> Congress has consistently cut funding for the IRS for years and years I just want to clarify that de-funding the IRS doesn't have universal support in congre

> Congress has consistently cut funding for the IRS for years and years I just want to clarify that de-funding the IRS doesn't have universal support in congress and is actually a partisan policy. I'm guessing you know that and are just toning it down to be less politically offensive on HN. However, this is an important distinction and not for the sake of finger pointing. It's important because it means that we have the power to change our government. We have the power to demand better of our politicians and to refuse to vote for them if they support policies that make it easier for tax cheats to walk while increasing the tax burden on everyday people. I understand why you might want to tone it down and just blame congress and all politicians for this type of policy (because, yes politicians are gross and should be kept at an arm's length), but that breeds the idea that we are just stuck with a broken government that can't be changed. You really can have an effect on government if you are willing to look at who historically votes for policies like this and make the choice that is best for you. If you didn't have power in the process, then our politicians wouldn't be spending so much money on campaigns to get you to their side. From the articles you linked: > The IRS has never been a popular cause on Capitol Hill. But Democrats and Republicans long shared a grudging consensus that the agency’s basic work of tax collection deserved protection. That changed when the Republican Party came into power in 1994 and Newt Gingrich became the speaker of the House. The new majority’s main priority was tax cuts, and vilifying the IRS helped its case. > The notion wasn’t a fringe position within the party. Former Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana, a respected mainstream Republican, ran for president in 1996 on a platform of abolishing the IRS. A Republican congressman in 1998 introduced a bill to repeal the Internal Revenue Code by 2002. “Abolish the IRS” remains a potent talking point. Ted Cruz, the Republican senator from Texas, campaigned on the slogan when he ran for president in 2016. > Republicans, riding the Tea Party wave, took control of the House of Representatives and started hacking at the IRS’ enforcement budget > Down it went, some years the cuts were steep, some not, as Republican lawmakers laughed off dire warnings about the consequences of letting tax cheats run free.