Rob Portman says he wants to know how much supervision a Cincinnati office of the IRS was under when it closely scrutinized Tea Party organizations seeking nonprofit status.
He pointed to a letter that he and other Senate Republicans sent last year to the IRS bringing up some conservative groups’ concerns. The IRS responded that the agency was following protocol. Portman says he wasn’t satisfied with that answer, nor is he satisfied with the president’s response since the controversy became public.
PORTMAN: “This is deeply troubling to me. It’s overt, it’s harassment of groups because of their political beliefs…and I think it erodes trust in government that’s already weak.”
President Obama has said that he didn’t know about IRS targeting. A review by the Treasury Department detailing the targeting says the decision to closely examine conservative groups doesn’t appear to have been influenced by people or agencies outside the IRS. Portman says he will bring up more questions in an upcoming finance committee hearing.
