Top IRS lawyer to resign post amid disagreements with Trump administration

What the report says

Al Jazeera, citing Reuters and other outlets, reported that Ken Kies, the Internal Revenue Service’s acting chief counsel and a Treasury assistant secretary for tax policy, is expected to leave his IRS role amid reported friction with President Donald Trump’s White House. Reuters and The Wall Street Journal described Kies as being pushed out, relying on unnamed people familiar with the matter.

According to the report, Kies had cautioned Trump administration officials against directing the IRS on tax audits. Federal tax law bars the president, vice president and executive office employees from asking the IRS to start or stop an audit or investigation of a specific taxpayer, a safeguard intended to prevent political misuse of tax enforcement. Al Jazeera said it was not clear what specific White House request, if any, triggered the dispute.

The reported resignation comes after controversy over Trump’s personal lawsuit against the IRS, in which he sought $10bn over the leak of his tax returns. A Justice Department settlement announced in May would have granted Trump and his family protection from IRS audits and created a $1.8bn “anti-weaponisation” fund. US District Judge Kathleen Williams in south Florida rejected that settlement last week, criticizing the Justice Department’s handling of the case and raising concerns about executive interference in audits.

Al Jazeera also reported that Kies declined to work on the settlement and had differences with the administration over tax issues including high-value tax breaks. Brian Morrissey, formerly Treasury’s general counsel, reportedly resigned in May over the same settlement. Kies previously served as Trump’s personal tax lawyer before entering the administration.