Trump’s Missouri pick to lead IRS grilled by Democrats over tax credits
Former Missouri congressman Billy Long, nominated to lead the Internal Revenue Service, struggled with Democrats during his U.S. Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday, as he faced sharp questions over his promotion of tax credits that don’t exist.
Long, who represented southwest Missouri in Congress for a decade, has come under sustained criticism over his ties to White River Energy. Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, both Democrats, say the firm offered non-existent “tribal tax credits.”
President Donald Trump announced Long, a longtime supporter of the president, as his choice for IRS commissioner in December. Since then, the White House’s Department of Government Efficiency initiative has swept through the IRS, firing employees, including in Kansas City, home to some 4,000 agency employees.
Republicans, who control the Senate, voiced support for Long on Tuesday. But as Long appeared headed for confirmation before the full Senate, Democrats sought to undercut his nomination by raising questions about the tax credits controversy during the Senate Finance Committee hearing.
After Long, 69, left Congress in 2023, he received at least several thousand dollars in compensation from White River, which holds oil and gas mineral leases in Louisiana and Mississippi. Wyden said financial advisors at the firm sold “tribal tax credits” that the IRS confirmed don’t exist.
Long made an “insignificant amount of referrals of these credits to third parties,” White River has said in a statement. The company has also said no federal regulatory agency has ever told it the credits are invalid. Long said Tuesday he had only referred the credits to a few friends.
Long “raked in referral fees, steering clients to firms that sold fake tax shelters and pushing small businesses to unknowingly commit tax fraud,” Wyden said in his opening statement.
During the hearing, Long wouldn’t say whether the credits exist or not, saying he didn’t know. “The jury’s still out on that.”
He also downplayed any link to White River, saying he worked through Capitol Edge Strategies, a tax strategy firm.
“I’ve never talked to anybody at White River, I don’t know anybody at White River and I don’t have any way to know who the tribe is, even,” Long said.
Trump’s pick for IRS
If Long is confirmed, his elevation to IRS commissioner would mark a rapid ascent for a former congressman who had appeared potentially done with politics. Instead of running for reelection in 2022, Long mounted an unsuccessful bid for Senate, winning 5% of the vote in the Republican primary.
He would take over control of the nation’s tax collection apparatus at a fraught moment, as IRS employees fear firings and layoffs will harm the agency’s ability to serve taxpayers. The IRS has floated cutting up to 40% of its workforce, and The New York Times reported in April that some 22,000 of the agency’s roughly 100,000 workers have offered to resign.
Long doesn’t have extensive experience in the tax field, but pitched his time in Congress as valuable. After Congress changes the tax code, the IRS then spends months or years interpreting the changes, he said, adding that his familiarity with Congress will help the agency have a “comprehensive understanding” of the legislature’s intent.
“My two main concerns will be my employee partners, the IRS, and the hard-working American taxpayers who deal with them,” Long said. “I don’t want either one of that equation to be intimidated by the other side.”
Sen. Mike Crapo, an Idaho Republican who chairs the Finance Committee, called on Long to prioritize taxpayers. Crapo said his conversations with Long had assured him he would focus on improving taxpayer services and enforcing tax laws with fairness.
“He wants to implement a top-down culture change at the agency,” Crapo said. “This sea change will benefit the American taxpayer, who too often view the IRS as foe rather than friend.”
Democrats pushed Long to commit to blocking any attempt by Trump or the White House to target individual taxpayers or weaponize the agency against political opponents. For instance, Trump has called for an audit of Harvard University after it resisted Trump’s request for changes on campus.
Sen. Raphael Warnock, a Georgia Democrat, said Long had previously told him that if Trump asked him to audit a taxpayer – an illegal request under federal law – he would ignore it.
“Is that correct, yes, or no?” Warnock asked.
“It’s partially correct,” Long said. “I think I told you that he wouldn’t do that in the first place, but if he did, I’d do exactly what you said. So, yes.”
