Billy Long
Billy Long | |
|---|---|
Official portrait, 2025 | |
| United States Ambassador to Iceland | |
Nominee | |
| Assuming office TBD | |
| President | Donald Trump |
| Succeeding | Carrin Patman |
| 51st Commissioner of Internal Revenue | |
| In office June 16, 2025 – August 8, 2025 | |
| President | Donald Trump |
| Deputy | Gary Shapley |
| Preceded by | Daniel Werfel |
| Succeeded by | Scott Bessent (acting) |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Missouri's r district | |
| In office January 3, 2011 – January 3, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Roy Blunt |
| Succeeded by | Eric Burlison |
| Personal details | |
| Born | William Hollis Long II August 11, 1955 Springfield, Missouri, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) |
Barbara Long (m. 1984) |
| Children | 2 |
| Awards | |
William Hollis Long II[1] (born August 11, 1955)[2] is an American auctioneer and politician who was the 51st and current Commissioner of Internal Revenue for a few months in 2025. He was the U.S. Representative for Missouri's 7th congressional district from 2011 to 2023. He is a Republican.
In August 2021, Long announced his candidacy for the United States Senate in the 2022 election. He lost the Republican nomination to Eric S. Schmitt in the August primaries.
In December 2024, President-elect Donald Trump nominated Long to serve as the Commissioner of Internal Revenue under his second administration.[3] He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate in June 2025. Two months later, he was removed by President Trump from the role and instead was nominated to be the United States Ambassador to Iceland.
Early life
Long was born in Springfield, Missouri. He went to University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri[4] however he dropped out. After taking time off from school for three years, Long went to a nine-day training program at the Missouri Auction School in Kansas City.[5] In 1984, he married Barbara Long. They have two children.
Long owned Billy Long Auctions, LLC. He was also a talk radio show host on the Springfield-based station KWTO. He is a member of the National Association of Realtors.[5]
Political career
Long joined the race for the 7th congressional district after incumbent U.S. representative Roy Blunt chose to run for the U.S. Senate. In the crowded seven-way Republican primary, the de facto election in the state's most Republican district, Long won with 36% of the vote.
After Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election and Donald Trump refused to say that he lost, Long support Trump’s claims of fraud in the election.[6] In December 2020, Long supported an amicus brief in support of Texas v. Pennsylvania, a lawsuit filed at the United States Supreme Court trying to overturn the results of the election.[7][8][9]
In August 2021, Long announced his candidacy for the United States Senate in the 2022 election.[10] He lost the Republican nomination to Eric S. Schmitt in the August primaries.[11] He left congress in 2023.
On December 4, 2024, President-elect Donald Trump nominated Long to be the Commissioner of Internal Revenue under his second administration.[3] He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on June 12, 2025 by a 53-44 vote.[12] He was sworn-in four days later on June 16, 2025.[13]
On August 8, 2025, President Trump removed Long as commissioner of the IRS, less than two months after his confirmation. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent became acting commissioner.[14] Long later announced that he was nominated to be Ambassador to Iceland by President Trump.[15]
References
- ↑ "Representative William H. Long (Billy) (R-Missouri, 7th) – Biography from". LegiStorm. Retrieved 2011-07-25.
- ↑ John Bicknell 112th Congress: Billy Long, R-Mo. (7th District)) CQ Politics November 3, 2010
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Fields, Ashleigh (2024-12-04). "Donald Trump names Billy Long as IRS head". The Hill. Retrieved 2024-12-04.
- ↑ "About Billy Long". Billy Long for Congress. 2010-11-02. Archived from the original on 2011-09-10. Retrieved 2011-07-25.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Meet Vicky". billyforcongress.com. 2020-08-17. Archived from the original on 2020-08-17.
- ↑ "Top Missouri Republicans embrace Trump's resistance to election results". Rolla Daily News. 2020. Archived from the original on November 15, 2020.
- ↑ Huguelet, Austin. "Missouri Republicans back Texas AG lawsuit to overturn Trump loss". Springfield News-Leader. Retrieved 2021-01-26.
- ↑ Court document supremecourt.gov
- ↑ "We Will Object". 31 December 2020.
- ↑ Bowman, Bridget (August 3, 2021). "GOP Rep. Billy Long joins Missouri Senate race". Roll Call. Retrieved August 3, 2021.
- ↑ Missouri Primary Election Results at NPR
- ↑ "Billy Long confirmed to lead IRS amid calls for reform and oversight". Gov Exec.com. Retrieved June 23, 2025.
- ↑ "Long sworn in as the 51st IRS Commissioner". IRS. Retrieved June 16, 2025.
- ↑ "Trump removes Billy Long as IRS commisioner less than 2 months after his confirmation". AP News. 2025-08-08. Retrieved 2025-08-08.
- ↑ @auctnr1 (August 8, 2025). ""It is a honor to serve my friend President Trump and I am excited to take on my new role as the ambassador to Iceland. I am thrilled to answer his call to service and deeply committed to advancing his bold agenda. Exciting times ahead!" - Billy Long" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
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Other websites
- Congressman Billy Long Archived 2018-09-07 at the Wayback Machine official U.S. House site
- Billy Long for Congress Archived 2010-11-02 at the Wayback Machine
- Billy Long at the Open Directory Project
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
- Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Vote Smart
- Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission