IRS Scandal:Ms. Lerner-- hero or villian.

[ecinicola]

I think they are all crooks in the irs and in our white house as well. We needed "fair tax" which would eliminate irs all together. This intire bunch is causing us all major hardships and they are only working for themselves, not for us.

 

[Sallow]

If Lerner is taking the 5th to protect someone, she cannot use the 5th. It's as simple as that. If it is discovered that someone else is guilty of a crime, misdemeanor or wrong doing and she's taking the 5th to conceal that, she is guilty of several additional crimes, obstruction of justice just for starters.

Karl Rove made a mockery of Congressional hearings and Issa's turned them into circuses.

Look for lots of smoke, lots of sizzle, no steak.

 

[Sallow]

that's exactly what you did. Instead of addressing this scandal on this day you went back to the old "but someone else did it too" as if that explains or excuses a goddamn thing this stupid democrat did. and all she gets for her nefarious behavior and lies is a long taxpayer paid vacation, makes me want to vomit.

Actually, those people DIDN'T do it.

Cap and Scooter testified voluntarily... and they got burned. And they didn't even do what people were upset about.

Frankly, you guys haven't convinced me that not giving teabagger groups tax exemptions is a scandal.

I'm utterly shocked and speechless.

The scandal is about an abuse of power rooted in partisan obstructionism. There was no cause. Ask yourself why you are still blind to the bias. Be the groups left or right, is secondary to whether the IRS was justified in what they did. Plainly they were wrong.

Calling yourself a "party" and engaging in political discourse is social welfare, how, exactly?

 

[Truthseeker420]

Considering the Republican witch hunt and GOP leaders saying someone is going to jail...I think she did the right thing for her.

"Truthseeker"....should that not be "spinseeker"?
Witch hunt implies that the investigation is baseless and without warrant.
Is that what you want to say? That despite the IRS admitting to withholding status based on political beliefs, you believe we should just ignore it and pretend it didn't happen.
Gee - I bet that opinion is also based on political beliefs.

yes ,these accusations are baseless. All you have is the IRS admitting they were politically incorrect when they profiled a group named after famous tax law breakers and who promote tax evasion.

 

[iamwhatiseem]

She didn't waive her 5th amendment right.

At least in part she certainly did.
I heard several lawyers on TV saying basically whatever she said before pleading the 5th, is just that - testimonial statement BEFORE pleading the 5th and therefore subject to questioning.
In a court, a statement is testimony. And testimony is always, always subject to questioning.

 

[Soggy in NOLA]

Considering the Republican witch hunt and GOP leaders saying someone is going to jail...I think she did the right thing for her.

"Truthseeker"....should that not be "spinseeker"?
Witch hunt implies that the investigation is baseless and without warrant.
Is that what you want to say? That despite the IRS admitting to withholding status based on political beliefs, you believe we should just ignore it and pretend it didn't happen.
Gee - I bet that opinion is also based on political beliefs.

yes ,these accusations are baseless. All you have is the IRS admitting they were politically incorrect when they profiled a group named after famous tax law breakers and who promote tax evasion.

It is politically incorrect for the IRS to target opposition groups? Sorry, that is a bit beyond political incorrectness there Lieseeker.

 

[Katzndogz]

It is so hard to educate people that the 5th amendment means you will not give testimony. It doesn't mean you will give only testimony favorable to yourself. It means you give no testimony at all. Lerner got abysmal advice. Whoever was advising her must have said that an opening statement is not testimony. Of course it is. Much better attorneys advised mob bosses where they would not testify to stating their name.

 

[Katzndogz]

Not resigning when asked was a major mistake. She could have been someone who took one for the team and gotten quietly reassigned. Instead, she's now in the position of having her co-workers manufacture evidence against her basically shifting the blame for whatever happened to Lerner, to the extent that they can. Firing her will be justified, no matter what the IRS has to fake up to make that happen.

 

[iamwhatiseem]

Considering the Republican witch hunt and GOP leaders saying someone is going to jail...I think she did the right thing for her.

"Truthseeker"....should that not be "spinseeker"?
Witch hunt implies that the investigation is baseless and without warrant.
Is that what you want to say? That despite the IRS admitting to withholding status based on political beliefs, you believe we should just ignore it and pretend it didn't happen.
Gee - I bet that opinion is also based on political beliefs.

yes ,these accusations are baseless. All you have is the IRS admitting they were politically incorrect when they profiled a group named after famous tax law breakers and who promote tax evasion.

WOW...I have to say that again...WOW.

 

[Truthseeker420]

"Truthseeker"....should that not be "spinseeker"?
Witch hunt implies that the investigation is baseless and without warrant.
Is that what you want to say? That despite the IRS admitting to withholding status based on political beliefs, you believe we should just ignore it and pretend it didn't happen.
Gee - I bet that opinion is also based on political beliefs.

yes ,these accusations are baseless. All you have is the IRS admitting they were politically incorrect when they profiled a group named after famous tax law breakers and who promote tax evasion.

It is politically incorrect for the IRS to target opposition groups? Sorry, that is a bit beyond political incorrectness there Lieseeker.

What do you base the accusation they were targeting opposition groups?

