Friday, May 17, 2013
The IRS Scandal, Day 8
- White House Press Release: President Obama Appoints Daniel Werfel as Acting Commissioner of Internal Revenue
- White House Profile: Daniel Werfel
- IRS: Questions and Answers on 501(c) Organizations
- IRS: Approved Tax-Exempt Applications for Advocacy Organizations through May 9, 2013
- American Enterprise Institute: What Congress Should Do About IRS Tea Party Bias
- Bloomberg: IRS Probe Sheds Light on Nonprofit Election-Year Surge
- Bloomberg: Ousted Acting IRS Head Faces Lawmaker Grilling in Scandal
- CNN: IRS Scandal May Unleash a Flood of Conservative Donors
- Daily Caller: Did the IRS Give Mitt Romney’s Tax Returns to Harry Reid?
- Daily Caller: Schumer, Franken urged IRS to target tea party in 2012
- Dorf on Law: The IRS Mess Is Already Badly Misunderstood -- And the Distorted Narrative Will Only Get Worse, by Neil H. Buchanan (George Washington)
- The Fiscal Times: Now We Find Out That the IRS Is Incompetent
- Fox News: Conservative Hispanic Groups Targeted In IRS Scandal
- Fox News: IRS Official Who Oversaw Unit Targeting Tea Party Now Heads ObamaCare Office
- National Review: An Agency After Obama’s Own Heart: Sure, Obama Probably Didn’t Order the IRS to Discriminate. But He Set the Tone
- National Review: The IRS and Big Government
- New York Times: GOP, Energized, Weighs How Far to Take Inquiries
- New York Times: Obama to Name Budget Official as Acting IRS Chief
- New York Times Opinionator: Behind the IRS Mess: A Campaign Finance Scandal, by Steven Ratner
- Wall Street Journal editorial: Nina Olson for IRS Commissioner: To Atone for Political Abuse, Give the Taxpayer Advocate a Promotion
- Wall Stret Journal op-ed: This Is No Ordinary Scandal: Political Abuse of the IRS Threatens the Basic Integrity of Our Government, by Peggy Noonan
- Wall Street Journal: The IRS Scandal Started at the Top: The Bureaucrats at the IRS Did Exactly What the President Said Was the Right and Honorable Thing to Do
- Wall Street Journal: Republicans Step Up IRS Scrutiny
- Washington Examiner: The IRS is Deeply Political — And Very Democratic
- Washington Post: Five Steps to Remedy Wrongs Done by the IRS
- Washington Post: Obama Appoints Daniel Werfel as Acting Head of IRS
NBC Sports: Evan Mathis Shows His Disdain for the IRS:
Prior TaxProf Blog coverage:
- IRS Admits to Targeting Conservative Groups in 2012 Election (May 10, 2013)
- WaPo and WSJ Agree: IRS Targeting of Conservatives Is Appalling (May 11, 2013)
- Schmalbeck on the IRS 'Targeting' of Conservative Groups (May 12, 2013)
- The Deepening IRS Scandal (May 13, 2013)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 5 (May 14, 2013)
- Jon Stewart and Vic Fleischer on the IRS Scandal (May 14, 2013)
- Inspector General: Ineffective IRS Management Allowed Agents to Target Conservative Groups (May 14, 2013)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 6 (May 15, 2013)
- Ellen Aprill, The TIGTA Report on the IRS Scandal: Questions About the IRS and About the Report (May 15, 2013)
- Phillip Hackney, The TIGTA Report on the IRS Scandal: Be on the Lookout for False Partisan Witchunts (May 15, 2013)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 7 (May 16, 2013)
https://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2013/05/irs-sc.html
Comments
I don't understand how these tea party groups wound up paying and/or doing so much in response to these questions. If the govt agency I normally dealt with sent me such an intrusive, politically charged series of questions, my next response would've been to go over the head of the bureaucrat in question. Possibly CCing the IRS inspector general and relevant House oversight people. I would've declined to answer the questions until the IRS showed actual guidelines and or relevance of each question, directly from the CFR or other official documents.
I mean, the actions of the IRS personnel are despicable and undoubtedly extends to the top. But any attorney who took these questions seriously was probably just lining his pocket.
I also like the warnings about perjury and what not. A simple reply would've been, "no, why don't you, under perjury, and under threat of other anti discrimination (i.e., 1983) laws detail that these questions are necessary and proper and in the regular course of conduct, etc. etc." And of course, cc:ing everyone between the bureaucrat in question and my local sympathetic congressman. Here's a chance for the IRS to explain why they're asking what they're asking and if there's any wrong answer, like what books or prayers are you concerned about?
But, I guess the IRS is a different government agency to deal with. There are usually rules and regulations and guidelines for action, not just rogue agents making it up as they go along. You know, oversight.
Posted by: joeinva | May 18, 2013 12:47:45 PM
I guess everything on the IRS scandal has been covered. Certainly nothing is going to arise for Day 9, so, let's move on. ... Wait, what's this?! -- Rep. Charlie Rangel: ‘This Is Wrong to Abuse the Tax System’
Posted by: Woody | May 17, 2013 12:51:57 PM
The placement of these pictures is hilarious.
Posted by: andy | May 19, 2013 7:26:07 PM