6 Things You Missed From Today’s Hearing On The IRS Scandal
Today, senior IRS officials testified before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee about their role in the agency improperly targeting conservative groups.
Witnesses appearing before the committee included former IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman and Lois Lerner, the IRS’s Director of the Exempt Organizations division.
Because, unlike us, you probably don’t have the time to sit and follow a House committee hearing for 6 hours on a weekday, let us bring you the top 6 things you missed.
1. Lois Lerner Declining To Answer Questions And Invoking The 5th Amendment
Lerner almost immediately invoked her 5th Amendment right not to testify. Soon after this, she was dismissed from the hearing.
2. Rep. Trey Gowdy Calling Out Lerner For Waiving Her 5th Amendment Rights.
Though Lerner refused to answer questions, she had submitted and made an opening statement. Congressman Gowdy quickly realized by doing so, she was effectively waiving her 5th Amendment rights. She may be called back to testify at a later date.
3. Democrat Rep. Stephen Lynch Threatened The IRS With A Special Prosecutor.
Even Democrats were getting in on the act. Democrat Rep. Stephen Lynch threatened to call for a special prosecutor if IRS officials continued to dodge questions.
4. Shulman Refuses To Say Whether Targeting Conservatives Is Against Democratic Values
When asked by Rep. Michael Turner whether targeting conservative groups was against our democratic values, Shulman refused to say. Should be an easy enough question to answer, right? Apparently not for the former IRS Commissioner.
5. Shulman Partly Blames His Numerous White House Visits On The Annual Easter Egg Roll
When asked the reason why he made so many trips to the White House, the former IRS Commissioner smugly joked that it was because of the Easter Egg Roll.
6. Rep. Jim Jordan Takes Shulman To Task Over Past Testimony
Congressman Jim Jordan went after Shulman’s past statements–made just last year–assuring the committee that no such inappropriate targeting was taking place. It was summarized best by this exchange at the end: JORDAN: You’re sure you’re being square with me? SHULMAN: (pause) Excuse me?
BONUS: BuzzFeed: Report On IRS Scandal Was Repeatedly Delayed
During the hearing, the news broke that TIGTA (Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration), or the body charged with investigating claims that the IRS was improperly targeting conservatives, delayed the report throughout 2012.
Emails provided by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee show that repeated requests for updates were ignored and the report was repeatedly delayed from September 2012 until just recently.