,,iii #aacth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 ,,res4 #dhg ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,june #bf1 #bjad ,mr4 ,cruz submitted the following resolution2 which was referred to the ,committee on the ,judiciary ,,resolution ,expressing the sense of the ,senate that ,attorney ,general ,eric ,h4 ,holder1 ,jr4 should appoint a special counsel or prosecutor to investigate the targeting of conservative nonprofit groups by the ,internal ,revenue ,service4 ,whereas1 in ,february #bjaj1 the ,internal ,revenue ,service 7,,irs7 began targeting conservative nonprofit groups for extra scrutiny in connection with applications for tax-exempt status2 ,whereas1 on ,may #ad1 #bjac1 the ,treasury ,inspector ,general for ,tax ,administration 7,,tigta7 issued an audit report entitled1 ,inappropriate ,criteria ,were ,used to ,identify ,tax-,exempt ,applications for ,review2 ,whereas the ,,tigta audit report found that from #bjaj until #bjab1 the ,,irs systematically subjected tax-exempt applicants to extra scrutiny based on inappropriate criteria1 including use of the phrases ,tea ,party1 ,patriots1 and #i_/ab2 ,whereas the ,,tigta audit report found that the groups selected for extra scrutiny based on inappropriate criteria were subjected without cause to delays lasting years2 ,whereas the ,,tigta audit report found that the groups selected for extra scrutiny based on inappropriate criteria were subjected to unreasonable and burdensome information requests1 including requests for information about donors and political beliefs2 ,whereas the ,exempt ,organizations ,division within the ,tax-,exempt and ,government ,entities ,division of the ,,irs has jurisdiction over the processing and determination of tax-exempt applications2 ,whereas1 on ,september #ae1 #bjaj1 ,lois ,g4 ,lerner1 former ,director of the ,exempt ,organizations ,division1 initiated a project to examine political activity of organizations described in section #eja7;c77#d7 of the ,internal ,revenue ,code of #aihf1 writing to her colleagues1 we need to be cautious so it isn't a per se political project2 ,whereas1 on ,february #a1 #bjaa1 ,lois ,lerner wrote that the ,tea ,party matter was very dangerous and this could be the vehicle to go to court on the issue of whether ,citizen's sic ,united overturning the ban on corporate spending applies to tax exempt rules2 ,whereas ,lois ,lerner ordered the ,tea ,party tax-exempt applications to proceed through a multi-tier review involving her senior technical advisor and the ,,irs ,office of ,chief ,counsel2 ,whereas ,carter ,hull1 an ,,irs lawyer and a #dh-year veteran of the ,united ,states ,government1 testified that the multi-tier review was unprecedented in his experience2 ,whereas1 on ,june #a1 #bjaa1 ,holly ,paz1 ,director of ,rulings and ,agreements within the ,exempt ,organizations ,division1 requested the tax-exempt application filed by ,crossroads ,grassroots ,policy ,strategies for review by ,lois ,lerner's senior technical advisor2 ,whereas1 on ,march #bb1 #bjab1 ,commissioner of ,internal ,revenue ,douglas ,shulman was specifically asked about the targeting of ,tea ,party groups applying for tax-exempt status during a hearing before the ,committee on ,ways and ,means of the ,house of ,representatives1 to which he replied1 ,i can give you assurances ''' there is absolutely no targeting2 ,whereas1 on ,april #bf1 #bjab1 ,lois ,lerner informed the ,committee on ,oversight and ,government ,reform of the ,house of ,representatives that information requests were done in the ordinary course of the application process2 ,whereas prior to the ,november #bjab election1 the ,,irs provided #ca applications for tax-exempt status to the investigative website ,pro,publica1 all of which were from conservative groups and #i of which had not yet been approved by the ,,irs1 in spite of a prohibition under ,federal law against public disclosure of application materials until after the application has been approved2 ,whereas the ,,irs determined1 by way of informal1 internal review1 that #ge percent of the applications for designation as an organization described in section #eja7;c77#d7 of the ,internal ,revenue ,code of #aihf that were set aside for further review were filed by conservative-oriented organizations2 ,whereas1 on ,january #bd1 #bjac1 ,lois ,lerner wrote1 in an e-mail to colleagues1 regarding ,organizing for ,action1 a tax-exempt organization formed as an offshoot of the election campaign of ,president ,barack ,obama3 ,maybe ,i can get the ,,dc office job62 ,whereas1 on ,may #h1 #bjac1 ,richard ,pilger1 ,director of the ,election ,crimes ,branch of the ,public ,integrity ,section of the ,department of ,justice1 spoke to ,lois ,lerner about