9:30am (ET) LIVE: House Oversight Cmte. Hears About IRS and Conservative Organizations

[Valin]

C-Span 3:

 

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee will hold a hearing today beginning at 9:30 AM ET on Targeting Americans for Their Political Beliefs. IRS and Treasury Department Officials are expected to testify at the hearing on the goings-on within the IRS related to the growing IRS Scandal involving the targeting of Conservative Groups. Lois Lerner, IRS Head of the Tax-Exempt Division is expected to testify and plead the 5th Amendment.

 

Click On Link To watch

[Valin]

Escalation: Embattled IRS Official to 'Plead the Fifth' at Hearing Today

Guy Benson

May 22, 2013

 

 

The question of legality has been a prickly one for the White House and the IRS over the last week. The acting IRS Commissioner said his agency's targeting regime was "absolutely not" illegal, before retreating to an "I'm not sure" crouch. White House spokesman Dan Pfeiffer memorably and inartfully stated that "the law is irrelevant" because the practice was wrong either way. As the debate proceeds among legal experts, one of the IRS officials at the center of the scandal is preparing to invoke her fifth amendment constitutional rights at today's House Oversight Committee hearing -- which will undoubtedly fuel the disagreement over whether the IRS broke the law in abusing its power to harass and hamstring the president's political adversaries:

 

A top IRS official in the division that reviews nonprofit groups will invoke the 5th Amendment and refuse to answer questions before a House committee investigating the agency’s improper screening of conservative nonprofit groups. Lois Lerner, the head of the exempt organizations division of the IRS, won’t answer questions about what she knew about the improper screening — or why she didn’t disclose it to Congress, according to a letter from her defense lawyer, William W. Taylor III. Lerner was scheduled to appear before the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday. “She has not committed any crime or made any misrepresentation but under the circumstances she has no choice but to take this course,” said a letter by Taylor to committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Vista).

 

Ah. Lerner's committed no crime, her lawyer insists, but she's going to decline to answer Congress' questions in order to avoid, er, incriminating herself. Just to cement her own tone-deafness, Lerner had her lawyer attempt to exempt her from today's proceedings for reasons that will garner precious little sympathy from the American people:

[Valin]

Right Scoop will also be live streaming this.

[Valin]

[Valin]

Trust But Verify!

[Valin]

Cummings warning about partisanship....That's Rich!

[clearvision]

Dem. talking about human rights as I tune in.....

[clearvision]

I see they are making Lerner sit there.

[Valin]

Dem. talking about human rights as I tune in.....

So far it's basically been Blah...Blah...Blah.

Everyone is very deeply concerned...oh and non partisan.

[Valin]

My My! And don't they all look so thrilled to be there.

[clearvision]

I see the "questioning" has not started yet. Open statements just started.

[Valin]

[Valin]

I have not done anything wrong...but I'm not going to answer any questions.

[Valin]

Go Trey!

[clearvision]

The one person there who could add something is gone.

[Valin]

Given that she has already testified, could she be found in contempt of congress?

[Pepper]

Regarding 5th

 

The only way the Fifth Amendment can be asserted as to testimony is on a question-by-question basis. Rendahl, 746 F.2d at 555, citing with approval U.S. v. Bell, 448 F.2d 40, 42 (9th Cir.'71) (Fifth Amendment challenge premature on appeal from enforcement order; appellant must present himself for questioning after enforcement and as to each question elect to raise or not to raise the defense).

 

From

http://www.lectlaw.com/def/f083.htm

[Draggingtree]

I am not a Lawyer but I don’t see how she (Lerner) can give a opening statement then invoke the fifth.

[Valin]

Regarding 5th

 

The only way the Fifth Amendment can be asserted as to testimony is on a question-by-question basis. Rendahl, 746 F.2d at 555, citing with approval U.S. v. Bell, 448 F.2d 40, 42 (9th Cir.'71) (Fifth Amendment challenge premature on appeal from enforcement order; appellant must present himself for questioning after enforcement and as to each question elect to raise or not to raise the defense).

 

From

http://www.lectlaw.com/def/f083.htm

 

They (IMO) should made her sit there and repeat her statement.

[Valin]

I am not a Lawyer but I don’t see how she (Lerner) can give a opening statement then invoke the fifth.

That was Trey Gowdy's point...I believe.

[Pepper]

 

I am not a Lawyer but I don’t see how she (Lerner) can give a opening statement then invoke the fifth.

That was Trey Gowdy's point...I believe.

 

Tucker Carlson just made that point, about how self serving her opening statement is - and then she invokes the 5th.

[Valin]

Looks like Cummings is off the reservation.

[Rheo]

Best idea so far.

 

David Burge ‏@iowahawkblog 5m

Here's one way you can fire Lois Lerner: shut down the entire IRS

[Valin]

 

 

I am not a Lawyer but I don’t see how she (Lerner) can give a opening statement then invoke the fifth.

That was Trey Gowdy's point...I believe.

 

Tucker Carlson just made that point, about how self serving her opening statement is - and then she invokes the 5th.

 

 

using the 5th...just looks bad. People will (rightly) ask what is she hiding?

[Valin]