IRS admits targeting conservatives for tax scrutiny in 2012 election

By Zachary A. Goldfarb and Karen Tumulty,

The Washington Post Published: May 10

The Internal Revenue Service on Friday apologized for targeting groups with “tea party” or “patriot” in their names, confirming long-standing accusations by some conservatives that their applications for tax-exempt status were being improperly delayed and scrutinized.  Lois G. Lerner, the IRS official who oversees tax-exempt groups, said the “absolutely inappropriate” actions by “front-line people” were not driven by partisan motives.

Rather, Lerner said, they were a misguided effort to come up with an efficient means of dealing with a flood of applications from organizations seeking ­tax-exempt status between 2010 and 2012.  During that period, about 75 groups were selected for extra inquiry — including burdensome questionnaires and, in some cases, improper requests for the names of their donors — simply because of the words in their names ……. One of the nation’s largest tea party groups, the Tea Party Patriots, said it rejected the IRS’s explanation and demanded the resignations of all officials involved. The group also called on President Obama to apologize for ignoring its concerns.… Lerner would not say whether any of the IRS employees involved have been disciplined. She said that policies have been put in place to prohibit this kind of screening and that so far, none of the 75 groups has been rejected for tax-exempt status.…To Read More…..