Obama sat down for an interview with his favorite TV host Jon Stewart of the Daily Show this week and defended the IRS, saying Tea Party groups weren’t targeted and that the real problem with the IRS is that it doesn’t have enough money.
The Washington Times reported:
Obama defends IRS, says tea party targeting didn’t happen
President Obama defended the IRS Tuesday in an interview with “Daily Show” host Jon Stewart, saying the tea party-targeting scandal was actually Congress‘ fault for passing “a crummy law” and that the real problem is the agency doesn’t have enough money.
Mr. Obama, who has overseen a series of scandals at the IRS, the Veterans Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and now the Office of Personnel Management, was asked why government didn’t seem to be working on his watch.
But the president said he’s not to blame, using the IRS as an example of how what went wrong wasn’t his fault, and questioning whether tea party groups were ever targeted.
The IRS‘ internal auditor concluded that the agency did, in fact, target conservative and tea party groups for intrusive scrutiny, and Mr. Obama’s own Justice Department is still conducting a criminal investigation into the targeting.
Mr. Obama, though, disputed that version Tuesday, according to the pool reporter traveling with the president.
Reactions on Twitter about the IRS being underfunded were swift:
Obama says the “real” IRS scandal is that it is "poorly funded”
— Charlie Spiering (@charliespiering) July 21, 2015
That’s not a scandal; it’s a deliverance. RT @charliespiering: Obama says the “real” IRS scandal is that it is “poorly funded”
— Charles C. W. Cooke (@charlescwcooke) July 21, 2015
@charlescwcooke @charliespiering I'd like to suggest some cuts… pic.twitter.com/KS7PLGoajX
— Poo Picker (@poo_picker) July 21, 2015
(Image: Source)
