WASHINGTON (AP) — Two IRS whistleblowers who testified publicly about investigations into Hunter Biden's taxes have been promoted to new roles as senior advisers at the Treasury Department.
Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler, two IRS employees who testified to Congress as Republicans reviewed the business dealings of Joe Biden's son, say they were retaliated against for cooperating in the investigations.
Shapley and Ziegler say they were removed from the Hunter Biden case in December 2022 after they told their bosses that the Justice Department and former Delaware U.S. Attorney David Weiss had engaged in a pattern of “slow-walking investigative steps” and delaying enforcement actions in the months before the 2020 presidential election won by Democrat Joe Biden.
Now, Shapley is being promoted to Deputy Chief of IRS Criminal Investigations and Ziegler is assigned to the secretary’s office as a senior adviser for IRS reform.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox News on Tuesday that he planned to bring the pair into Treasury and “give them a year to investigate the wrongdoing that’s going on at the IRS.”
“We’ll learn what’s been going on at the IRS, what’s been wrong,” Bessent said. “How could this Hunter Biden nonsense have happened? And we’re going to make sure it doesn’t happen to anyone again, whether they’re Republicans, Democrats or independents.”
The investigation into Hunter Biden ended with Joe Biden pardoning his son, sparing the younger Biden a possible prison sentence for federal felony gun and tax convictions and reversing his past promises not to use the extraordinary powers of the presidency for the benefit of his family.
Hunter Biden had been set to stand trial last September in the California case accusing him of failing to pay at least $1.4 million in taxes. But he agreed to plead guilty to misdemeanor and felony charges in a surprise move hours after jury selection was set to begin.
Several months earlier, Hunter Biden was convicted in Delaware federal court of three felonies for purchasing a gun in 2018 when, prosecutors said, he lied on a federal form by claiming he was not illegally using or addicted to drugs.
Republican lawmakers celebrated the promotions of Shapley and Ziegler.
Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said, “Gary Shapley and Joe Ziegler put their entire careers on the line to stand up for the truth, and instead of being thanked, the Biden administration treated them like skunks at a picnic.”
“Far too many whistleblowers share a similar experience of retaliation. I hope today is the first of many redemption stories for whistleblowers who’ve been mistreated. By taking a stand for whistleblowers, President Trump and his Cabinet are ushering in a new era of transparency and accountability.”
Shapley and Ziegler said in a joint statement: “We appreciate the opportunity Secretary Bessent is giving us to utilize our skills and firsthand knowledge of the agency to further the work of the administration to root out waste and fraud from the federal government and make a difference.”
FILE - Hunter Biden steps into a vehicle as he leaves federal court, Sept. 5, 2024, in Los Angeles, after pleading guilty to federal tax charges. (AP Photo/Eric Thayer, File)
FILE - IRS Criminal Investigator Joseph Ziegler, right, and IRS Special Agent Gary Shapley, appear before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee during a hearing to argue that the Justice Department interfered with a yearslong investigation into Hunter Biden, at the Capitol in Washington, July 19, 2023. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — I've worked for The Associated Press as a photographer since 1999. A lot of what I cover involves either Iran's government or its relations with the West, but I also try to shoot on the streets of Tehran as well to show the world what life looks like here in my hometown.
The fire festival offers a great opportunity for that.
Known as “Chaharshanbe Souri” in Farsi, the festival comes in the hours just before the Wednesday before Nowruz, which is the Persian New Year.
To celebrate, people light bonfires, set off fireworks and send wish lanterns floating off into the night sky. Others jump over and around fires, chanting “My yellow is yours, your red is mine,” invoking the replacement of ills with warmth and energy.
The fire festival also features an Iranian version of trick-or-treating, with people going door to door and being given a holiday mix of nuts and berries, as well as buckets of water.
It's not necessarily an easy assignment though. Here in Iran, some people remain sensitive about having their photograph taken, particularly women who aren't wearing Iran's mandatory headscarf, or hijab.
Meanwhile, the joy sometimes overcomes safety concerns as smoke fills the air and fireworks explode at random overhead. There are injuries every year and sometimes deaths. I ended up having a piece of a burning firecracker land inside my left shoe. I'm OK — it just burned a hole through my sock and left a small blister.
I used a flash for some of my photos to capture people jumping through the fire, given their speed and the low light available. One picture my photo editors especially liked shows a man holding a lit firework, his face silhouetted by its bright light. Behind him, you can see the empty branches of trees in the park I shot in.
Nowruz marks the start of spring. Soon, leaves will sprout again.
See more AP photography at https://apnews.com/photography.
An Iranian woman jumps over a bonfire celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
An Iranian man jumps over a bonfire celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
An Iranian woman holds up a firework celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
An Iranian woman dances while celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Iranians dance while celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Iranians jump over a bonfire celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Iranians dance while celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
An Iranian woman jumps over a bonfire celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Iranians gather around a bonfire celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Iranians dance while celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Iranians gather around a bonfire as they light a firework celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
An Iranian woman jumps over a bonfire celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
People dance while celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
An Iranian woman releases a wishing lantern while celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
An Iranian man plays with a firework celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
An Iranian man jumps over a firework celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. Iranians celebrate their new year, or Nowruz, with arrival of the spring. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
An Iranian man plays with a firework celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
An Iranian man plays with a firework celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
An Iranian man holds up a firework celebrating Chaharshanbe Souri, or Wednesday Feast, an ancient Festival of Fire on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Persian year, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
