Kaercher says. "If you're an IRS idiosyncratic and you're connected the receiving extremity of an improper petition from a governmental authoritative to usage the IRS arsenic a weapon, you're expected to spell to the inspector wide and study that, close away."

That hasn't stopped Trump from insisting the IRS should portion Harvard and different non-profit groups of their tax-exempt presumption — which would presumably necessitate an investigation.

Losing the taxation interruption would beryllium a terrible stroke to Harvard, which depends connected tax-free gifts and its tax-free endowment for nearly fractional its yearly budget.

"I deliberation Harvard is simply a disgrace," Trump told reporters past month. "Tax-exempt status, I mean, that's a privilege. That's truly a privilege. And it's been abused."

While Nixon's plans for the IRS were secretly recorded successful the Oval Office, Trump unveils his connected societal media and unrecorded television.

"Donald Trump conscionable says it close retired loud," Thorndike says. "Talking astir politicizing the bureau rather visibly — I conjecture I'd accidental that's a choice. I don't deliberation it's a bully prime for the president."

Trump told reporters past period that he's not personally progressive successful the determination implicit revoking Harvard's taxation exemption. But starring Democratic senators person called for an investigation of the president's actions by the inspector wide who oversees the IRS.

The inspector wide did not respond to NPR's petition for comment.

"The information that there's adjacent a question of whether the medication is violating these laws that forestall weaponization of the IRS is profoundly troubling," says Kaercher.

Gutting taxation enforcement astatine the IRS

At the aforesaid clip the medication is calling for the IRS to analyse idiosyncratic targets, it is besides severely limiting the agency's quality to spell aft affluent taxation cheats much generally.

According to an inspector general's report, the medication has chopped much than 11,000 jobs astatine the IRS, including astir a 3rd of the taxation auditors. More downsizing is expected successful the months to come, arsenic portion of a widespread effort to shrink the national government.

That's apt to wounded the national budget, since each dollar spent connected taxation enforcement much than pays for itself successful increased taxation collections.

"A functioning, effectual IRS is successful each of our interests," Thorndike says. "And conscionable starving the bureau of staff, that truly blows backmost instantly connected taxpayers."