Ken Kies, a lobbyist extraordinaire, has been gifted the keys to the Treasury Department’s tax kingdom. This move is as predictable as a reality TV plot twist. After all, in the age of Trump, appointing foxes to guard the henhouse is practically a tradition. Kies, the maestro of tax avoidance strategies, now orchestrates the tax policy symphony for the nation.
In a classic display of revolving-door politics, Kies commands the stage, having spent decades crafting tax dodges for multinational corporations and the wealthiest elite. His resume reads like a greatest hits album of tax loopholes, having thwarted regulatory efforts from the Clinton era to Obama’s tenure. When Clinton’s administration attempted to plug the offshore tax drain, Kies led the opposition like a conductor leading an orchestra, ensuring the melody of tax avoidance continued uninterrupted.
Under George W. Bush, Kies pushed for legislation that made it child’s play for companies to shift profits offshore. His talent for keeping the taxman at bay was again evident during the Obama years, as he deftly maneuvered to block efforts to curb these same strategies. And let’s not forget his starring role in the 2017 tax cut saga, where he lobbied for a tax break that generously favored the ultra-rich.
Most recently, Kies provided his wizardry to the Trump Organization in its sparring match with the IRS. It’s a wonder the Treasury Department didn’t roll out a red carpet for his arrival. With his intimate knowledge of tax loopholes, he’s perfectly poised to oversee the very policies he’s helped undermine.
One must marvel at the irony of a system that recruits its regulators from the ranks of those who have most effectively circumvented regulation. And so, with a wry smile, we watch as Kies assumes his role, ready to navigate the Treasury Department through the murky waters of tax policy. One can only hope that his insider’s expertise will somehow serve the public interest, although history suggests otherwise. In the world of tax policy, it seems, the more things change, the more they stay the same.
