Politics

Republicans recall Lois Lerner to testify on IRS targeting

Alex Pappas Political Reporter
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Republicans on Capitol Hill are not giving up on getting testimony out of Lois Lerner, the disgraced IRS official at the center of last year’s scandal over the agency’s targeting of conservative groups for special review.

In a letter to Lerner’s attorney on Tuesday, House Oversight Committee Chair Darrell Issa said he is recalling her to testify on March 5 on her role in the scandal.

Last May, Lerner — the director of the tax exempt and government entities division of the IRS — appeared before the committee for its hearing, “The IRS: Targeting Americans for Their Political Beliefs.” But she gave only an opening statement before invoking the Fifth Amendment.

“The subpoena you accepted on Ms. Lerner’s behalf remains in effect,” Issa wrote in the letter. “In light of this fact, and because the committee explicitly rejected her Fifth Amendment privilege claim, I expect her to provide answers when the hearing reconvenes on March 5.”

Issa wrote that Lerner is “is uniquely positioned to provide testimony that will help the committee better understand how and why the IRS targeted these groups.”

“Ms. Lerner’s testimony remains critical to the Committee’s investigation,” Issa wrote. “Documents and testimony obtained by the Committee show that she played a significant role in scrutinizing applications for tax exempt status from conservative organizations.”

Read the full letter.

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