The acting commissioner of the IRS is being replaced just days after being sworn in.
Gary Shapley took over the role of acting commissioner earlier this week but is already on his way out after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent complained to President Donald Trump that Shapley was installed without his knowledge, The New York Times first reported Friday.
A White House official also confirmed to HuffPost that Shapley will be exiting his role.
Shapley previously was an IRS supervisor who gained the attention of Trump after Shapley alleged political influence in the Hunter Biden tax investigation in 2023, accusing the Justice Department of protecting the son of then-President Joe Biden.
Shapley was chosen for the role after the former acting commissioner, Melanie Krause, resigned earlier this month. She resigned over a deal to share immigrants’ tax data with Immigration and Customs Enforcement for the purpose of identifying and deporting people illegally in the U.S.
After Shapley was sworn in, Bessent reportedly complained to Trump that Shapley had been given his new position at the call of billionaire Elon Musk, who has played a key role in the administration as the head of the new, so-called Department of Government Efficiency. Musk has wielded his new power by decimating the federal workforce and firing tens of thousands of civil servants in critical government roles.
Trump reportedly decided to reverse his decision after speaking to Bessent.
In a social media post on Thursday, Musk responded to conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer in a post where Loomer accused Bessent of being anti-Trump.
“Troubling,” Musk responded.
The White House confirmed to HuffPost that Trump is expected to pick the deputy secretary of the treasury, Michael Faulkender, to be the next acting commissioner.