The Obama administration’s Treasury Department and former IRS official Lois Lerner conspired to draft new 501(c)(4) regulations to restrict the activity of conservative groups in a way that would not be disclosed publicly, according to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
The Treasury Department and Lerner started devising the new rules “off-plan,” meaning that their plans would not be published on the public schedule. They planned the new rules in 2012, while the IRS targeting of conservative groups was in full swing, and not after the scandal broke in order to clarify regulations as the administration has suggested.
The rules place would place much more stringent controls on what would be considered political activity by the IRS, effectively limiting the standard practices of a wide array of non-profit groups.
“Don’t know who in your organizations is keeping tabs on c4s, but since we mentioned potentially
addressing them (off -plan) in 2013, I’ve got my radar up and this seemed interesting…,” Treasury
official Ruth Madrigal wrote in a June 14, 2012 email to Lerner and others obtained by Ways and
Means and provided to The Daily Caller.
The rules were “drafted in a manner, in my view, to shut down tea party groups” Rep.
Camp said earlier this week.
Yet Obama says there was no corruption whatsoever:
OBAMA: Bill, when you look at the stuff, there have been multiple hearings on it. What happened here was that you've got a 501(c)4 law people think is confusing. The folks did not know how to implement because it basically says --
O'REILLY: So you're saying there was no corruption there at all.
OBAMA: That's not what I'm saying.
O'REILLY: I want to know what you're saying. You're the leader of the country.
OBAMA: Absolutely.
O'REILLY: You're saying no corruption, none?
OBAMA: There was some bone-headed decisions.
O'REILLY: Bone-headed decisions. But no mass corruption?
OBAMA: Not even mass corruption. Not even a smidgeon of corruption.
~ RealClearPolitics
Even before the emails were brought to light, there was evidence of scandal. It's horrible that Obama would outright lie.
~Daily Caller, excerpts
Turns out that, as the Daily Caller reports (among other media outlets) that at least 292 conservative groups were subjected to unfair targeting by the IRS versus merely six liberal groups, back in 2010 and 2012.
Yet Obama says there was no corruption whatsoever:
OBAMA: Bill, when you look at the stuff, there have been multiple hearings on it. What happened here was that you've got a 501(c)4 law people think is confusing. The folks did not know how to implement because it basically says --
O'REILLY: So you're saying there was no corruption there at all.
OBAMA: That's not what I'm saying.
O'REILLY: I want to know what you're saying. You're the leader of the country.
OBAMA: Absolutely.
O'REILLY: You're saying no corruption, none?
OBAMA: There was some bone-headed decisions.
O'REILLY: Bone-headed decisions. But no mass corruption?
OBAMA: Not even mass corruption. Not even a smidgeon of corruption.
~ RealClearPolitics
Even before the emails were brought to light, there was evidence of scandal. It's horrible that Obama would outright lie.
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