hi there @dana-edwards,
I agree - the John Doe seems like an aggressive overreach. I'm fully onboard with the need to get visibility in to criminals financial transactions, but something so wide and directionless seems like a real violation of our rights.
I think the best course of action we have to stay safe is just to be mindful of what we are doing and maintain records to the best of our abilities. I was audited once by the IRS, but actually found that they went away very easily when I quickly came up with the necessary documentation (not crypto related, however).
I think that the IRS priorities are tough to identify. They've been a bit rudderless over the past few years, notably as a result of staff cuts and the whole targeted auditing of republican non-profits/PACs. I can tell you that with less people they will be looking for the 'easy wins.' Specifically, if they see a potential large area to pull in some taxes (hint: look at the change in crypto total market cap this year) without having to send out a lot of people on the ground, they will jump at it. For now, we are safe behind the exchanges, but we don't know if that will last forever, which brings me back to my earlier point about just trying wherever possible (and within reason) to keep good records.
Your position about transacting between STEEM and BTC is correct. And to be honest, the forms required to fill out for a like-kind exchange are pretty laborious. Unless you are moving large amounts relatively infrequently between the two, I would say prepare to pay taxes like they are not (again, having good records here will help you).
I realize I've probably left you with as many questions as answers, but hope this helps :)
Cheers