Wednesday, April 19, 2017
The IRS Scandal, Day 1441: Lois Lerner Remains Relevant On Tax Day
Forbes: Lois Lerner, Former IRS Official, Remains Relevant On Tax Day, by Robert W. Wood:
President Trump is still facing a big backlash over his tax returns. Despite big protests, he has not released them, and there is no sign that he will. As this Tax Day passes, it seems unlikely that public cries for his tax returns are going away anytime soon. Yet curiously, some people on the right seem to be as upset with a now barely uttered name from the IRS’s past, Lois Lerner. Ms. Lerner was the former IRS official at the center of the targeting scandal. That mostly forgotten issue has nothing to do with Trump's tax returns, and it is unlikely to garner the kind of popular outcry that has been triggered over Trump's returns.
Even so, some observers cannot let go of the IRS targeting scandal. Partisan treatment from the IRS is worrisome. Some claim that Lois Lerner got off easy in the IRS scandal, and want it reopened. In fact, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady and Tax Policy Subcommittee Chairman Peter Roskam sent a letter to Attorney General Jeff Sessions asking the Department of Justice to re-open a probe of her conduct. ...
IRS Commissioner John Koskinen is still at the helm of the agency, and there is no sign that he will be replaced. In addition to Ms. Lerner’s own conduct, there were numerous gaffes or glitches over the course of several years. To outsiders, the IRS seemed to behave in ways that no taxpayer engaged in a tax audit would be allowed to act. Taken as a whole, the IRS made itself look at least sloppy. For example, as recently as 2016, despite a court order to preserve documents, the IRS wiped the hard drive of an important IRS official, Mr. Samuel Maruca involved in hiring an outside law firm. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch wrote a letter to the IRS complaining about the strange deal and its big fees.
The deal had nothing to do with Lois Lerner or targeting. Yet, the fact that the IRS wiped Mr. Maruca's hard drive was a reminder of Lois Lerner and all that came with her. ...
In March 2014, nine months after receiving a congressional subpoena to preserve and turn over the information, the IRS deleted approximately 24,000 Lerner emails and destroyed Lerner’s hard drive. Many emails were lost forever when 422 backup tapes were wiped clean despite a preservation order and subpoena. The House Oversight Committee report said the IRS failed to take even simple steps to ensure compliance with the order. On Tax Day, some taxpayers might wonder if the IRS would be likely to accept similar taxpayer arguments.
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1438: Sessions Is Noncommittal On GOP Request To Reopen DOJ Probe Of Lois Lerner (Apr. 16, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1437: Lois Lerner Fears For Her Life, Asks Federal Court To Seal Her Upcoming Deposition Testimony (Apr. 15, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1434: How To Prevent The Next IRS Targeting Scandal (Apr. 12, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1433: House Oversight Committee Republicans Call On President Trump To Fire Commissioner Koskinen (Apr. 11, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1430: At Least 1 Top Republican in Congress Really Likes Commissioner Koskinen (Apr. 8, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1429: Commissioner Koskinen Says He Will Finish Term Despite GOP Calls To Step Down Immediately (Apr. 7, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1428: Fifteen Ways & Means Committee Republicans Urge Trump To Fire Commissioner Koskinen (Apr. 6, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1427: 54 Applications For Tax-Exempt Status Were Rejected In 2016; One Conservative Group Has Been Waiting For An Answer Since 2009 (Apr. 5, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1426: Obama’s IRS Chief Who Dodged Impeachment Continues Under Trump (Apr. 4, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1424: Conservatives Demand IRS Commissioner’s Head In White House Meeting (Apr. 2, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1421: More On A Hidden Cause Of The IRS Scandal (Mar. 30, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1420: A Hidden Cause (Mar. 29, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1417: Satan, Tea Parties, and the IRS (Mar. 26, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1416: The Root Problem Is The Law, Not The IRS (Mar. 25, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1415: ‘Media Attention’ And IRS Abuse (Mar. 24, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1411: Why Did Donald Trump Fire Sally Yates And Preet Bharara, But Not John Koskinen? (Mar. 20, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1410: Judicial Watch Forces Disclosure Of New Documents (Mar. 19, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1409: 'After School Satan Club' Granted Tax-Exempt Status In 10 Days While