IRS claims it has LOST two years' worth of emails from former official Lerner

[Wilikon]

[noviapriani]

Since it's obvious that this is some sort of coverup that would require two years of emails needed for the investigation to be wiped out at multiple levels, why do you think such a thing would be done?  I'm not saying it goes straight to the president, but it would stand to reason that it goes pretty high up the food chain, don't you think?  Otherwise, how and why would it be done?

[sana8410]

Since it's obvious that this is some sort of coverup that would require two years of emails needed for the investigation to be wiped out at multiple levels, why do you think such a thing would be done?  I'm not saying it goes straight to the president, but it would stand to reason that it goes pretty high up the food chain, don't you think?  Otherwise, how and why would it be done?

There is no evidence of a cover-up at this point, though that may later be determined. So assigning blame to an unproven charge is, may i suggest, not very honest.

[noviapriani]

Since it's obvious that this is some sort of coverup that would require two years of emails needed for the investigation to be wiped out at multiple levels, why do you think such a thing would be done?  I'm not saying it goes straight to the president, but it would stand to reason that it goes pretty high up the food chain, don't you think?  Otherwise, how and why would it be done?

There is no evidence of a cover-up at this point, though that may later be determined. So assigning blame to an unproven charge is, may i suggest, not very honest.

As I said, this isn't something that could be "lost" unintentionally.  Do you think government computer networks are like your home PC where you might accidentally throw something in the little trash bin?

[sana8410]

Since it's obvious that this is some sort of coverup that would require two years of emails needed for the investigation to be wiped out at multiple levels, why do you think such a thing would be done?  I'm not saying it goes straight to the president, but it would stand to reason that it goes pretty high up the food chain, don't you think?  Otherwise, how and why would it be done?

There is no evidence of a cover-up at this point, though that may later be determined. So assigning blame to an unproven charge is, may i suggest, not very honest.

As I said, this isn't something that could be "lost" unintentionally.  Do you think government computer networks are like your home PC where you might accidentally throw something in the little trash bin?

We know the email are missing. We find that difficult to appreciate. We investigate. We learn the results. Then we draw conclusions.
You seem to prefer we know the emails are missing...conspiracy!

[zolace]

Since it's obvious that this is some sort of coverup that would require two years of emails needed for the investigation to be wiped out at multiple levels, why do you think such a thing would be done?  I'm not saying it goes straight to the president, but it would stand to reason that it goes pretty high up the food chain, don't you think?  Otherwise, how and why would it be done?

There is no evidence of a cover-up at this point, though that may later be determined. So assigning blame to an unproven charge is, may i suggest, not very honest.

As I said, this isn't something that could be "lost" unintentionally.  Do you think government computer networks are like your home PC where you might accidentally throw something in the little trash bin?

We know the email are missing. We find that difficult to appreciate. We investigate. We learn the results. Then we draw conclusions.
You seem to prefer we know the emails are missing...conspiracy!

Who investigates?  The people who conveniently lost the emails?  The people who investigate themselves and find themselves innocent?
Even you have got to know there is no way these emails can be lost, and even you have to know how convenient it is for the salient emails to suddenly become unavailable when the subpoena arrives, after having been promised if subpoenaed.  And even you have to know there wouldn't be a coverup if one wasn't needed to protect this administration.

[Wilikon]

"Not a smidgen of corruption….."


U.S. Archivist: IRS "Did Not Follow The Law" On Lerner Emails



In testimony before the House Oversight Committee, United States Archivist David Ferriero was asked directly if the Internal Revenue Service disobeyed the law by failing to archive electronic communications and destroying the evidence of those communications. Ferriero conceded that the IRS did not follow the Federal Records Act.

On Tuesday, Rep. Tim Walberg (R-MI) asked Ferriero if the IRS had reported the loss of two years’ of former executive Lois Lerner’s emails prior to disclosing that this month.

“No,” Ferriero replied.

When asked if the IRS violated the Federal Records Act, Ferriero said that the law requires every federal agency to notify the Archives if they determine they have lost records. He did, however, refuse to say whether the agency broke the law because he was not an attorney.

“If they didn’t follow [the Federal Records Act], can we safely assume they broke the law?” Walberg asked.

“They did not follow the law,” Ferriero replied.

http://youtu.be/8QtPqYtDjNs

[Wilikon]

IRS Admits Guilt in Illegal Release of Conservative Group’s Tax Information


The IRS has agreed to pay $50,000 in damages to the National Organization for Marriage (NOM) for unlawfully releasing its private information to a gay rights group that is a political rival, the Daily Signal has learned.

NOM expressed relief at the settlement agreement.

