IRS Harassment of Tea Party Groups Reportedly Has Continued

Congress continues to investigate the IRS scandal, and news this week indicates that it continues. Here’s the first two paragraphs of a Washington Examiner article:

Tea Party officials told a congressional panel Thursday they are still being targeted for harassment despite claims by President Obama and top IRS officials that the illegal activities were stopped last year.

“It’s shocking, it’s repugnant, it’s infuriating,” Becky Gerritson told a subcommittee of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. “And most troubling of all, those responsible have not stopped.”

Meanwhile, IRS attorney William Henck has been in the IRS Office of the General Counsel for over 26 years. He wrote a piece for the PowerLine blog. It is one of the most disturbing things I’ve read in quite some time. Here’s an excerpt:

I do not personally know whether the IRS has targeted conservative groups or individuals, but I do know that the environment within the agency is ripe for such activity and there is nothing to prevent it from occurring. As stated in more detail below, I have personally witnessed improper giveaways of billions of dollars to taxpayers with inside access at the agency, bullying of elderly taxpayers, the cover-up of managerial embezzlement and misappropriation of thousands of dollars in government funds, and a retaliatory audit. I have also heard credible accounts of, among other things, further improper giveaways, blatant sexual harassment, and anti-Semitism. All of these matters have been swept under the rug.

I strongly suggest you read the entire thing.

Finally, we have President Obama stating that there was no corruption involved with this scandal. Here’s the quote from an interview he had with FoxNews’s Bill O’Reilly:

O’REILLY: You’re saying no corruption, none?

OBAMA: There was some bone-headed decisions.

O’REILLY: Bone-headed decisions. But no mass corruption?

OBAMA: Not even mass corruption. Not even a smidgeon of corruption.

Really?

Republicans in Congress have cut the budget to the IRS because of the scandal. And whether you’re a member of the GOP, a Democrat, or an independent (politically), Republicans are correct in doing this. As I’ve said before, we need a non-partisan IRS. Until the true cause of the scandal is known (and whatever it is, it’s in Washington, not Cincinnati), we’re all going to pay the price. Sooner or later the news will come out, and most likely to the detriment of those in power in Washington.

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