Rep. Matt Gaetz wrote a letter to Speaker Mike Johnson asking him to beef up protections for the IRS whistleblowers amid a legal case between Hunter Biden and the Internal Revenue Service.
The Florida Republican suggested Johnson task the House Office of General Counsel with intervening in Biden v. IRS to ‘protect the prerogatives of the House of Representatives and to protect the rights of all Americans to make protected disclosures to Congress.’
IRS whistleblower Gary Shapley alleged the Justice Department ‘slow-walked’ its probe into Hunter’s taxes and Joseph Ziegler alleged Hunter ‘received preferential treatment’ during the process.
‘The interests of the House of Representatives and the legal rights of our whistleblowers are not being zealously defended by the United States Department of Justice (DOJ), who is defending the lawsuit on behalf of the I.R.S.,’ Gaetz wrote in the letter.
IRS whistleblower Gary Shapley alleged the Justice Department ‘slow-walked’ its probe into Hunter’s taxes
‘Congress should have a strong interest in defending the tax whistleblower provision *it created* at 26 USC 6103(f)(5) (“Disclosure by whistleblower”), which allows those with access to confidential taxpayer information to blow the whistle,’ Shapley attorney Tristan Leavitt posted on X.
In his suit, Hunter’s lawyers claimed Ziegler and Shapley ‘targeted and sought to embarrass Mr. Biden’ by sharing confidential tax information in congressional testimony.
Hunter Biden will return for another high-profile courtroom drama in Los Angeles on Wednesday where he will ask a judge to throw out felony charges against him for failing to pay over $1 million in taxes.
His lawyers have launched efforts to throw out part or all of the nine charges brought by special counsel David Weiss and Trump-appointed U.S. District Judge Mark Scarsi will decide the fate of the case.
The charges stem from what federal prosecutors say was a four-year scheme to skip out on paying the $1.4 million he owed to the IRS and instead use the money to fund an ‘extravagant lifestyle’ that by his own admission included drugs and alcohol.
IRS whistleblower Joseph Ziegler alleged Hunter ‘received preferential treatment’ during the process
Ziegler, who identifies as a gay Democrat, alleged Hunter had improperly claimed business deductions for a number of personal expenses, including his children’s college tuition, hotel bills and payments to escorts.
Hunter’s lawsuit alleges the IRS hasn’t done enough to stop the airing of his personal information. It seeks to ‘force compliance with federal tax and privacy laws’ and damages of $1,000 for every unauthorized disclosure.
Shapley’s lawyer at the time called the suit a ‘frivolous smear’ designed to ‘intimidate any current and future whistleblowers.’
His attorney said he did not release confidential tax information except through legal whistleblower disclosures.
‘Once Congress released that testimony, like every American citizen, he has a right to discuss that public information.’
