US tax collector grooms new agents to use ‘deadly force’ — RT World News
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) quietly edited an online job listing that said new hires should be ready to shoot to kill
The US tax authority has come under fire after posting a job advertisement warning new officers must be ready to practice « lethal force » against suspects, amid heightened concerns over the IRS’ heavy-handed tactics as it seeks to hire thousands of new enforcers.
An IRS employment form seeking ‘criminal investigative special agents’ was briefly taken offline and edited on Wednesday after its language caused an uproar on social media, according to Fox and others. media. Although an earlier version of the page (archived August 10) noted that « Major Tasks » work would include carrying a firearm and being « ready to use deadly force, if necessary », the listing visible on Thursday evening no longer contains this requirement.
Journalist Ford Fischer was among the first to note the « deadly force » verbiage in a series of tweets on Wednesday. Less than 24 hours later, the agency had taken down the review, deleted the offending chip and re-uploaded it.
The IRS is recruiting new special agents! Requirements include working at least « 50 hours per week, which may include irregular hours, and being available 24/7, including holidays and weekends » and « Carrying a firearm and be prepared to use deadly force, if necessary. »https:/ /t.co/uvwbrAkIitpic.twitter.com/z0aVX6uoMr
— Ford Fischer (@FordFischer) August 10, 2022
« The IRS Criminal Investigative Special Agent job ad continues to be open on USAJobs and has not [been]/ has not been removed », an IRS spokesperson told Fox Business, but offered no explanation for the apparent change.
Republicans and conservative critics of US President Joe Biden have sounded the alarm in recent days over the growing authority of the IRS, with House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-California) alleging Democrats seek to build a « army » federal tax officials through a provision of the Inflation Reduction Act that has yet to be signed.
« Do you make $75,000 or less? » he asked in a Tweeterto add « The Democrats’ new army of 87,000 IRS agents will be coming for you – with 710,000 new audits for Americans earning less than $75,000. »
Libertarian-leaning Republican Thomas Massie (Kentucky) noted the controversial job listing in a social media post, also saying the IRS was looking to add « dozens of thousands » of agents in its ranks and warning that they would be exempt from a Democratic-led push to ban AR-15 rifles.
Last week, Democrats in the House passed a bill banning Americans from buying AR-15s, calling the AR-15 a « weapon of war. » They exempted the IRS from the ban. This week they will add tens of thousands of IRS agents to the budget. Meanwhile, they posted this: https://t.co/qz8xbBMDt7pic.twitter.com/e8hRSnN3cj
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) August 11, 2022
However, while critics have argued the measure would dramatically increase the overall force of IRS agents – with some suggesting they will be unleashed on small business owners across the country – a Treasury Department official reached by Time denied the charge.
“It is completely inaccurate to describe any of these resources as being intended to increase scrutiny for the middle class or small businesses,” said the official.
Time then noted that even though the Inflation Reduction Act authorizes some $78 billion for the IRS over the next 10 years, those funds will be « cover a wide range of positions », only some of them will be tax enforcement agents. Additionally, many of the new hires would fill jobs currently held by people who are about to retire, which means the IRS could see up to 30,000 more workers than its current staff, though. below the 87,000 repeatedly claimed by conservative critics.
The tax office currently has about 78,000 employees in total, according to former IRS commissioner John Koskinen, who noted that the total figure had risen by almost 100,000 workers since 2013.
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