[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 182 (Friday, December 20, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Page S9080]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                      Nomination of John Koskinen

  Mr. HATCH. Madam President, I wish to speak on the nomination of John 
Koskinen to be the next Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service.
  I want to say upfront that I support Mr. Koskinen's nomination as I 
believe he is a qualified candidate for this position and he deserves 
to be confirmed.
  However, I do have to say that I am disappointed in the process by 
which his nomination has been moved through the Senate, both in the 
Finance Committee and here on the floor. There is simply no reason for 
the Senate to rush to confirm Mr. Koskinen, and there is ample reason 
for us to take our time.
  It goes without saying that the IRS is one of the most powerful 
agencies in our government. It is both feared and loathed by people 
throughout the country. That being the case, it is absolutely essential 
that all the actions of the IRS and its leadership are above board.
  That is the only way for the agency to maintain its credibility.
  That is the only way an agency this powerful can maintain the trust 
of the American people.
  The American people should be able to trust that the IRS will enforce 
our Nation's tax laws without bias or prejudice. If that trust is 
broken, it damages the credibility of our entire government.
  Needless to say, over the last few years, the IRS hasn't done a good 
job of maintaining that trust and, as a result, it has eroded its own 
credibility.
  I am talking, of course, about the IRS political targeting scandal 
currently under investigation in the Finance Committee.
  If there is one thing that everyone should agree on, it is that the 
IRS should enforce the tax laws as they are written by Congress without 
consideration of political views. Sadly, it appears that, for a time, 
not everyone at the IRS shared that view.
  When this scandal first came to light, there was condemnation on all 
sides and everyone--regardless of party affiliation--wanted to get to 
the bottom of it.
  President Obama, for example, said ``I have got no patience with it, 
I will not tolerate it, and we will make sure that we find out exactly 
what happened on this.''
  Majority Leader Reid expressed similar views here on the floor, 
stating: ``I have full confidence in the ability of Senator Baucus and 
the Finance Committee to get to the bottom of this matter and recommend 
appropriate action.''
  I hope that hasn't changed.
  I hope that the effort to rush Mr. Koskinen's nomination through the 
Senate is not part of an effort to sweep the Finance Committee's 
investigation under a rug and hope it disappears.
  As I said, there is no reason for us to move so quickly on this 
nomination.
  By waiting until our investigation has concluded, we can ensure that 
the next commissioner--presumably Mr. Koskinen--will begin their time 
with the benefit of the findings of the investigation. This would put 
him in a better position to fix the problems we have uncovered and to 
move the agency forward. In addition, it would ensure that he has the 
confidence of Members of both parties, which is vital with an agency of 
this size and stature.
  I am encouraged by Mr. Koskinen's commitment to continue the 
cooperation the Finance Committee has enjoyed so far in its 
investigation, as well as his commitment to working with Congress to 
fix the IRS's many problems.
  I plan on holding him to his promise.
  The confirmation of a new IRS Commissioner should not be a partisan 
issue.
  My fear is that, by including Mr. Koskinen in the current partisan 
fight over executive branch nominees, the Senate Democratic leadership 
is injecting partisanship where none should exist. This further 
undermines the IRS as an agency, not to mention Mr. Koskinen's future 
leadership of the agency.
  This is not a time that we should be undermining the IRS. In addition 
to restoring the agency's damaged credibility--which I believe should 
be the next commissioner's top priority--there are a number of other 
challenges facing this agency.
  For example, there is the IRS's significant role in the 
implementation of ObamaCare. As we have seen thus far, this presents a 
number of difficulties, both in terms of operation and enforcement.
  Both the IRS's inspector general and insurers throughout the country 
have questioned whether the agency is capable of administering the 
Affordable Care Act's premium subsidy program without massive amounts 
of fraud or improper payments.
  On top of that, there are the proposed IRS and Treasury regulations 
addressing the political activities of tax-exempt organizations. Given 
the IRS's recent problems in dealing with these types of organizations, 
many of us have reason to be skeptical that the agency can promulgate 
such rules without further bias or prejudice.
  On all these issues, Mr. Koskinen has committed to working with 
Congress, and with Members of both parties.
  I hope that he lives up to this commitment.
  It is essential that he does so, because, as I said, the IRS is an 
agency rife with problems, most of which are self-inflicted. These 
problems are not simply going to go away when a new Commissioner is 
confirmed, and they aren't going to be solved if the agency ignores the 
input and inquiries from Members of Congress.
  Once again, I support Mr. Koskinen's confirmation. I just wish we had 
gone a different route with regard to his nomination in the Senate.