IRS "scandal" . . . R. I. P.

They tried.   They really, really tried to make a scandal out of not very much, claiming that the White House had orchestrated a special targeting of IRS handling Tea Party type groups who applied for tax exempt status.

It was not in dispute that some conservative groups' applications for this special status were given an extra level of scrutiny.   The Republicans claimed it was discriminatory, a scandal to rival Nixon's watergate, etc.

Then the notorious scourge Darrell Issa turned his oversight committee into overdrive, holding hearings, taking testimony, and then selectively releasing excerpts that favored his view, while refusing to release the full transcripts.

The ranking Democrat on the committee, Elijah Cummings, finally released some transcripts on his own -- after Issa refused his request to do so.  And guess what?

The more complete testimony from the one person who was in charge and should know, categorically said that the White House did not initiate the extra scrutiny of Tea Party groups.    And he explained what did happen, and it's completely understandable and appropriate.

Issa knew this when he selectively released excerpts from a low-level person who "thought that the White House was behind it."   He knew this when he angrily refused to release any further transcripts except "what I want you to see."  But, thanks to Cummings, we now know what happened:  One of the investigators picked one application for further scrutiny because of trigger clues that it's purpose was primarily political.   This was very appropriate;  the person was doing the job he's paid to do.

Then, the higher official testified, because it would be discriminatory to have some applications with the same triggers put under scrutiny and others not, they adopted a policy to investigate all who had those same triggers.

Issa and the Republicans were trying to make it seem comparable to cops stopping every black man driving a car.   In fact, it was more like cops stopping every car that is zig-zagging across the expressway lanes like a drunk person.   The common characteristic was not the Tea Party label but the indicators of political activity -- which is what they were trying to screen out.

End of that scandal.   Much ado about not much.   Just like Benghazi.  What should be investigated here for bias is not the IRS but the chairman of this committee, Darrell Issa.

Ralph