Al Mayo: Lies, and Politics. The IRS Edition

Politicians lie. Not all of them, but a lot of them. They lie. I know this will shock, and surprise many of you. As a reporter, I’ve seen my share of political lies and denials, and since most pols are skilled in the art, I admit to being hoodwinked more than once. All parties have more than a few folks who perpetuate falsehood. Pin them down and they’ll either claim, “it’s just politics” or they will use the excuse, “the other guys did it first.” In fact, the only time most of them get pinned down on anything, it’s usually because of a conviction. There’s no question someone is lying about the IRS scandal, but is it the IRS, or the career politicians? My gut tells me the truth is somewhere in the middle.

The Obama Administration claims it had no idea this type of thing was being perpetuated against so-called right wing political elements. Well, I suppose that is possible, but not very likely. On the other hand, I hear GOP and Tea Party dissidents screaming about dictatorship, coverups and political espionage. Eh–no. I lived through Watergate, and Iran-Contra. I know coverups, and so far this isn’t living up to the definition. Not yet.

I do think it’s interesting that some GOP lawmakers may have known about the IRS mess as far back as June of 2012. If you want to look in another direction, those folks could be accused of saying nothing in order to sabatoge Mitt Romney. If you knew this, why-oh-why didn’t it come to light as an election issue? A question that some in the GOP may have to answer before this is all out in the open. I also find it totally unrealistic to think no one in the Obaama White House had any inkling of this probe, or more importantly, how it began in the first place.

Here’s another flash for you. This is not the first time the IRS has found itself immersed in politics and scandal. As far back as the 1930’s, Franklin Roosevelt used the IRS against political enemies, launching investigations into the finances of publisher William Randolph Hearst, Louisiana Governor Huey Long and controversial radio priest Charles Coughlin. In the1940s and 1950s – Corruption and bribery was widespread at the IRS, resulting in hundreds of staffers being dismissed or indicted. The agency went through a major reorganization during the Truman Administration. Employees were finally put under the civil service to prevent political influence.

Kennedy used the IRS. Nixon used the IRS. Both did it illegally, or at least in a less-than-ethical manner. During the Kennedy administration, the IRS created an “Ideological Organizations Audit Project” that investigated conservative groups and challenged their tax-exempt status. The IRS started the project after Kennedy complained about right-wing groups getting tax-exempt status during a news conference. Sound familiar?

The Nixon administration created an IRS unit called the” Special Services Staff”, or SSS, to target activists and political dissidents. The White House drafted an “enemies list” of political opponents to be targeted for IRS audits, although then-IRS Commissioner Donald Alexander resisted pressure to audit Nixon’s enemies and ordered the SSS dissolved. This all either preceeded Watergate or coincided with it, so while it got attention, it didn’t fully come to light until much later.

As I wrote near the top, I suspect the truth in the current mess is somewhere in the middle. The administration is claiming innocence, and those in opposition claim this is a scandal of massive proportions. So far , it’s neither, but that won’t stop the Republicans, Democrats,AND Tea Party from crying foul, and claiming to be the REAL victim.