R&B superstar Chris Brown says Donald Trump would make him a very happy man if he set his sights on the IRS once he’s back in the Oval Office.
Posting on his Instagram stories (the 24-hour vanish rule matters little when you’re a celebrity), Brown wrote with a hard eyes emoji:
“Anyone else hoping that Trump shuts down the IRS?”
“If he pulls that off… PUT THAT MAN ON… THE hundred dollar bill,” he continued with a laughing face emoji.
For all we know, these could’ve been Brown’s 3AM thoughts but in an age where throwing out any random idea can make waves online, and politicians like Trump have promised the world (remember the wall Mexico was supposed to pay for?) a quick fact check may be warranted here.
First, Donald Trump does not have the power to shut down the IRS on his own. As part of the Department of Treasury, the IRS was put in place by Congress.
Even defunding or changing the IRS’ structure would require some support from Congress (although Trump will have a majority Republican Congress in the House and Senate this year).
Even with his lack of power to eliminate the IRS, Donald Trump has complained that the IRS has “unfairly” targeted him with audits, despite fears from some critics who say it’s Trump may try to use the IRS to target his political enemies.
While celebrities like Chris Brown are in tax brackets that may see them giving away millions to the IRS, that federal tax money funds everything from Social Security, Medicare, government offices and the roads and bridges people drive across daily.
It’s part of why President Joe Biden emphasized hiring more IRS agents and better funding the department, so they could enforce tax laws and get funding from wealthier Americans who were finding ways to not pay their fair share. Last fall, the IRS announced it had gone after 125,000 high-income individuals who hadn’t paid taxes since all the way back in 2017, and had shaken them down for $172 million dollars in just six months of trying. Through Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act initiatives, the IRS recovered a whopping $1.3 billion from high-wealth individuals.
So, sorry to any fans of Chris Breezy’s who were also wishing that Donald Trump could unilaterally wipe away their tax burdens.
Presidents are not Kings. And as much as a second Trump administration is about to test the limits of democracy and executive power, if Trump ends up on a $100 bill, it will simply be because the powers that be folded and let him do it– not because the IRS is going anywhere.
