The IRS Scandal, Day 866

USA Today op-ed:  Why Congress Should Impeach Gina McCarthy, John Koskinen, and Other Obama Administration Obstructers-of-Justice, by Glenn Reynolds (Tennessee):

Is impeachment the only solution for lack of executive accountability? ...

Congress is considering impeaching [EPA Administrator] Gina McCarthy, ... Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) has introduced a resolution of impeachment against her because he says she lied during testimony about the EPA’s new clean water rules. ... McCarthy is accused of perjuring herself three times, in discussing the scientific and engineering basis for those rules. So, you might wonder, why not just prosecute her for perjury?

The problem is that criminal prosecutions are brought by the executive branch, and there’s not much chance that Obama administration Attorney General Loretta Lynch will bring a perjury prosecution against a fellow member of the administration. And there’s nothing Congress can do to change that. ...

The framers of the Constitution knew that, of course, which is why they gave Congress another power, that of impeachment. ...

Congress has had a lot of trouble with this administration. The IRS stonewalled on the emails implicating Lois Lerner in political targeting of Tea Party groups, the State Department (and Hillary Clinton personally) have stonewalled and foot-dragged on releasing Hillary’s emails, and other officials, such as Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, have provided “clearly erroneous” statements to Congress and suffered no penalty.

Traditionally, presidents have been willing to sacrifice underlings caught in this sort of behavior, but the Obama administration hasn’t been so quick to force them out. And like any behavior, lying to Congress and stonewalling congressional oversight becomes more common when it becomes clear that there will be no significant price to be paid.

Impeaching lower level officials may be a solution. Not only is the threat of removal from office a significant one, but most cabinet officials — and even many lower-level appointees — have bigger ambitions. Rendering them ineligible for further federal office is a genuine threat.

That’s why impeaching McCarthy — and, as some, including Ed Morrissey, have already suggested, IRS chief John Koskinen, whose stonewalling over the IRS political-targeting scandal has been egregious, or Clapper — might encourage better behavior in the future. The Republican House majority leader says it won't happen, but as Congressional Republicans seek a way to hold the Obama administration accountable, the pressure to do something may change that political calculus.

We live in a world where these officials pay no price, and where no one lost their job over the EPA’s disastrous Colorado mine spill, and where the Veterans Administration is in many cases firing whistleblowers before accountable officials for botched veteran care.

Is impeachment the answer to lack of accountability in the executive branch? If it isn’t, what is?

• The IRS Scandal, Day 865 (Sept. 21, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 864 (Sept. 20, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 863 (Sept. 19, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 862 (Sept. 18, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 861 (Sept. 17, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 860 (Sept. 16, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 859 (Sept. 15, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 858 (Sept. 14, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 857 (Sept. 13, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 856 (Sept. 12, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 855 (Sept. 11, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 854 (Sept. 10, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 853 (Sept. 9, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 852 (Sept. 8, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 851 (Sept. 7, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 850 (Sept. 6, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 849 (Sept. 5, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 848 (Sept. 4, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 847 (Sept. 3, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 846 (Sept. 2, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 845 (Sept. 1, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 844 (Aug. 31, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 843 (Aug. 30, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 842 (Aug. 29, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 841 (Aug. 28, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 840 (Aug. 27, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 839 (Aug. 26, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 838 (Aug. 25, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 837 (Aug. 24, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 836 (Aug. 23, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 835 (Aug. 22, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 834 (Aug. 21, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 833 (Aug. 20, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 832 (Aug. 19, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 831 (Aug. 18, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 830 (Aug. 17, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 829 (Aug. 16, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 828 (Aug. 15, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 827 (Aug. 14, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 826 (Aug. 13, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 825 (Aug. 12, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 824 (Aug. 11, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 823 (Aug. 10, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 822 (Aug. 9, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 821 (Aug. 8, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 820 (Aug. 7, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 819 (Aug. 6, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 818 (Aug. 5, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 817 (Aug. 4, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 816 (Aug. 3, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 815 (Aug. 2, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 814 (Aug. 1, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 813 (July 31, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 812 (July 30, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 811 (July 29, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 810 (July 28, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 809 (July 27, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 808 (July 26, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 807 (July 25, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 806 (July 24, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 805 (July 23, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 804 (July 22, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 803 (July 21, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 802 (July 20, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Day 801 (July 19, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Days 701-800 (April 10, 2015 - July 18, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Days 601-700 (Dec. 31, 2014 - April 9, 2015)
• The IRS Scandal, Days 501-600 (Sept. 22, 2014-Dec. 30, 2014)
• The IRS Scandal, Days 401-500 (June 14, 2014 - Sept. 21,2014)
• The IRS Scandal, Days 301-400 (Mar. 6, 2014 - June 13, 2014)
• The IRS Scandal, Days 201-300 (Nov. 26, 2013 - Mar. 5, 2014)
• The IRS Scandal, Days 101-200 (Aug. 18, 2013 - Nov. 25, 2013)
• The IRS Scandal, Days 1-100 (May 10, 2013 - Aug. 17, 2013)