IRS

Stories 121 - 140 | << Prev   Next >>

The IRS Was Stupid&mdash;but Not Partisan
The IRS Was Stupid—but
Not Partisan
OPINION
May 15, 2013 12:05 PM CDT

The IRS Was Stupid—but Not Partisan

IRS report shows agents were incompetent, but not politically motivated: Pundits

(Newser) - The inspector general's IRS report is out (read it in full at the Washington Post , if 54 pages of dry analysis and liberal use of the underline function sound like your thing), and some pundits say it's not exactly as jaw-droppingly scandalous as it was made out to...

IRS: Hey, We Targeted Lefty Groups, Too

Three of them; says groups 'of all political views' were scrutinized

(Newser) - The IRS is defending itself against the Inspector General's report on its targeting of Tea Party groups, saying they made up only a "minority" of the 471 political nonprofit groups scrutinized. And, hey, three—three!—of those 471 were Democrat-leaning groups, including one, Emerge America, that was...

Holder: I Wasn&#39;t Part of AP Case
 Holder Orders IRS Investigation 
May 14, 2013 1:42 PM CDT

Holder Orders IRS Investigation

He also said he had no involvement in the AP phone records scandal

(Newser) - Eric Holder today said he has launched a criminal investigation into the IRS scandal , and he also disavowed involvement in the AP snooping scandal . On the latter, the attorney general said he'd recused himself from the related leak investigation. In a press conference at the Justice Department today, Holder...

1/3 of House Committees Investigating White House

Congress looking into IRS scandal, Benghazi, ObamaCare ...

(Newser) - If President Obama looks even grayer by the end of summer, this line in Politico might explain it: "All together, roughly one-third of House committees are engaged in investigating some aspect of the Obama administration." That includes two heavyweight panels—Darrell Issa's Oversight and Government Reform, along...

Cue Obama&#39;s 2nd-Term Scandals
 Cue Obama's 
 2nd-Term 
 Scandals 
OPINION
May 14, 2013 10:50 AM CDT

Cue Obama's 2nd-Term Scandals

Obama needs to 'say more sooner' to prevent disaster: Dana Milbank

(Newser) - It's all begun, and it's no big surprise to Dana Milbank: "Four months into a fresh four years, President Obama is already assuming the familiar crouch of a scandal-struck second-termer," Milbank writes in the Washington Post . Yesterday saw Obama taking just one question from American media...

IRS Also Leaked Info About Conservative Groups

Targeting scandal widens

(Newser) - More trouble for the IRS: The same office that singled out conservative groups applying for tax-exempt status also leaked confidential information about conservative groups last year, ProPublica reports. How does ProPublica know? Well, because the nine pending applications were leaked to ProPublica in the first place. The investigative site had...

IRS Honchos Knew of Tea Party Targeting—Last Year

As reports conflict about how IRS handled big groups like Rove's Crossroads

(Newser) - Did the IRS lie to Congress about Tea Party groups being singled out for extra scrutiny ? The agency has admitted that acting Commissioner Steven Miller knew about the targeting by May last year, but senior Republican lawmakers say Miller didn't tell them about it, even when they contacted...

Stewart to IRS: You Proved Wingnuts Right

Host loses his cool over Tea Party targeting

(Newser) - A furious Jon Stewart gave the Obama administration a piece of his mind last night, Mediaite reports. Just as he was discussing the groundless nature of the right's Benghazi accusations , the Daily Show played a clip describing the IRS Tea Party-targeting scandal, prompting the host to explode in a...

Hey, IRS: Even the Tea Party Deserves Free Speech

ACLU execs says the scandal highlights the dangers of limiting political speech

(Newser) - The IRS' stunning admission that it singled out Tea Party groups for more aggressive tax enforcement should be a warning to all Americans to guard their free speech rights jealously, ACLU officials Michael Macleod-Ball and Gabe Rottman write for CNN . There's been a rush to regulate political speech since...

