Judicial Watch today released newly obtained internal IRS documents, including material revealing that Sen. John McCain’s former staff director and chief counsel on the Senate Homeland Security Permanent Subcommittee, Henry Kerner, urged top IRS officials, including then-director of exempt organizations Lois Lerner, to “audit so many that it becomes financially ruinous.” Kerner was appointed by President Trump as Special Counsel for the United States Office of Special Counsel.
The explosive exchange was contained in notes taken by IRS employees at an April 30, 2013, meeting between Kerner, Lerner, and other high-ranking IRS officials. Just ten days following the meeting, former IRS director of exempt organizations Lois Lerner admitted that the IRS had a policy of improperly and deliberately delaying applications for tax-exempt status from conservative non-profit groups.
Lerner and other IRS officials met with select top staffers from the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee in a “marathon” meeting to discuss concerns raised by both Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) that the IRS was not reining in political advocacy groups in response to the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision. Senator McCain had been the chief sponsor of the McCain-Feingold Act and called the Citizens United decision, which overturned portions of the Act, one of the “worst decisions I have ever seen.”
Judicial Watch previously reported on the 2013 meeting. Senator McCain then issued a statement decrying “false reports claiming that his office was somehow involved in IRS targeting of conservative groups.”
Judicial Watch separately uncovered that Lerner was under significant pressure from both Democrats in Congress and the Obama DOJ and FBI to prosecute and jail the groups the IRS was already improperly targeting. In discussing pressure from Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (Democrat-Rhode Island) to prosecute these “political groups,” Lerner admitted, “it is ALL about 501(c)(4) orgs and political activity.” “The Obama IRS scandal is bipartisan – McCain and Democrats who wanted to regulate political speech lost at the Supreme Court, so they sought to use the IRS to harass innocent Americans,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “The Obama IRS scandal is not over – as Judicial Watch continues to uncover smoking gun documents that raise questions about how the Obama administration weaponized the IRS, the FEC, FBI, and DOJ to target the First Amendment rights of Americans.”
I mean, I know he was a POW and a lot of folks consider him a Hero, but the more I learn about this guy, honestly, I really dislike his character.
Consider the length and depth of this scandal?
These are all documents incriminating some major players in the last administration and these charges are pretty serious.
I’m rather surprised it’s gone relatively unnoticed.
Surprised, really? This is no where near as important as crying babies in internment camps and evil President Trump who hates kids. Or that the streets are running red with blood from the mass shootings perpetrated by the NRA and Publix.
That’s right…the sooner he takes a dirt nap, the better off the country will be. I just feel sorry for the people of Arizona, as it seems that Mcstain is planning on making his wife senator after he dies…WTF!! I guess the voters have no say?
I believe there is a virtual media black-out on this story.
Although I can do a search and find s lot of information, nothing at all from the major networks.
Just because the man served his country and was capture/tortured 50 years ago doesn’t give him a blank check to be an Unamerican scum-bag later in life. Ramairthree has it right, he used up those points long ago.
“The Obama IRS scandal is bipartisan – McCain and Democrats who wanted to regulate political speech lost at the Supreme Court, so they sought to use the IRS to harass innocent Americans,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “The Obama IRS scandal is not over – as Judicial Watch continues to uncover smoking gun documents that raise questions about how the Obama administration weaponized the IRS, the FEC, FBI, and DOJ to target the First Amendment rights of Americans.”
You read something crazy like this and you might almost think for a second that there is some kinda “deep state” and that some of the conspiracy allegations could have a grain of truth behind them. You might even be tempted to question the honesty and integrity of unaccountable bureaucrats and political staffers who live in DC and only venture out to the colonies on rare occasions to ensure that the tax slaves are working as hard as they can.
Almost. And then CNN or Faux News comes back on and your brainwashing returns to its regular schedule. Goodnight.
I don’t believe that the border drama is in response to this, but I do believe this is pushing the MSM to keep giving CPR to a story that should have died Monday morning at the latest.
This is clearly a violation of both policy and I believe law. If this came out and I truly hope it does and soon, it exposes the swamp and the last administration as brutal thugs and very possibly criminals.
The idea of weaponizing the IRS to ruin the lives of your political enemies is truely and I hate to use this phrase, “Bigger than Watergate” and much easier to prove than “Russian Collusion”.
This is the perfect example of why we cannot repair a broken system, if you try, they will ruin you.
We’re screwed and both parties are participating in the fornication.
I’ll never forget the slimey bastard speaking at my Junior High School. Milking his service for future votes. He rubbed me wrong all the way back then. I tend to have a sense of when I’m around shady characters.