“Congress made the disclosure of confidential tax return information a serious matter for a reason,” NOM chairman John D. Eastman told The Daily Signal. “We’re delighted that the IRS has now been held accountable for the illegal disclosure of our list of major donors from our tax return.”

http://freebeacon.com/issues/irs-admits-guilt-in-illegal-release-of-conservative-groups-tax-information/


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
IRS uses tax payer's money, thus admitting guilt to pay their victim. No one goes to jail. Amazing.

[Slab Squathrust]

At first I thought this was a partisan hack job, but the more I hear about it, I honestly wonder if they Republicans might be on to something.  It is entirely disturbing to me that the agency that is capable of wrecking your financial life if you do not save proper documentation for something like 7 years relies on a single hard drive to store important communications.  Whether this is pure incompetence of malfeasance, it reeks either way. 

[Wilikon]

At first I thought this was a partisan hack job, but the more I hear about it, I honestly wonder if they Republicans might be on to something.  It is entirely disturbing to me that the agency that is capable of wrecking your financial life if you do not save proper documentation for something like 7 years relies on a single hard drive to store important communications.  Whether this is pure incompetence of malfeasance, it reeks either way. 

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=652323.msg7455251#msg7455251

At first they were using an offsite back up system since 2005, Sonasoft. Then out of bad strange luck coincidence what difference does that make I did not have sex with that woman you can keep you plan. Period!... They have canceled their back up contract too, a few weeks around the same time those back up were needed...

  ...Murphy's law I guess.... 

[Spendulus]

Since it's obvious that this is some sort of coverup that would require two years of emails needed for the investigation to be wiped out at multiple levels, why do you think such a thing would be done?  I'm not saying it goes straight to the president, but it would stand to reason that it goes pretty high up the food chain, don't you think?  Otherwise, how and why would it be done?

There is no evidence of a cover-up at this point, though that may later be determined. So assigning blame to an unproven charge is, may i suggest, not very honest.

As I said, this isn't something that could be "lost" unintentionally.  Do you think government computer networks are like your home PC where you might accidentally throw something in the little trash bin?

We know the email are missing. We find that difficult to appreciate. We investigate. We learn the results. Then we draw conclusions.
You seem to prefer we know the emails are missing...conspiracy!

Ah...I'm afraid you have it backwards.  There WAS a conspiracy.  There WAS a coverup.  The committee is investigating it.  Evidence was subpoenaed concerning the conspiracy.  The exact reasons for the coverup are not known.

The "lost" emails would simply have explained who was in it, and when.

Personality I think it's about testing the limits of capability of their new American Fascist State, where the Attorney General looks the other way on everything his administration does wrong, and the media are silent when needed.

The actual limits of this new concept have not yet been found, of course.  We don't really know where or when people will put their feet down.  Or how.

[Cicero2.0]

Since it's obvious that this is some sort of coverup that would require two years of emails needed for the investigation to be wiped out at multiple levels, why do you think such a thing would be done?  I'm not saying it goes straight to the president, but it would stand to reason that it goes pretty high up the food chain, don't you think?  Otherwise, how and why would it be done?

There is no evidence of a cover-up at this point, though that may later be determined. So assigning blame to an unproven charge is, may i suggest, not very honest.

As I said, this isn't something that could be "lost" unintentionally.  Do you think government computer networks are like your home PC where you might accidentally throw something in the little trash bin?

We know the email are missing. We find that difficult to appreciate. We investigate. We learn the results. Then we draw conclusions.
You seem to prefer we know the emails are missing...conspiracy!

Ah...I'm afraid you have it backwards.  There WAS a conspiracy.  There WAS a coverup.  The committee is investigating it.  Evidence was subpoenaed concerning the conspiracy.  The exact reasons for the coverup are not known.

The "lost" emails would simply have explained who was in it, and when.

Personality I think it's about testing the limits of capability of their new American Fascist State, where the Attorney General looks the other way on everything his administration does wrong, and the media are silent when needed.

The actual limits of this new concept have not yet been found, of course.  We don't really know where or when people will put their feet down.  Or how.

This administration lost the benefit of the doubt a long time ago. Time for congress to man up and start squeezing the little guys to tell them what the big guys ordered them to do. I suspect this scandal is going to get wider than tea party groups.

[Spendulus]

Since it's obvious that this is some sort of coverup that would require two years of emails needed for the investigation to be wiped out at multiple levels, why do you think such a thing would be done?  I'm not saying it goes straight to the president, but it would stand to reason that it goes pretty high up the food chain, don't you think?  Otherwise, how and why would it be done?

There is no evidence of a cover-up at this point, though that may later be determined. So assigning blame to an unproven charge is, may i suggest, not very honest.

