John,

Donald Trump has famously said that he's smart because he doesn't pay taxes. He has spent a lifetime cutting corners, under-reporting his income, and skirting, if not actually breaking, the tax law.

Republicans in Congress throughout my career have followed that playbook and created more tax breaks and loopholes for the wealthy, while crippling the ability of the IRS to enforce the law.

With the appointment of former Congressman Billy Long to be IRS Commissioner, they have nominated the perfect person to carry out their assault on the IRS. Billy is an entertaining person. He used being an auctioneer as his primary talent which he displayed regularly and very effectively, but it's no substitute for knowledge and ability.

The American tax system relies on voluntary compliance by people who have confidence that they will be treated fairly. Billy Long will march us toward a two tiered tax system: the 80% of the people who earned their income through wages that have taxes withheld and reported to the IRS, and the wealthy and well-off with very complex tax returns who can under-report hundreds of billions of dollars in otherwise taxable income. The losers here are ultimately the American public, who are missing out on tax revenue and getting more and more of the burden piled on them.

Billy Long Trump is remaking the IRS in his own image, and in the long run, the American public loses.

Courage,

Earl