Conservatives Eager to Question IRS Commissioner Under Oath

The Ohio congressman leading House conservatives in the drive to impeach IRS Commissioner John Koskinen for High Crimes and Misdemeanors during his tenure told Breitbart News Wednesday’s impeachment hearing with Koskinen testifying under oath has been a long time coming.

“We’ve been trying for 15 months, since we introduced the first resolution by Mr. Chaffetz, which had something like 84 co-sponsors, so we’ve been trying, and trying and trying,” said Rep. Jim Jordan (R.-Ohio), who was the last chairman of the Republican Study Committee, before it transitioned from being the chamber’s conservative bloc to an arm of leadership.

A motion of impeachment filed by Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R.-Utah), the chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, passed his committee, but did not clear the Judiciary Committee.

Koskinen, like all IRS commissioners, serves a five-year term. His term ends Nov. 12, 2017. If the House votes to impeach Koskinen by a simple majority, the matter is presented to the Senate as an indictment. The Senate would hold a trial and vote on a conviction.

House conservatives were poised to execute a privileged motion Thursday, which would have forced a vote on Koskinen’s impeachment without debate or opportunity for amendment.

Shortly before midnight Wednesday, Rep. Trey Gowdy (R.-S.C.), acting as an envoy from the House GOP leadership, brokered an agreement so that House conservatives would postpone a vote on impeachment until after the election in exchange for a hearing with the House Judiciary Committee with the IRS commissioner under oath.

Capitol Hill sources familiar with the situation told Breitbart News Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R.-Wis.) and the House Republican leadership had been blocking action on the impeachment for months.

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