IRS Claims to Have Lost Over 2 Years of Lerner Emails

[Pooky 3,783]

Sarah Swinehart (202) 226-4774

IRS Claims to Have Lost Over 2 Years of Lerner Emails

Washington, Jun 13

Washington, DC Today, Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI) issued the following statement regarding the Internal Revenue Service informing the Committee that they have lost Lois Lerner emails from a period of January 2009 April 2011. Due to a supposed computer crash, the agency only has Lerner emails to and from other IRS employees during this time frame. The IRS claims it cannot produce emails written only to or from Lerner and outside agencies or groups, such as the White House, Treasury, Department of Justice, FEC, or Democrat offices.

The fact that I am just learning about this, over a year into the investigation, is completely unacceptable and now calls into question the credibility of the IRSs response to Congressional inquiries. There needs to be an immediate investigation and forensic audit by Department of Justice as well as the Inspector General.

Just a short time ago, Commissioner Koskinen promised to produce all Lerner documents. It appears now that was an empty promise. Frankly, these are the critical years of the targeting of conservative groups that could explain who knew what when, and what, if any, coordination there was between agencies. Instead, because of this loss of documents, we are conveniently left to believe that Lois Lerner acted alone. This failure of the IRS requires the White House, which promised to get to the bottom of this, to do an Administration-wide search and production of any emails to or from Lois Lerner. The Administration has repeatedly referred us back to the IRS for production of materials. It is clear that is wholly insufficient when it comes to determining the full scope of the violation of taxpayer rights.

Oversight Subcommittee Chairman Charles Boustany Jr., M.D. (R-LA) added, "In the course of the Committee's investigation, the Administration repeatedly claimed we were getting access to all relevant IRS documents. Only now - thirteen months into the investigation - the IRS reveals that key emails from the time of the targeting have been lost. And they bury that fact deep in an unrelated letter on a Friday afternoon. In that same letter, they urge Congress to end the investigations into IRS wrongdoing. This is not the transparency promised to the American people. If there is no smidgeon of corruption what is the Administration hiding?"

http://waysandmeans.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=384506

It appears that someone in government is intent on keeping the IRS story alive.

Not only is this tidbit of information released quietly on a Friday, it is sufficiently convenient, covering just the period where emails incriminating the White House would be, to look like part of a cover-up. If there was nothing to the IRS story, why does it refuse to die?

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

It appears that someone in government is intent on keeping the IRS story alive.

Not only is this tidbit of information released quietly on a Friday, it is sufficiently convenient, covering just the period where emails incriminating the White House would be, to look like part of a cover-up. If there was nothing to the IRS story, why does it refuse to die?

Because the mid-terms are not yet behind us. The GOP must keep the outrage going. It's really not hard to connect the dots.

[Pooky 3,783]

Because the mid-terms are not yet behind us. The GOP must keep the outrage going. It's really not hard to connect the dots.

Tell me how the GOP managed to fry the one IRS server that contained Lois Lerner's external emails for just the stretch of time in question and I'll believe this is just feigned outrage.

On the other hand, how did it take the IRS over a year to find out and /or disclose that these emails had been lost in a "server crash"? Someone, and it has to be on the government side, is intent on keeping this in the public eye for as long as possible, regardless of whether there is sufficient substance behind the story.

[Sousuke 1,214]

Tell me how the GOP managed to fry the one IRS server that contained Lois Lerner's external emails for just the stretch of time in question and I'll believe this is just feigned outrage.

On the other hand, how did it take the IRS over a year to find out and /or disclose that these emails had been lost in a "server crash"? Someone, and it has to be on the government side, is intent on keeping this in the public eye for as long as possible, regardless of whether there is sufficient substance behind the story.

Sometimes the biggest scandals occur from covering up smaller scandals lol.

[Pooky 3,783]

Sometimes the biggest scandals occur from covering up smaller scandals lol.

When lies get tangled up in falsehoods tripping over untruths, it can be fun watching people falling over each other trying to remember what they're supposed to be saying.

[The Nature Boy 4,224]

It appears that someone in government is intent on keeping the IRS story alive.

Not only is this tidbit of information released quietly on a Friday, it is sufficiently convenient, covering just the period where emails incriminating the White House would be, to look like part of a cover-up. If there was nothing to the IRS story, why does it refuse to die?

As a former IT guy, you can't lose 2 years worth of just one person's E-mails. damn near technically impossible unless you do it on purpose

[Pooky 3,783]

As a former IT guy, you can't lose 2 years worth of just one person's E-mails. damn near technically impossible unless you do it on purpose

You can't?

I'm shocked!

NOT

[Sousuke 1,214]

I bet the NSA has a copy somewhere.

[Pooky 3,783]

I bet the NSA has a copy somewhere.

Count on it.

As a former IT guy, you can't lose 2 years worth of just one person's E-mails. damn near technically impossible unless you do it on purpose

And just the external emails, too. Very selective.

Edited June 13, 2014 by Pooky

[lostinblue 1,989]

The “Rosemary Woods” of computer crashes..... :jest:

[lostinblue 1,989]

As a former IT guy, you can't lose 2 years worth of just one person's E-mails. damn near technically impossible unless you do it on purpose

I read they might still be using a DEC VAX E-mail server.No upgrades for the IRS They spent all their money on the IRS SWAT team stuff

[UncleBeer 244]

AP now reporting that emails of five more IRS employees under investigation have also been mysteriously lost.

Not suspicious in the least.

[Rattlehead 69]

AP now reporting that emails of five more IRS employees under investigation have also been mysteriously lost.

Not suspicious in the least.

It's all about the transparency, right?

[GandD 5,966]

As a former IT guy, you can't lose 2 years worth of just one person's E-mails. damn near technically impossible unless you do it on purpose

Yes. This is true. They would have had to lose everyone's. One mailbox doesn't just go away. And be the only enterprise level IT in the US that doesn't have some sort of disaster recovery strategy.

Edited September 5, 2014 by GandD

[lostinblue 1,989]