Tuesday, December 3, 2013
From: Gary L. Bauer
FBI Stonewalling Congress?
The FBI is an honorable agency made up of dedicated men and women who serve their country well. But there is growing evidence that it is being corrupted and may now be stonewalling the congressional investigation of corruption at the IRS.
Two key House Republicans — Rep. Darrell Issa, chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, and Rep. Jim Jordan, a subcommittee chairman — are accusing the FBI of stonewalling the investigation of alleged political abuses by the Obama IRS.
When news of the IRS/Tea Party scandal first broke, Attorney General Eric Holder announced that he was launching an investigation. Many scoffed at the notion that Holder, who is also under investigation himself, would conduct a thorough review. But it was a convenient way of allowing the Obama Administration to deflect questions since government officials routinely refuse to answer questions about ongoing investigations.
That was more than six months ago. During that time, the FBI has repeatedly refused to cooperate with key congressional committees looking into these same issues. In fact, the Washington Times reports that the FBI once offered to brief members of Congress about its investigation, but that briefing was cancelled after top political appointees at the Justice Department got word of it.
Issa and Jordan have had enough. In a recent letter to FBI Director James Comey, the congressman wrote: “The department’s tactics have impeded a congressional investigation and interfered with the committee’s access to documents and information. Obstructing a congressional investigation is a crime.”
They have given Director Comey until December 16th to comply with their requests or they will begin issuing subpoenas.
Who Is William Wilkins
Congressional investigators may be getting close to the source of the IRS scandal. Representatives Issa and Jordan have also invited IRS Chief Counsel William Wilkins to return to Capitol Hill so that he can “amend” testimony he gave in early November.
In their letter to Wilkins, Issa and Jordan express concern that he answered “I don’t recall” a “staggering 80 times in full or partial response to the committee’s questions.” Issa and Jordan added that Wilkins’ testimony “suggests either a deliberate attempt to obfuscate your involvement in this matter or gross incompetence on your part.”
So who is William Wilkins? He’s one of only two Obama appointees at the IRS. And not surprisingly, there is a big connection. According to the Wall Street Journal, “Wilkins helped lead the defense of Chicago Reverend Jeremiah Wright’s United Church of Christ when the IRS investigated then Senator Barack Obama’s involvement with the church for any violations of its 501(c)(3) status.”
The Abuses Continue
Something is terribly wrong at the IRS. Tea Party groups have been unfairly targeted for extra scrutiny and harassment. So too were pro-life organizations and Christian ministries like Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. Dr. Ben Carson, who had never before had an issue with the IRS, got audited after his address at the National Prayer Breakfast made headlines.
And the abuses continue. Bill Elliott is a stage four cancer survivor. His health insurance was cancelled because of Obamacare. On November 4th, he told his story on Fox News. Guess what? He’s now being audited by the IRS.
But it doesn’t end there. According to this report, Elliott’s insurance agent claims he is being audited too!
Obama Doubles Down
Politico reports that Barack Obama and his congressional allies are launching “a coordinated campaign” today to try to resell Obamacare to the American people. Good luck. A new Rasmussen poll finds that only 16% of likely voters support it.
People are right to be skeptical. During an interview on CNBC last week, cybersecurity expert David Kennedy warned that it could take “over a year to at least address some of the critical-to-high exposures on the website itself.” Morgan Wright, another cybersecurity specialist, said, “There’s not a plan to fix this that meets the sniff test of being reasonable.”
Security aside, the website continues to produce faulty data. In a front page story today, the Washington Post reports that nearly one-third of applications processed through the Obamacare website contain errors. The Post writes:
- “The mistakes include failure to notify insurers about new customers, duplicate enrollments or cancellation notices for the same person, incorrect information about family members, and mistakes involving federal subsidies. …
- “The errors, if not corrected, mean that tens of thousands of consumers are at risk of not having coverage when the insurance goes into effect Jan. 1”
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