Obama Slams 'Outrageous' IRS Targeting

Alleged behavior is unacceptable, he says

(Newser) - President Obama officially responded to the widening IRS targeting scandal today, promising to hold the organization responsible if it engaged in any unacceptable behavior and saying he first learned of the accusations through reports in the media. "If in fact IRS personnel engaged in the kind of practices that...

IRS Also Targeted Anti-Govt. Groups, Scads of Others

Groups concerned with Constitution, taxes, spending, etc.

(Newser) - The IRS scandal goes beyond the Tea Party: Documents show that over the past two years while evaluating applications for tax-exempt status, officials also zeroed in on groups that criticized the government or educated Americans about the Constitution or the Bill of Rights; as well as groups that were interested...

IRS Knew Tea Party Was Being Targeted: Documents

Senior official was told in 2011

(Newser) - The scandal over the IRS targeting Tea Party groups just got more scandalous: Senior IRS officials knew the groups were being singled out for extra scrutiny as early as 2011, according to documents obtained by the AP . Lois Lerner, the head of the IRS division that oversees tax-exempt organizations, was...

IRS' Dumb Move May Keep Problem From Getting Fixed

Ezra Klein: Agency must clamp down on all political groups exploiting nonprofit status

(Newser) - The IRS made an incredibly stupid mistake in singling out Tea Party groups for scrutiny last year, but the real travesty is that the agency didn't investigate more groups—Democrat and Republican alike—in similar circumstances, writes Ezra Klein at the Washington Post . The problem here is that political...

IRS: Yeah, Sorry, We Went After Tea Party Groups

Agency says it wasn't political, but conservatives are furious

(Newser) - The IRS issued an embarrassing mea culpa today, acknowledging that employees singled out about 75 groups with "tea party" or "patriot" in their names for extra scrutiny last year, reports the AP . "That was wrong," says the IRS official in charge of tax-exempt groups. "That...

IRS Gave Out $12B in Improper Refunds Last Year

Earned Income Tax Credit is the culprit

(Newser) - The Earned Income Tax Credit is that rare IRS feature popular with politicians, economists, and especially with the low-income families it helps, notes the Hill . No wonder: Turns out, the IRS is overly generous with the credit. An audit shows that it distributed between $11.6 billion and $13.6...

Top Cities Where IRS Expects Tax Cheats

Small-business owners among top targets: study

(Newser) - A study is shedding new light on just who should most fear a federal tax audit. Small-business owners—who often deal in cash—are eyed more warily than others, says the report by the National Taxpayer Advocate, an independent office within the IRS. And location matters. According to secret data...

IRS Might Be Peeking at Emails Without Warrants

ACLU calls for a clear explanation of policy

(Newser) - It's probably not wise to talk about all your deep, dark tax-dodging secrets via email, but if you do, know that the IRS might be poking into them without a warrant. So says the ACLU, which complains that it can't get a straight answer from the agency about...

IRS: Yeah, Our $60K Star Trek Parody Was a Bad Idea

Agency spent big bucks on 'training' film for employees

(Newser) - "There is no mistaking that this video did not reflect the best stewardship of resources." So says the IRS in regard to a five-minute Star Trek parody made by employees in 2010 that cost about $60,000, reports AP . Congress got wind of it, and the agency offered...

IRS Grabs Lohan's Bank Accounts

It's time to pay up, Lindsay

(Newser) - Apparently Charlie Sheen's $100,000 was not enough: The IRS has seized Lindsay Lohan's bank accounts so that it can collect all the back taxes she owes it, TMZ reports. She owes at least $233,904 for 2009 and 2010, plus more for 2011, according to the gossip...

Despite Fed Protests, Court OKs Solyndra Bankruptcy

Government may appeal decision

(Newser) - Failed solar company Solyndra got court approval for its bankruptcy plan today—despite objections from the US government. The government had accused the plan of providing $341 million in improper tax breaks for investors , but a judge said the government didn't prove that the main goal of Solyndra's...

Stories 121 - 140 | << Prev   Next >>