Conservative Groups Waited Years (Mar. 18, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1408: Why Won't The Media Cover It? (Mar. 17, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1407: NY Post Editorial, Fire The IRS Chief Already, Mr. President (Mar. 16, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1404: Attorney General Sessions Weighs Appointing Special Counsel To Investigate Obama's Justice Department Scandals (Mar. 13, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1403: Should Koskinen Remain, Resign, Or Be Fired? (Mar. 12, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1402: IRS Locates 7,000 Documents Related To Tea Party Targeting (Mar. 11, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1377: Republicans Still Want IRS Chief's Head (Feb. 14, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1367: White House Mum On Fate Of IRS Boss Koskinen (Feb. 4, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1365: 55 GOP Members Of Congress Ask Trump To Fire Koskinen (Feb. 2, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1363: The Final Chapter On The End Of My Daily Coverage (Jan. 31, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1360: VP Pence, GOP House And Senate Push Trump To Fire Koskinen (Jan. 28, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1358: More Reflections On The End Of My Daily Coverage (Jan. 26, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1356: Reflections On The End Of My Daily Coverage (Jan. 24, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1353: Will The Trump IRS End, Or Embrace, Targeting Of Disfavored Groups? (Jan. 21, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1352: The End Of My Daily Coverage (Jan. 20, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1351: Two Federal Judges Order Five Officials To Preserve Emails Sought In FOIA Lawsuits; Judicial Watch Fears Another Lois Lerner Situation As Obama Administration Leaves Power (Jan. 19, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1350: Even Trump Adviser Buys Myth Of 'Scandal-Free Administration,' Despite IRS, Five Other Scandals (Jan. 18, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1349: Peggy Noonan On The Obama Presidency And The IRS Scandal (Jan. 17, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1348: How The Trump Administration Can Stop IRS Abuse Of Political Groups (Jan. 16, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1347: IRS Chief Counsel William Wilkins Resigns, Effective Jan. 20; GOP Questioned His Role In Tea Party Targeting (Jan. 15, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1346: The Trump Dossier, The Left, And Tea Party Targeting (Jan. 14, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1345: Donald Trump, The Intelligence Community, And Lois Lerner (Jan. 13, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1344: Democrats Remind Jeff Sessions AG Enforces 'Every Law,' Yet Were Silent When DOJ Declined To Prosecute Lois Lerner (Jan. 12, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1343: IRS Let Lois Lerner Off The Hook By Paying $12 Million For Email Backup System It Did Not Use (Jan. 11, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1342: New Chair of House Oversight Committee Pledges To Increase IRS Accountability (Jan. 10, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1341: Another View Of The Republicans' Reactivation Of The Holman Rule And Lois Lerner (Jan. 9, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1340: Tax Professors Discuss The Future Of Tax Administration And Enforcement After 'What The Media Often Refer To As The 'IRS Targeting Scandal'' (Jan. 8, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1339: House GOP Reactivates 'Holman Rule,' Would Have Permitted Reducing Lois Lerner's Pay To $1 (Jan. 7, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1338: Commissioner Koskinen Says Trump Transition Team Has No 'Axes To Grind' Against IRS (Jan. 6, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1337: The IRS Is The Third Biggest 'Tax Offender Of 2016' (Jan. 5, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1336: Fragmented Oversight Of Nonprofits In The United States (Jan. 4, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1335: Politics, Disclosure, And State Law Solutions For 501(c)(4) Organizations (Jan. 3, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1334: The IRS’s Diminished Role In Overseeing Tax-Exempt Organizations (Jan. 2, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1333: Republicans Weasel Out Of Impeaching IRS Commissioner John Koskinen (Jan. 1, 2017)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1332: The House GOP's Ridiculous Impeachment Crusade (Dec. 31, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1331: Rep. Jim Jordan Offers Resolution To Impeach IRS Commissioner John Koskinen (Dec. 30, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1330: House Republicans And Democrats Forge Rare Bipartisan Agreement To Block Impeachment Of IRS Commissioner (Dec. 29, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1329: Did The IRS's Targeting Of Conservative Groups Lead It To Grant Tax-Exempt Status To 'Hate Groups'? (Dec. 28, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1328: House's Referral Back To Judiciary Committee Is Likely To Kill Koskinen Impeachment (Dec. 27, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1327: Delay In Koskinen Impeachment Is Discordant Note In Kumbaya Between Trump And GOP Congress (Dec. 26, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1326: Only 72 House Republicans Voted Against Delay In Impeachment Of IRS Commissioner (Dec. 25, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1325: House Impeachment Leader Grills Witness Over Giving Koskinen 'Excellence In Public Service' Award (Dec. 24, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1324: Ways & Means Committee Seeks Information From IRS About Continued Targeting Of Organizations Based On Political Beliefs — This Time, Pro-Israel Groups (Dec. 23, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1323: Tea Party Group Decries IRS's 'Latest Bob And Weave To Avoid Accountability' (Dec. 22, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1322: Government Denies That It Continues To Harass Tea Party Group (Dec. 21, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1321: Maureen Dowd, Donald Trump, And The IRS Scandal (Dec. 20, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1320: How The GOP Establishment Teamed With Nancy Pelosi To Table Impeachment Vote On IRS Commissioner (Dec. 19, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1319: How Will The Koskinen Saga End? (Dec. 18, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1318: More On Koskinen And Trump (Dec. 17, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1317: Koskinen Says He Is Willing To Serve Another Term As IRS Commissioner If Trump Wants To Reappoint Him (Dec. 16, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1316: IRS Commissioner Koskinen Says Resignation Did Not Come Up In Meeting With Trump Transition Team (Dec. 15, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1315: Bureaucratic Bumbling Or Targeting Of Conservatives? (Dec. 14, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1314: How The Trump Administration Can Stop IRS Abuse of Political Groups (Dec. 13, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1313: The Koskinen-Trump Connection (Dec. 12, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1312: Impeachment Averted, But Will Koskinen Resign Or Be Fired By President Trump? (Dec. 11, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1311: The IRS 'Scandal' Was Part Of GOP's Strategy To Bog Down Obama Administration (Dec. 10, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1310: Rep. Jim Jordan Is 'Frustrated' By House Passing On IRS Chief Koskinen's Impeachment (Dec. 9, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1309: How Trump Got Yanked Into GOP's IRS Impeachment Fight (Dec. 8, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1308: House Votes To Send Koskinen Impeachment Back To Judiciary Committee (Dec. 7, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1307: Group Seeks Summary Judgment On Claim That Rev. Rul. 2004-6 Is So Vague That It Allows The IRS To Target Conservative Groups (Dec. 6, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1306: Government Rejects Claim That Rev. Rul. 2004-6 Allows The IRS To Target Conservative Groups (Dec. 5, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1305: Group Seeks Summary Judgment On Claim That Rev. Rul. 2004-6 Is So Vague That It Allows The IRS To Target Conservative Groups (Dec. 4, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1304: 'The IRS Has Never Stopped Targeting Conservatives' (Dec. 3, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1303: Group Sues IRS For Failure To Produce Communications With Joint Committee on Taxation (Dec. 2, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1302: The 'Corrupt' IRS Is Still Persecuting The Tea Party (Dec. 1, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Day 1301: If Koskinen Is Impeached Or Fired, Trump Could Appoint New IRS Commissioner To Go Easy On His Taxes (Nov. 30, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Days 1201-1300 (Aug. 22, 2016 - Nov. 29, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Days 1101-1200 (May 14, 2016 - Aug. 21, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Days 1001-1100 (Feb. 4, 2016 - May 13, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Days 901-1000 (Oct. 27, 2015 - Feb. 3, 2016)
- The IRS Scandal, Days 801-900 (July 19, 2015 - Oct. 26, 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)
https://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2017/04/the-irs-scandal-day-1441lois-lerner-remains-relevant-on-tax-day.html
Comments
Mr. Russell: Wow, “Democrat cretins” and “dishonest troll” in the same post. Careful, you’ll wear out your Right-Wing Book of Insults. I’ve heard the spine on that volume is a little weak.
