Do new IRS revelations prove there is no Tea Party scandal?
The new head of the tax agency says the IRS targeted lefty groups seeking tax-exempt status, too
The Internal Revenue Service probably won't ever be popular, but its reputation has taken a big hit since revelations in May that several dozen conservative-sounding applicants for tax-exempt status were singled out for special scrutiny. Officials at the IRS's Cincinnati office used "Be On the Look Out" (BOLO) lists with an evolving (and devolving) list of terms, including "Tea Party," "patriot," or "9/12."
The subsequent shake-up at the IRS brought in a new commissioner, Danny Werfel, who said on Monday that the use of BOLO lists continued until at least April, that he'd formally put a stop to the spreadsheets last week — and that the breadth of the search terms was much wider than reported in a damaging inspector general's report.
Along with conservative and small-government tax-exempt applicants, IRS officials in Cincinnati also flagged groups whose applications contained words like "progressive," "occupy," "medical marijuana," and Israel. The final BOLO list from April contained the search term "Green Energy Organizations."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"House Democrats can hardly contain their delight" at the new revelations, says David Weigel at Slate. The extra scrutiny for "lefty/libertarian causes" seemingly "contradicts the theory that conservatives and only conservatives came under the laser."
Amid the delight, Democrats are a little miffed. Most of the IRS drama has taken place on Rep. Darrell Issa's (R-Calif.) House government oversight committee, but it was Democrats on the Ways and Means Committee who released the new lefty-targeting BOLO lists. Rep. Sander Levin (Mich.), the top Democrat on the committee, pointedly asked Treasury Inspector General J. Russell George why he didn't include the "progressive" groups in his bombshell report or subsequent testimony before Congress.
Salon's Alex Seitz-Wald says the documents prove that there was never anything partisan about the scrutiny:
The "whole scandal is entirely bogus," Seitz-Wald elaborates at Salon. "False. A fiction." The fact that the IRS targeted all sorts of political-sounding groups proves "it wasn't really singling out anyone."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
That's what liberals want you to think, says Eliana Johnson at National Review. But according to documents reviewed by National Review, Johnson says, "it is inaccurate to say that the applications of progressive and liberal groups were subjected to the same scrutiny as those of Tea Party groups, or even that a surprisingly broad array of criteria was applied to screen applications for tax exemption."
At the very least, the IRS's new revelations "bolstered its contention that delays experienced by Tea Party groups applying for nonprofit status were a symptom of mismanagement and not politically motivated action," say Richard Rubin and Julie Bykowicz at Bloomberg News. And more generally, it complicates "what had been seen as targeted scrutiny for small-government groups."
"The BOLO list in my mind loses this sinister nature," Jeff Trinca, a chief of staff to the IRS restructuring commission in the 1990s, tells Bloomberg. It looks like mostly "another way of creating criteria lists to try to deal with the huge volumes that come through the agency." But that doesn't mean the IRS handled the situation well. The agency didn't provide its Cincinnati staff with enough guidance, and they sort of went "crazy with these questions," Trinca adds. "The whole thing was just an absolute debacle."
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
'It may not be surprising that creative work is used without permission'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
5 simple items to help make your airplane seat more comfortable
The Week Recommends Gel cushions and inflatable travel pillows make a world of difference
By Catherine Garcia, The Week US Published
-
How safe are cruise ships in storms?
The Explainer The vessels are always prepared
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
US election: who the billionaires are backing
The Explainer More have endorsed Kamala Harris than Donald Trump, but among the 'ultra-rich' the split is more even
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
US election: where things stand with one week to go
The Explainer Harris' lead in the polls has been narrowing in Trump's favour, but her campaign remains 'cautiously optimistic'
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Is Trump okay?
Today's Big Question Former president's mental fitness and alleged cognitive decline firmly back in the spotlight after 'bizarre' town hall event
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
The life and times of Kamala Harris
The Explainer The vice-president is narrowly leading the race to become the next US president. How did she get to where she is now?
By The Week UK Published
-
Will 'weirdly civil' VP debate move dial in US election?
Today's Big Question 'Diametrically opposed' candidates showed 'a lot of commonality' on some issues, but offered competing visions for America's future and democracy
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
1 of 6 'Trump Train' drivers liable in Biden bus blockade
Speed Read Only one of the accused was found liable in the case concerning the deliberate slowing of a 2020 Biden campaign bus
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
How could J.D. Vance impact the special relationship?
Today's Big Question Trump's hawkish pick for VP said UK is the first 'truly Islamist country' with a nuclear weapon
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Biden, Trump urge calm after assassination attempt
Speed Reads A 20-year-old gunman grazed Trump's ear and fatally shot a rally attendee on Saturday
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published