Darrell Issa just had a bad day: IRS 'targeted' groups with 'Occupy' and 'Progressive' in names

Jed Lewison

Community

Monday June 24, 2013 · 2:06 PM PDT

2013/06/24 · 14:06

no image description available — "I'm going to need a couple of minutes to rethink my conspiracy theory here, my friends. The committee is recessed."

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, led by Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) (R), speaks with Representative Elijah Cummings (D-MD) at Capitol Hill in Washington June 20, 2012. The House Oversight and Government Operations Committee is conside

"I'm going to need a couple of minutes to rethink my conspiracy theory here, my friends. The committee is recessed."

Poor Darrell Issa:

The Internal Revenue Service’s screening of groups seeking tax-exempt status was broader and lasted longer than has been previously disclosed, the new head of the agency said Monday.
An internal IRS document obtained by The Associated Press said that besides ‘‘tea party,’’ lists used by screeners to pick groups for close examination also included the terms ‘‘Israel,’’ ‘'Progressive’’ and ‘‘Occupy.’’ The document said an investigation into why specific terms were included was still underway.

In a conference call with reporters, Danny Werfel said that after becoming acting IRS chief last month, he discovered wide-ranging and improper terms on the lists and said screeners were still using them. He did not specify what terms were on the lists, but said he suspended the use of all such lists immediately.

The IRS has stopped using any so-called BOLO ("Be on the lookout") lists, but you know what this looks like? It looks like they were trying to screen for groups engaged in political activity ... because groups engaged mainly in influencing campaigns are not entitled to non-profit tax exempt status. In other words, they were trying to enforce the law. And it's not exactly an easy law to enforce.

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Darrell Issa just had a bad day: IRS 'targeted' groups with 'Occupy' and 'Progressive' in names

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