 

[iamwhatiseem]

"Truthseeker"....should that not be "spinseeker"?
Witch hunt implies that the investigation is baseless and without warrant.
Is that what you want to say? That despite the IRS admitting to withholding status based on political beliefs, you believe we should just ignore it and pretend it didn't happen.
Gee - I bet that opinion is also based on political beliefs.

yes ,these accusations are baseless. All you have is the IRS admitting they were politically incorrect when they profiled a group named after famous tax law breakers and who promote tax evasion.

It is politically incorrect for the IRS to target opposition groups? Sorry, that is a bit beyond political incorrectness there Lieseeker.

I am beside myself anyone could be this bald-faced biased. (Lieseeker)
Stunning.

 

[Dot Com]

She's a smart woman/tough cookie. Her division was doing the best it could w/ a Repub-slashed budget so they did what Repubs had no prob with up until this moment, profiling. Obvious frauds/lawbreakers/tax cheats were selected using key words. Whats the BFD?

 

[boedicca]

She was doing SUCH A WONDERFUL job that she concealed it from Congressional oversight and now is taking the 5th.

Heckuva Job Lois!

 

[Truthseeker420]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wXkI4t7nuc]Dont Talk to Police - YouTube[/ame]

 

[depotoo]

No, I didn't notice that.

What I noted was that other people found themselves made scapegoats, and therefore it's pretty sensible for Ms. Lerner not to serve herself up with one.

If you had reading comprehension skills, you would see that I pointed out that Cap Weinberger and Scooter Libby got raw deals. They weren't personally responsible for the things people were upset about. Those guys (Ollie North and Richard Armitage) got passes for some reason or another.

Personally, I don't think anyone did anything wrong in this issue, all the hyperventilating aside.

The rules for tax exemption and who gets one are very convoluted and the IRS is given way too much discretion on who deserves one or not.

And the thing was, not one of these groups were actually denied an exemption. 108 were approved, 28 were withdrawn, the rest are still pending.

that's exactly what you did. Instead of addressing this scandal on this day you went back to the old "but someone else did it too" as if that explains or excuses a goddamn thing this stupid democrat did. and all she gets for her nefarious behavior and lies is a long taxpayer paid vacation, makes me want to vomit.

Actually, those people DIDN'T do it.

Cap and Scooter testified voluntarily... and they got burned. And they didn't even do what people were upset about.

Frankly, you guys haven't convinced me that not giving teabagger groups tax exemptions is a scandal.

then I would assume you are willing to take away moveon's and media matters, progressnow and its many affiliates, New York Communities for Change, etc. tax status away as well, correct?

 

[depotoo]

personally, seeing her not willing to resign, makes me wonder why? Is she just that ignorant or is there much more behind this, in which she is not willing to become the fall guy for something orchestrated elsewhere. Her refusal, I would imagine, will have much greater implications for her, if indeed she is the sole orchestrator.

 

[Soggy in NOLA]

She's a smart woman/tough cookie. Her division was doing the best it could w/ a Repub-slashed budget so they did what Repubs had no prob with up until this moment, profiling. Obvious frauds/lawbreakers/tax cheats were selected using key words. Whats the BFD?

So, let me get this straight... the Republicans slashed the IRS budget so the IRS had no choice but to target conservative groups seeking tax exempt status while rubber stamping left wing groups' applications?

Bravo! You get today's award for pretzel logic extraordinaire!!

 

[tinydancer]

The Lerner story is getting more interesting by the day.
This women has all the hallmarks of someone who refuses to be the scapegoat. Maybe.
Her refusal to talk certainly would seem to indicate guilt, but not always. She may also be afraid to reveal what she knows. She may not want to reveal what she knows because perhaps it could damage a set of people she believes in.
Her second refusal to resign, again shows clear defiance.
Perhaps her little talk at the beginning of the hearing that waved her 5th amendment rights - was not an accident.
Perhaps. Perhaps this woman is the key to it all.

Villain no doubt about it.

Biggie right here. Lerner told "mistruths" to the House Committee four times in the past year.

And Lerner's insanity became crystal clear when she was crazy enough to have a question planted at the ABA meeting about targeting Tea Party groups and Conservative groups so she could issue an apology before the Inspector General of the Treasury Department's findings were released showing the misconduct of the IRS.

And she has a history of aggressive behaviour that has been uncovered over her tenure at the FEC and continually used her position there to target Conservatives and Christians.

 

[tinydancer]

She's a smart woman/tough cookie. Her division was doing the best it could w/ a Repub-slashed budget so they did what Repubs had no prob with up until this moment, profiling. Obvious frauds/lawbreakers/tax cheats were selected using key words. Whats the BFD?

Bullshit on the budget. The targetting of Conservative groups began in 2010. Republicans weren't in charge then were they?

 

[tinydancer]

Even Fact checker at the Washington Post gave her 4 pinocchios. Great read. Kessler really nails her.


A bushel of Pinocchios for IRS’s Lois Lerner
Posted by Glenn Kessler at 06:00 AM ET, 05/20/2013

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs...71687d2-bfdd-11e2-9b09-1638acc3942e_blog.html