Mr. MM: It is true “that backup tapes containing copies of all of Ms. Lerner's relevant email correspondence were . . . destroyed in March 2014, nine months after they had been subpoenaed,” and like you, I find it disturbing that “[t]he reason why this occurred has never been fully explained.... .“ But my comment was critical of Mr. Wood’s inaccurate statement that the IRS had destroyed Lerner’s hard-drive. As always, maintaining focus is important. And once again, we return to the inevitable: Lerner should either be 1) prosecuted or 2) immunized, but 3) will not be due to her continuing value as an issue to the Right-Wing/Libertarian/Republican Axis.
Posted by: Publius Novus | Apr 21, 2017 6:21:23 AM
What Mr. Pubs conveniently omits is that backup tapes containing copies of all of Ms. Lerner's relevant email correspondence were also destroyed in March 2014, nine months after they had been subpoenaed, despite a crystal clear preservation order sent to the relevant staff by IRS Chief Technology Officer Terence Millholland.
The reason why this occurred has never been fully explained...
Posted by: MM | Apr 20, 2017 1:52:43 PM
And "Publis" support of the lies of Lois Lerner and the other Democrat cretins in the IRS just reminds us that for liberals in general, and Democrats in particular, lying -up to and including felony perjury-, is one of the chief sacraments of the Liberal Church. As was demonstrated in 1999 during Bill Clinton's impeachment.
"Publis" is a dishonest troll who shows up here to always, always defend the lies and corruption of the Democrat scum running IRS.
Posted by: Andrew Russell | Apr 20, 2017 8:43:13 AM
Generally speaking, Mr. Wood's commentaries on this topic are more accurate and balanced than most. It is worth noting, however, that the IRS did not "destroy[] Lerner’s hard drive." Lerner's hard drive failed for unknown reasons and was replaced by IRS IT when the failure was reported in the regular course. It may be that Lerner was the reason for the failure; that supposition is unproven, and, given Lerner's lack of technical sophistication, is unlikely. In any event, if Lerner caused or contributed to the failure of her hard drive, it was not caused by Commissioners Shulman or Koskinen. Once more, we return to the unavoidable trichotomy that Lerner should either be 1) prosecuted or 2) immunized, but 3) will not be due to her continuing value as an issue.
Posted by: Publius Novus | Apr 19, 2017 8:17:40 AM
Pubs, we've been over all this before, more than once:
https://www.fedsmith.com/2014/07/22/lerners-hard-drive-was-scratched/
"Despite early refusals to make available IT professionals who worked on Lois Lerner’s computer, Ways and Means Committee investigators have now learned from interviews that the hard drive of former IRS Exempt Organizations Director Lois Lerner was 'scratched,' but data was recoverable. In fact, in-house professionals at the IRS recommended the Agency seek outside assistance in recovering the data. That information conflicts with a July 18, 2014 court filing by the Agency, which stated the data on the hard drive was unrecoverable - including multiple years’ worth of missing emails."
https://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/25/us/politics/irs-did-not-follow-law-after-loss-of-officials-emails-archivist-says.html?_r=0
"The Internal Revenue Service did not follow the law when it failed to report a hard drive crash that destroyed emails belonging to a senior official at the center of a scandal over the agency’s treatment of conservative-leaning political groups, the nation’s top archivist said Tuesday... 'In accordance with the Federal Records Act, when an agency becomes aware of an incident of unauthorized destruction, they must report the incident to us,' said David S. Ferriero, the chief archivist at the National Archives."
Leaving aside the false statements to Congress, the constant equivocation and changing of stories, and general contempt for oversight. could you simply explain to us uneducated types why no one has ever been (publically) disciplined for pretty obvious violations of the Federal Records Act, both for the destruction of her hard drive and the backup tapes?
Posted by: MM | Apr 21, 2017 7:25:21 PM