‘‘Delete’ is one of their favorite terms’: Inside DOGE’s IRS takeover ahead of tax season

CNN — The chaos at the Internal Revenue Service began almost immediately after the first envoy from the Department of Government Efficiency arrived last month at the agency’s Washington, DC, headquarters. Within minutes of showing up, a twenty-something software engineer dispatched from DOGE began demanding access to the tax collection agency’s most protected internal databases – first the IT systems and then one containing the personal and financial data for millions of American taxpayers and another system housing IRS contracts. “They just randomly drop by people’s offices, demanding access to systems; they’re bullying us and there’s no discipline in what they are doing, which really worries me,” said one IRS employee. Within minutes of arriving, Kliger demanded access to the IRS’s “tax administration systems,” according to an IRS employee familiar with the situation. Video Ad Feedback Taxpayer advocate on DOGE access to IRS data 05:00 - Source: CNN Taxpayer advocate on DOGE access to IRS data 05:00 As soon as Corcos got there, one IRS employee told CNN, he pushed to a halt nearly all the agency’s congressionally funded programs and initiatives it was planning for fiscal year and calendar year 2025.