Anyone paying attention to the Internal Revenue Service scandal has been
waiting for the next smidgen to drop. Well, two more hit pretty hard
this week. At the president’s next encounter with the media, I will
scream collusion if no one asks him for his exact definition of a
“smidgen,” and if he thinks he has seen a smidgen of corruption yet. At
this point, only the most gullible or culpable can continue to claim
there is no compelling evidence in this case. Given the delays, lies and
stonewalling, there is no viable argument against a special prosecutor.
In a stunning revelation this week, it was disclosed that former IRS official Lois Lerner told colleagues,
“we need to be cautious about what we say in emails” and then proceeded
to ask the IRS IT department, in an e-mail, “if [instant messaging]
conversations were also searchable.” When she was told they were not,
she e-mailed back, “Perfect.” This is a smoking gun e-mail in that it
makes plain she had a cover-up in mind. There is no other plausible
explanation.
Who knows how many of her colleagues and allies are breathing a sigh of
relief upon learning that their e-mails to Lerner were destroyed and
their instant messages not recorded? I think Lerner must have a sizable
silent cheering section in Washington; people who are rooting for her to
hang tough in pleading the Fifth and hoping that she does not go wobbly
on them. I’ll bet her government retirement check is one check that
never gets lost in the mail or delayed. (Continues)
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