MaddowBlog-IRS reportedly disclosed confidential tax data to the Dept. of Homeland Security

[LetMyPeopleVote]

By Donald Trump’s reasoning, are the victims of this screwup entitled to $10 billion in taxpayer money?

IRS reportedly disclosed confidential tax data to the Dept. of Homeland Security. By Donald Trump’s reasoning, are the victims of this screwup entitled to billion in taxpayer money? www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

— (@jwwcan.bsky.social) 2026-02-12T20:12:10.124Z

https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/irs-reportedly-disclosed-confidential-tax-data-to-the-dept-of-homeland-security

The Internal Revenue Service has long guarded sensitive taxpayer information with great care, even shielding the information from other agencies. But the more the Trump administration took steps to intensify its deportation agenda, the more the IRS came under pressure to go along with the broader partisan crusade.

The consequences are starting to come into focus in striking ways. The Washington Post reported on a newly disclosed problem:

The Internal Revenue Service improperly shared confidential tax information of thousands of individuals with immigration enforcement officials, according to three people familiar with the situation, appearing to breach a legal fire wall intended to protect taxpayer data

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....The ensuing controversy was so significant that it led to the resignation of an acting IRS commissioner, who opposed the disclosures.

What we didn’t know until now is what happened after that decision 10 months ago. From the Post’s report:

Federal courts have since blocked the data-sharing arrangement, holding that it violates taxpayers’ rights, though the government appealed those rulings.

Before the agreement was struck down, DHS requested the addresses of 1.2 million individuals from the IRS. The tax agency responded with data on 47,000 individuals, according to court records. When the IRS shared the addresses with DHS, it also inadvertently disclosed private information for thousands of taxpayers erroneously, a mistake only recently discovered, said the people familiar, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retribution.

So, to recap, DHS wanted sensitive tax information. The IRS reluctantly agreed in April, and the data sharing began in August. In November, a court ruled that this was illegal, and it now appears that the data sharing that had already happened led to DHS gaining improper access to information about thousands of people.

The next steps, including possible notifications to victims, are not yet clear, though one question is hanging overhead: Donald Trump recently filed a federal lawsuit, insisting that he’s entitled to $10 billion in taxpayer money because someone at the IRS improperly disclosed information about him.

The question for the White House seems rather straightforward: Does the president think the victims of this apparent disclosure are also entitled to $10 billion?

While we wait for that answer, the departments of the Treasury and Justice declined to comment about the underlying controversy. In a statement, a DHS spokesperson said that under the data-sharing agreement, “the government is finally doing what it should have all along.”

[LetMyPeopleVote]

1. The IRS is admitting it mistakenly shared the confidential data of thousands of immigrants with DHS

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