Former IRS Commissioner Goes Blank

by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700

Copyright May 21, 2013
All Rights Reserved.                                         

              Testifying for before the Senate Finance Committee, 43-year-old former IRS commissioner Douglas Shulman shrugged, saying he wasn’t to blame for the venerable tax-collecting agency to harass right wing 501c(4) nonprofits.  Saying he was “not personally responsible,” Shulman admitted that whatever improper took place it occurred under his watch.  Republicans have accused the IRS of intimidating conservative-leaning nonprofits involved in either attacking the White House or advancing Republican causes.  While Shulman lifted his hands in disbelief, the man that should have been dragged before the committee, 51-year-old former Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, was no where to be found.  As Treasury Secretary, Geithner was head of the Treasury Dept. before 56-year-old Jack Lew took over Feb. 28.  Since Geithner was boss, he might have some answers.

             Shulman’s feeble response sounded more like OJ Simpson than the man responsible for collecting federal taxes.  “I certainly am not personally responsible for creating a list that had inappropriate criteria on it.  What I know, with the full facts that are out, is from the inspector general’s report, which doesn’t say I’m responsible for that,” said Shulman in legally precise testimony, harking back to the kind of spinning seen when former President Bill Clinton testified under oath.  When you look at Shulman’s words, he’s blowing smoke.  Not “personally” responsible because he and his colleagues at the White House or Democratic National Committee concocted an unwritten policy to go after right-leaning groups.  Shulman knows nothing other than what’s contained in the IG’s report. Denying he’s “personally” responsible doesn’t mean he didn’t collaborate on a list.

             Tap dancing on the committee, Shulman showed he’s up to the task, unless someone on the Finance Committee can pin him down enough to exact a confession.  “With that said, this happened on my watch and I very much regret that it happened on my watch,” said Shulman, contradicting the testimony of acting IRS Commissioner Steven Miller May 15 who testified that he didn’t see anything improper about the IRS looking into abuses of 501c(4) nonprofit groups, especially those commissioned for social welfare purposes that are actually used for political purposes.  Where Shulman’s testimony shows culpability is his clever denial of “personal” responsibility, despite what he knows is a coordinated effort to target right-wing nonprofits.  There’s nothing gracious about Shulman admitting that he regrets the inappropriate conduct happened while he was in charge of the IRS.

               When Miller said that the IRS knows there are abuses of nonprofit status, he referred to more than political organizations.  Publicly traded corporations often create 501c(3) nonprofits for disguised marketing and sales, when they’re actually commissioned under the IRS code for “educational” purposes.  There’s a fine line between “selling” more drugs than getting the word out with better education about the pros-and-cons of various medications.  Admitting that the IRS acted inappropriately targeting right wing groups doesn’t get to the bottom of who in the Treasury Department or the White House ordered the policy.  Furious over IRS abuses, Sen. Max Bacus (D-Mt.) said targeting conservative groups was intolerable and his committee would take as long as necessary to find out who ordered the policy.  Denying that he was “personally” involved doesn’t get Shulman off the hook.

              Shulman’s denials ring hollow considering he was appointed by former President George W. Bush in 2008.  There’s more unanswered questions with the paper trail leading from the Treasury Department possibly to the West Wing.  When the Benghazi debacle started Sept. 11, 2012, where al-Qaeda terrorists attacked the U.S. consulate killing Amb. Chris Stevens and three other Americans, U.N. Amb. Susan Rice told five Sunday morning talk shows that that it was due to spontaneous rioting.  Like the IRS situation, the Benghazi tragedy involved carefully orchestrated talking points designed to spare the president embarrassment before the Nov. 6, 2012 election.  Like former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who testified Jan. 23 on Benghazi, Shulman knows nothing.  Asking more questions gets less-and-less answers as to who ordered IRS scrutiny of conservative nonprofits.

             When Shulman says the IG’s report doesn’t blame him for ordering harassment on 501c(4) groups, it also doesn’t rule him out or say who’s to blame.  As the investigation goes forward, it’s necessary to get the word from Shulman’s boss, former Treasury Secretary Geithner.  Now that the cat’s-out-of-the-bag, the bureaucracy passes the buck.  Shulman’s testimony gives some good insights how he’s been carefully scripted.  Only consultation with some high-priced consultants connected to the White House could give Shulman the kind of precision needed to admit nothing to the committee short of perjury.  Citing he knows everything from the IG’s report couldn’t be more disingenuous, considering he was running the IRS, raising more suspicions about direct White House involvement.  If there’s any link between the IRS and Benghazi, it involves getting the president reelected.

John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news.  He's editor of OnlineColumnist.com.and author of Dodging the Bullet and Operation Charisma.