Dems Now Targeting the Inspector General Who Spoke Out Against IRS Targeting of Conservatives
Emily Hulsey
On February 9, 2014
http://IJReview.com Ever since Russell George, the Treasury inspector general, filed a report confirming that the IRS targeted conservative groups last year, congressional Democrats have maintained that it was “fundamentally flawed.”
Now, in response to a separate meeting that George held with Republican staff last month, two representatives have filed a 22-page ethics complaint against him. From The Hill:
Rep. Elijah Cummings (Md.), the top Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, and Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) are sharply criticizing George for agreeing to brief GOP staff at a late January meeting on the Affordable Care Act without Democrats in attendance.
In their complaint, Connolly and Cartwright question the integrity of George’s inquiry into the IRS targeting from the start of his inquiry.
They say the inspector general – a former GOP staffer at House Oversight and George W. Bush appointee – cut Democrats out of the conversation after Issa and Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) requested that the watchdog look into the treatment of Tea Party groups.
The lawmakers said that George’s Republicans-only Affordable Care Act briefing is a sign that he is “tainted” and that last year’s report on IRS targeting could lack ”independence, ethics, competence, and quality control.”
“If you want to connect the dots, a reasonable observer could be expected to conclude that he colluded with Issa’s staff to limit his report and the path of his investigation,” Connolly told The Hill concerning George.
George is a former Republican staff member at House Oversight and was appointed to his current position by President George W. Bush. His office has stated that that he received Connolly’s and Cummings’s complaint and is currently reviewing it.
The complaint comes as Republicans are showing a renewed interest in the IRS targeting controversy. However, Connolly stated that his timing has nothing to do with that, and that he first drafted the complaint last year.
http://www.ijreview.com/2014/02/113929-dems-now-targeting-inspector-general-spoke-irs-targeting-conservatives/
