The FBI is not planning to file criminal charges involving the
Internal Revenue Service's extra scrutiny of the Tea Party and other
conservative groups, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing
law enforcement officials.
The newspaper quoted officials as saying that investigators probing
the IRS actions, which unleashed a political furor in Washington, did
not uncover the type of political bias or "enemy hunting" that would
constitute a criminal violation. The evidence showed a mismanaged agency
enforcing rules it did not understand on applications for tax
exemptions, the Journal reported.
The case is still under investigation, but criminal charges were
unlikely unless unexpected evidence emerged, officials familiar with the
probe told the paper.
A Justice Department spokesman declined to comment when queried by Reuters.
If there are no criminal charges as expected, the FBI is likely to see a
backlash from already skeptical conservative groups which had raised
the idea that the administration would not police itself.
House Oversight and Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa last week
questioned whether a prosecutor handling the case for the Justice
Department could remain impartial when he donated to the Obama campaign.
And just last week,
The Washington Times reported that some conservative groups were only
just being contacted by the IRS, raising the question of just how
thorough an investigation the FBI conducted.
Cleta Mitchell, another attorney representing some of the targeted
groups, said last week her clients have not heard from investigators.
"Normally, don't you first interview the victims?" Mitchell said. "I
mean, I've watched enough cop shows over the years. You interview the
victims. You don't interview the perp."
FBI Director James Comey told reporters last week when asked about the
IRS probe, "It's an investigation that we're still working, and that's
an important one for us." He declined to comment on whether the FBI
believed a crime had been committed.
In May, a senior IRS executive made an unexpected public apology at a
legal conference for what she described as improper scrutiny by the
agency of conservative political groups.
The apology set off weeks of investigation and controversy,
culminating in findings that Tea Party-linked political groups applying
for tax-exempt status had been subjected to extra review and delay by
employees at an IRS Cincinnati field office.
Republican lawmakers attacked President Barack Obama's administration over the issue, accusing the agency of political bias.
Obama asked then-acting IRS Commissioner Steven Miller to resign in
the days after the disclosure, and the FBI opened an investigation.
Read Latest Breaking News from Newsmax.com http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/fbi-IRS-tea-party/2014/01/13/id/546869#ixzz2qQSA1uvV
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