As I said, this isn't something that could be "lost" unintentionally.  Do you think government computer networks are like your home PC where you might accidentally throw something in the little trash bin?

We know the email are missing. We find that difficult to appreciate. We investigate. We learn the results. Then we draw conclusions.
You seem to prefer we know the emails are missing...conspiracy!

Ah...I'm afraid you have it backwards.  There WAS a conspiracy.  There WAS a coverup.  The committee is investigating it.  Evidence was subpoenaed concerning the conspiracy.  The exact reasons for the coverup are not known.

The "lost" emails would simply have explained who was in it, and when.

Personality I think it's about testing the limits of capability of their new American Fascist State, where the Attorney General looks the other way on everything his administration does wrong, and the media are silent when needed.

The actual limits of this new concept have not yet been found, of course.  We don't really know where or when people will put their feet down.  Or how.

This administration lost the benefit of the doubt a long time ago. Time for congress to man up and start squeezing the little guys to tell them what the big guys ordered them to do. I suspect this scandal is going to get wider than tea party groups.

Maybe.  Then again, maybe they will double down and expand the use of the same tactics in the 2014 November election cycle.    And maybe the people won't care. 

Then again, maybe they will.  I'm seeing a lot of disgust toward the administration from the same people that supported him years ago.  I agree, the time for Mr. Nice Guy games is over.  Those running on opposition tickets to Democrats this November need to be honest and call this stuff out like it is.

[Cicero2.0]

Since it's obvious that this is some sort of coverup that would require two years of emails needed for the investigation to be wiped out at multiple levels, why do you think such a thing would be done?  I'm not saying it goes straight to the president, but it would stand to reason that it goes pretty high up the food chain, don't you think?  Otherwise, how and why would it be done?

There is no evidence of a cover-up at this point, though that may later be determined. So assigning blame to an unproven charge is, may i suggest, not very honest.

As I said, this isn't something that could be "lost" unintentionally.  Do you think government computer networks are like your home PC where you might accidentally throw something in the little trash bin?

We know the email are missing. We find that difficult to appreciate. We investigate. We learn the results. Then we draw conclusions.
You seem to prefer we know the emails are missing...conspiracy!

Ah...I'm afraid you have it backwards.  There WAS a conspiracy.  There WAS a coverup.  The committee is investigating it.  Evidence was subpoenaed concerning the conspiracy.  The exact reasons for the coverup are not known.

The "lost" emails would simply have explained who was in it, and when.

Personality I think it's about testing the limits of capability of their new American Fascist State, where the Attorney General looks the other way on everything his administration does wrong, and the media are silent when needed.

The actual limits of this new concept have not yet been found, of course.  We don't really know where or when people will put their feet down.  Or how.

This administration lost the benefit of the doubt a long time ago. Time for congress to man up and start squeezing the little guys to tell them what the big guys ordered them to do. I suspect this scandal is going to get wider than tea party groups.

Maybe.  Then again, maybe they will double down and expand the use of the same tactics in the 2014 November election cycle.    And maybe the people won't care. 

Then again, maybe they will.  I'm seeing a lot of disgust toward the administration from the same people that supported him years ago.  I agree, the time for Mr. Nice Guy games is over.  Those running on opposition tickets to Democrats this November need to be honest and call this stuff out like it is.

People are watching now. Any hint of such activity would hopefully be immediately called out. If I recall correctly Nixon's 2nd article of impeachment was for just this kind of thing.

[Wilikon]

Since it's obvious that this is some sort of coverup that would require two years of emails needed for the investigation to be wiped out at multiple levels, why do you think such a thing would be done?  I'm not saying it goes straight to the president, but it would stand to reason that it goes pretty high up the food chain, don't you think?  Otherwise, how and why would it be done?

There is no evidence of a cover-up at this point, though that may later be determined. So assigning blame to an unproven charge is, may i suggest, not very honest.

As I said, this isn't something that could be "lost" unintentionally.  Do you think government computer networks are like your home PC where you might accidentally throw something in the little trash bin?

We know the email are missing. We find that difficult to appreciate. We investigate. We learn the results. Then we draw conclusions.
You seem to prefer we know the emails are missing...conspiracy!

Ah...I'm afraid you have it backwards.  There WAS a conspiracy.  There WAS a coverup.  The committee is investigating it.  Evidence was subpoenaed concerning the conspiracy.  The exact reasons for the coverup are not known.

The "lost" emails would simply have explained who was in it, and when.

Personality I think it's about testing the limits of capability of their new American Fascist State, where the Attorney General looks the other way on everything his administration does wrong, and the media are silent when needed.

The actual limits of this new concept have not yet been found, of course.  We don't really know where or when people will put their feet down.  Or how.

