This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/15/us/politics/facing-trio-of-crises-white-house-dodges-questions.html
The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Justice Dept. Opens Criminal Inquiry Into I.R.S. Audits | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| WASHINGTON — Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. said on Tuesday that he had ordered the Justice Department and the F.B.I. to open an investigation into whether Internal Revenue Service officials broke any criminal laws by singling out conservative groups for special scrutiny. | WASHINGTON — Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. said on Tuesday that he had ordered the Justice Department and the F.B.I. to open an investigation into whether Internal Revenue Service officials broke any criminal laws by singling out conservative groups for special scrutiny. |
| The activities of I.R.S. officials are already the subject of an investigation by the agency’s inspector general. The results of that inquiry, which are expected in the next several days, are likely to detail how officials at the agency selected political groups for extra scrutiny about their tax status. | The activities of I.R.S. officials are already the subject of an investigation by the agency’s inspector general. The results of that inquiry, which are expected in the next several days, are likely to detail how officials at the agency selected political groups for extra scrutiny about their tax status. |
| Speaking at a news conference called on Tuesday to discuss Medicare fraud, Mr. Holder said that he had ordered a second investigation to determine whether any criminal laws may have been broken by the officials at the tax collection agency. | Speaking at a news conference called on Tuesday to discuss Medicare fraud, Mr. Holder said that he had ordered a second investigation to determine whether any criminal laws may have been broken by the officials at the tax collection agency. |
| The attorney general said there were “a variety of statutes within the I.R.S. code” that could be the basis of a criminal violation. He said officials conducting the investigation would also look at “other things in Title 18” of the United States Code. Title 18 is the overall criminal code for the federal government. | The attorney general said there were “a variety of statutes within the I.R.S. code” that could be the basis of a criminal violation. He said officials conducting the investigation would also look at “other things in Title 18” of the United States Code. Title 18 is the overall criminal code for the federal government. |
| Mr. Holder also fielded questions about the seizure of telephone records from reporters and editors at The Associated Press, which apparently came in connection with an investigation of leaks inside the executive branch. | Mr. Holder also fielded questions about the seizure of telephone records from reporters and editors at The Associated Press, which apparently came in connection with an investigation of leaks inside the executive branch. |
| Mr. Holder said that he had recused himself last year from the leak investigation and therefore had not made the decision to seek sweeping subpoenas for two months of call records for 20 telephone lines used by The A.P. and its journalists. He said he decided to turn over supervision of leak inquiries to his deputy, James M. Cole, “to make sure that this investigation was seen as independent” after F.B.I. agents interviewed him about leaks in June 2012. | Mr. Holder said that he had recused himself last year from the leak investigation and therefore had not made the decision to seek sweeping subpoenas for two months of call records for 20 telephone lines used by The A.P. and its journalists. He said he decided to turn over supervision of leak inquiries to his deputy, James M. Cole, “to make sure that this investigation was seen as independent” after F.B.I. agents interviewed him about leaks in June 2012. |
| But Mr. Holder said that the leak in question — the revelation by The A.P. of a foiled terrorist plot by Al Qaeda’s branch in Yemen a year ago — was among the two or three most serious leaks he had seen since the 1970s. “It put the American people at risk,” he said, without elaborating. | But Mr. Holder said that the leak in question — the revelation by The A.P. of a foiled terrorist plot by Al Qaeda’s branch in Yemen a year ago — was among the two or three most serious leaks he had seen since the 1970s. “It put the American people at risk,” he said, without elaborating. |
| Mr. Holder said he was confident that his subordinates had sought the subpoenas in accord with Justice Department regulations. Members of Congress and press advocates have expressed concern about the subpoenas, revealed on Monday by The A.P., as a dangerously broad incursion into the ability of the news media to operate without government scrutiny and a violation of press freedom. | Mr. Holder said he was confident that his subordinates had sought the subpoenas in accord with Justice Department regulations. Members of Congress and press advocates have expressed concern about the subpoenas, revealed on Monday by The A.P., as a dangerously broad incursion into the ability of the news media to operate without government scrutiny and a violation of press freedom. |
| Mr. Holder declined to say whether he had also recused himself from a separate investigation of unauthorized disclosures to The New York Times about American cyberattacks on Iran’s nuclear program. | Mr. Holder declined to say whether he had also recused himself from a separate investigation of unauthorized disclosures to The New York Times about American cyberattacks on Iran’s nuclear program. |
| The leak about the Yemen plot is being investigated by the United States attorney for the District of Columbia, Ronald C. Machen Jr., and the disclosures about the cyberattacks on Iran are being examined by the United States attorney for Maryland, Rod J. Rosenstein. | The leak about the Yemen plot is being investigated by the United States attorney for the District of Columbia, Ronald C. Machen Jr., and the disclosures about the cyberattacks on Iran are being examined by the United States attorney for Maryland, Rod J. Rosenstein. |
| The White House deflected questions on both controversies during its own press briefing Tuesday. | The White House deflected questions on both controversies during its own press briefing Tuesday. |
| The press secretary, Jay Carney, said he could not comment on the Justice Department’s actions amid the continuing investigation. He was similarly reticent about the I.R.S., citing the investigation by the inspector general of the agency, which he said would shed more light on what happened. I.R.S. officials have admitted singling out dozens of Tea Party-inspired groups that had applied for tax-exempt status, submitting them to detailed questioning. | |
| On Monday, President Obama said he would not tolerate such behavior by the I.R.S. and promised to “make sure that we find out exactly what happened on this.” | On Monday, President Obama said he would not tolerate such behavior by the I.R.S. and promised to “make sure that we find out exactly what happened on this.” |
| The raft of allegations, on top of a recurring dispute over the White House’s handling of the deadly attack on the American diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, has put Mr. Obama on the defensive more so than at any other time in his presidency, threatening to engulf his domestic agenda. | The raft of allegations, on top of a recurring dispute over the White House’s handling of the deadly attack on the American diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, has put Mr. Obama on the defensive more so than at any other time in his presidency, threatening to engulf his domestic agenda. |
| At the daily news briefing, Mr. Carney manifested the difficult spot in which the White House finds itself, dodging and weaving under tough questioning over the leak investigation, the I.R.S. case and Benghazi. | At the daily news briefing, Mr. Carney manifested the difficult spot in which the White House finds itself, dodging and weaving under tough questioning over the leak investigation, the I.R.S. case and Benghazi. |
Mark Landler contributed reporting. | Mark Landler contributed reporting. |