Randa Abdelfattah and Ramteen Arablui

So on some level, taxes pay for government.

government offices and salaries, but also government services.

They pay for that paved road you drive on to go to work, the public school your niece goes to, the social security check your grandparents get, and a big chunk pays for Medicare and the military.

You know, they pay for everything.

Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes said that taxes are the price we pay for civilization.

But for a lot of American history, up until the early 20th century, we didn't have a permanent income tax.

The federal government paid for everything mainly using money collected from tariffs and excise taxes on various goods.

Keep in mind, everything back then was a lot fewer things.

There was no Social Security, no unemployment insurance, and a much smaller military.

But as the world changed rapidly, the country grew just as fast.

Suddenly, new problems demanded new solutions from the federal government.

And it was at that moment that Elmer Irie and the IRS were instructed to get Capone.

I'm Randa Abdelfattah.

And I'm Ramteen Arablui.

On this episode of ThruLine from NPR, the hunt for Capone helps launch a new era when tax collectors were on the front lines of a war against lawlessness, from back alleys to the halls of power, transforming the IRS from an obscure federal agency to a powerful, sometimes scandal-ridden one that helped make the federal government into what it is today.

Part 1

The Giant Killers.

Elmer Irie wasn't who you might expect to lead the hunt for Capone.

He was kind of like a teddy bear type guy.

He had this folksy charm.