Tax experts say IRS whistleblower Charles Littlejohn’s leaks provided a public service — and fear Trump will take retribution.
By Matt Sledge, The Intercept
Earlier this month, a group of professors from the normally stodgy world of tax law wrote to President Joe Biden calling on him to free the IRS contractor who leaked the tax returns of Donald Trump and thousands of millionaires and billionaires.
Charles Littlejohn’s five-year sentence was six times the recommended maximum, the professors said, despite the fact that Littlejohn’s disclosures helped shed light on a broken tax system that allows Warren Buffett to pay a lower tax rate than his secretary.
With Biden winding down his time in office, Littlejohn’s advocates, including tax code reformers from the groups Revolving Door Project and Patriotic Millionaires, are worried for the incarcerated IRS consultant. They’re calling on Biden to commute Littlejohn’s sentence before it is too late and he is forced to spend Trump’s second term in prison at risk of retribution.

“Trump has already promised to pardon January 6 insurrectionists who are convicted,” said Kenny Stancil, a senior researcher at the Revolving Door Project. “It would be a perversion of justice if they walk free while Littlejohn spends over four more years in prison.”
Stancil’s Revolving Door Project, Patriotic Millionaires, and the group of tax professors led by Reuven Avi-Yonah of the University of Michigan — who has called Littlejohn a “public hero”— are leading the charge for clemency.
The groups have not called on Biden to pardon Littlejohn, noting that he pleaded guilty, but they did emphasize the civic-minded purpose behind his leaks.
Recent Posts
Colbert’s Termination Is A Corporate Assault On Dissent And A Victory For Trump
July 19, 2025
Take Action Now Three weeks ago, Paramount agreed to pay Trump $16 million to settle the suit, amid rumors of side-deals that content would shift at…
‘Unconstitutional. Unethical. Authoritarian.’ ICE Bars Millions Of Immigrants From Bond Hearings
July 18, 2025
Take Action Now One watchdog said the new policy “seems like a blatant attempt to stop them from exercising their right to due process.”……
Americans Are Not Nearly Alarmed Enough About Climate Change
July 18, 2025
Take Action Now Americans still don’t comprehend how imminent, dangerous, and far-reaching the threat is—and journalists are partly to blame.By…
The IRS Is Building A Vast System To Share Millions Of Taxpayers’ Data With ICE
July 17, 2025
Take Action Now ProPublica has obtained the blueprint for the Trump administration’s unprecedented plan to turn over IRS records to Homeland Security…