This administration lost the benefit of the doubt a long time ago. Time for congress to man up and start squeezing the little guys to tell them what the big guys ordered them to do. I suspect this scandal is going to get wider than tea party groups.

Maybe.  Then again, maybe they will double down and expand the use of the same tactics in the 2014 November election cycle.    And maybe the people won't care. 

Then again, maybe they will.  I'm seeing a lot of disgust toward the administration from the same people that supported him years ago.  I agree, the time for Mr. Nice Guy games is over.  Those running on opposition tickets to Democrats this November need to be honest and call this stuff out like it is.

People are watching now. Any hint of such activity would hopefully be immediately called out. If I recall correctly Nixon's 2nd article of impeachment was for just this kind of thing.

Under Nixon professional political hacks went after each other.
What we are witnessing is the all powerful IRS breaking the law, then going after american citizens.

 

[DrG]

I think this is the final litmus test of what Americans are willing to tolerate.  The news/MSM can only handle so much backlash in this digital age.  I recognize 50% of the populace couldn't care less what happens as long as it doesn't interrupt their GTA V game, but the other 50% regardless of political affiliation has to agree that having multiple layers of government flat our lie to the American public when they've been caught with their hands in the cookie jar is grounds to revolt/impeachment/a bitch slap.

All we need is an IT guy to do the napkin math to show the chances of that much date being "lost" on the many platforms is as likely as a private key is to be brute forced.

...gets off soapbox to go play GTA V (nah, never played any of the GTA games).

[zolace]

My, what an astonishing coincidence.

A growing number of computer professionals are stepping forward to say that none of this makes sense. Norman Cillo, a former program manager at Microsoft, toldThe Blaze: “I don’t know of any e-mail administrator [who] doesn’t have at least three ways of getting that mail back. It’s either on the disks or it’s on a TAPE backup someplace on an archive server.” Bruce Webster, an IT expert with 30 years of experience consulting with dozens of private companies, seconds this opinion: “It would take a catastrophic mechanical failure for Lerner’s drive to suffer actual physical damage, but in any case, the FBI should be able to recover something. And the FBI and the Justice Department know it.”

In March of this year, John Koskinen, the new IRS commissioner, testified before Congress that all the e-mails of IRS employees are “stored in servers.” The agency’s own manual specifies that it “provides for backup and recovery of records to protect against information loss or corruption.” The reason is simple. It is well known in legal and IT circles that failure to preserve e-mails can lead to a court ruling of “spoliation of evidence.” That means a judge or jury is then instructed to treat deletions as if they were deliberate destruction of incriminating evidence.

Why is the loss of the Lerner e-mails particularly important? Last year’s report by the IRS inspector general set out a timeline of the IRS’s targeting of conservative groups. A full 16 of the 26 non-redacted events in the inspector general’s timeline took place during the period for which all of Lerner’s e-mails were “lost,” and these 16 instances refer to “e-mail” as the source for information on that event. As tax expert Alan Joel points out, much of the context about how the IRS scandal developed and who may have known about it is now “lost” in the black hole the Lerner e-mails are supposed to have been sucked into.

http://www.nationalreview.com/article/380444/dog-ate-my-e-mails-two-years-john-fund

[sana8410]

AHA! Proof that Obama did it....absolute proof...the emails are missing, Obama is black...he did it.
Jesus, look , anyone can stipulate that the lost emails smell bad and seem unbelievable...that takes three seconds.
But after that it takes a person with reasoning skills to grasp that an investigation will take place and if the IT experts are right, then the emails will be found somewhere in the system. Or, they will be located by those who sent or received them...remember, each e-mail is at two locations.

[Bitsaurus]

I want to see 1, just 1 of the big 3 CBS NBC ABC make this the main story.  Sure the world is going to hell in Iraq but the US government just declared war on its citizens (economic war).

[Rigon]

AHA! Proof that Obama did it....absolute proof...the emails are missing, Obama is black...he did it.
Jesus, look , anyone can stipulate that the lost emails smell bad and seem unbelievable...that takes three seconds.
But after that it takes a person with reasoning skills to grasp that an investigation will take place and if the IT experts are right, then the emails will be found somewhere in the system. Or, they will be located by those who sent or received them...remember, each e-mail is at two locations.

And then when you will realize that the IRS did not tell the investigation that due to an error they would have to go the extra mile to get the emails and therefore would be delayed in handing them over. And for those of us who live in our big kid clothes as rational and sane adults, we didn't need to run thru your scenario to realize the statement from the IRS didn't say they would merely be delayed in handing them over but that the emails were lost, gone, nonexistent and that line is nothing but bull. And that's because adults don't need to run the scenario thru their brain grasping for reasons to defend team obama.