potential prosecution for false statements about political campaign intervention made by tax-exempt applicants2 ,whereas1 on ,may #aj1 #bjac1 in response to a pre-arranged question1 ,lois ,lerner apologized for the targeting of conservative tax-exempt applicants by the ,,irs during a speech at an event organized by the ,american ,bar ,association2 ,whereas the ,committee on ,ways and ,means of the ,house of ,representatives determined that1 of the #bih applications delayed and set aside for additional scrutiny by the ,,irs1 #hc percent were from right-leaning organizations2 ,whereas the ,committee on ,ways and ,means of the ,house of ,representatives determined that1 as of the ,may #aj1 #bjac1 apology from ,lois ,lerner1 only #de percent of the right-leaning groups set aside for extra scrutiny had been approved1 while #gj percent of left-leaning groups and #ajj percent of the groups with progressive names had been approved2 ,whereas the ,committee on ,ways and ,means of the ,house of ,representatives determined that1 of the groups that were inappropriately subject to demands to divulge confidential donors1 #hi percent were right-leaning2 ,whereas1 on ,may #ae1 #bjac1 ,attorney ,general ,eric ,h4 ,holder1 ,jr4 testified before the ,committee on the ,judiciary of the ,house of ,representatives that the ,department of ,justice would conduct a dispassionate investigation into the ,,irs matter1 and this will not be about parties ''' this will not be about ideological persuasions ''' anybody who has broken the law will be held accountable2 ,whereas1 on ,may #ae1 #bjac1 ,president ,barack ,obama called the targeting of conservative tax-exempt applicants by the ,,irs inexcusable and promised that he would not tolerate this kind of behavior in any agency1 but especially in the ,,irs1 given the power that it has and the reach that it has into all of our lives2 ,whereas ,barbara ,bosserman1 a trial attorney at the ,department of ,justice who in the past several years has contributed nearly #g1jjj to the ,democratic ,national ,committee and political campaigns of ,president ,obama1 is playing a leading role in the investigation by the ,department of ,justice2 ,whereas the ,public ,integrity ,section of the ,department of ,justice communicated with the ,,irs about the potential prosecution of tax-exempt applicants2 ,whereas1 on ,december #e1 #bjac1 ,president ,obama declared in a national television interview that the targeting of conservative tax-exempt applicants by the ,,irs was caused by a bureaucratic list by employees in an office in ,cincinnati2 ,whereas1 on ,april #i1 #bjad1 the ,committee on ,ways and ,means of the ,house of ,representatives referred ,lois ,lerner to the ,department of ,justice for criminal prosecution2 ,whereas the ,committee on ,ways and ,means of the ,house of ,representatives found that ,lois ,lerner used her position to improperly influence agency action against conservative tax-exempt organizations1 denying these groups due process and equal protection rights as guaranteed by the ,united ,states ,constitution1 in apparent violation of section #bdb of title #ah1 ,united ,states ,code2 ,whereas the ,committee on ,ways and ,means of the ,house of ,representatives found that ,lois ,lerner targeted ,crossroads ,grassroots ,policy ,strategies while ignoring similar liberal-leaning tax-exempt applicants2 ,whereas the ,committee on ,ways and ,means of the ,house of ,representatives found that ,lois ,lerner impeded official investigations by knowingly providing misleading statements to ,,tigta1 in apparent violation of section #ajja of title #ah1 ,united ,states ,code2 ,whereas the ,committee on ,ways and ,means of the ,house of ,representatives found that ,lois ,lerner may have disclosed confidential taxpayer information1 in apparent violation of section #fajc of the ,internal ,revenue ,code of #aihf2 ,whereas former ,department of ,justice officials have testified before a subcommittee of the ,committee on ,oversight and ,government ,reform of the ,house of ,representatives that the circumstances of the investigation by the administration of the targeting of conservative tax-exempt applicants by the ,,irs warrant the appointment of a special counsel2 ,whereas ,department of ,justice regulations counsel attorneys to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest likely to affect the public perception of the integrity of the investigation or prosecution2 ,whereas1 on ,january #ac1 #bjad1 unnamed officials in the ,department of ,justice leaked to the media that no criminal charges would be appropriate for ,,irs officials who engaged in the targeting activity1 which undermined the integrity of the investigation by the ,department of ,justice2 ,whereas1 on ,january #bi1 #bjad1 ,attorney ,general ,holder told the ,senate ,committee on the ,judiciary1 ,i don't think that there is a basis for us to conclude on the information as it presently exists that there is any reason for the appointment of the independent counsel ''' 4 ,the notion that somehow this has caused a loss of faith in this ,justice ,department is inconsistent with the facts2 ,whereas1 on ,february #b1 #bjad1 ,president ,obama stated publicly that there was not even a smidgen of corruption in connection with the ,,irs targeting activity2 ,whereas1 on ,april #af1 #bjad1 e-mails between the ,department of ,justice and the ,,irs were released showing that the ,department of ,justice considered prosecuting conservative nonprofit groups for engaging in political activity that is legal under ,federal law1 which damaged the integrity of the ,department of ,justice and undermined its investigation2 ,whereas1 on ,may #h1 #bjad1 the ,,irs agreed to provide all of ,lois ,lerner's e-mails to investigators of the ,committee on ,ways and ,means of the ,house of ,representatives2 ,whereas1 on ,may #ad1 #bjad1 e-mails obtained through a request under section #eeb of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code 7commonly known as the ,freedom of ,information ,act7 by the nonprofit group ,judicial ,watch indicate that the ,washington office of the ,,irs was examining applications for tax-exempt status by ,tea ,party organizations1 which is contrary to claims that the cases were being handled by lower-level workers in ,cincinnati2 ,whereas1 on ,june #aa1 #bjad1 ,james ,comey1 ,director of the ,federal ,bureau of ,investigation 7,,fbi71 testified to the ,committee on the ,judiciary of the ,house of ,representatives that ,,fbi investigators did not examine the ,,irs database with taxpayer information1 which included private taxpayer information that is prohibited from being shared without an order from a judge1 and only looked at the table of contents2 ,whereas1 on ,june #ac1 #bjad1 ,,irs ,office of ,legislative ,affairs ,director ,leonard ,ourlser informed the ,committee on ,finance of the ,senate that the ,,irs could not produce e-mails from ,january #bjji through ,april #bjaa from ,lois ,lerner due to a computer crash2 ,whereas1 on ,june #ag1 #bjad1 the ,,irs stated that it could not produce e-mails from #f other ,,irs employees2 ,whereas1 on ,june #bc1 #bjad1 it was reported that ,commissioner of ,internal ,revenue ,john ,koskinen has contributed approximately #ajj1jjj to ,democratic candidates and organizations1 including #g1cjj to ,president ,obama2 ,whereas1 on ,june #bd1 #bjad1 it was reported that the ,,irs agreed to pay #ej1jjj in damages to one of the conservative groups1 the ,national ,organization for ,marriage1 as a result of the unlawful release of confidential information to a political rival of that group2 ,whereas1 on ,june #be1 #bjad1 according to the ,committee on ,ways and ,means of the ,house of ,representatives1 ,lois ,lerner sought to have ,senator ,chuck ,grassley1 a sitting ,united ,states ,senator and ranking ,republican member of the ,committee on the ,judiciary of the ,senate1 referred for ,,irs examination2 and ,whereas section #fjj4a of title #bh1 ,code of ,federal ,regulations1 promulgated under section #eae of title #bh1 ,united ,states ,code1 requires the ,attorney ,general to appoint a special counsel or prosecutor when it is determined that-- 7#a7 a criminal investigation of a person or matter is warranted2 7#b7 investigation or prosecution of that person or matter by a ,united ,states ,attorney's ,office or litigating ,division of the ,department of ,justice would present a conflict of interest for the ,department or other extraordinary circumstances2 and 7#c7 under the circumstances1 it would be in the public interest to appoint an outside special counsel or prosecutor to assume responsibility for the matter3 ,now1 therefore1 be it ,that it is the sense of the ,senate that-- 7#a7 the statements and actions of the ,internal ,revenue ,service 7,,irs71 the ,department of ,justice1 and the administration of ,president ,barack ,obama in connection with the targeting of conservative tax-exempt applicants by the ,,irs have served to undermine the investigation by the ,department of ,justice2 7#b7 the efforts of the administration to undermine the investigation by the ,department of ,justice1 and the appointment of ,barbara ,bosserman1 who has donated almost #g1jjj to ,president ,obama and the ,democratic ,national ,committee1 to a lead investigative role1 have created a conflict of interest that warrants removal of the investigation from the normal processes of the ,department of ,justice2 7#c7 further investigation of the matter is warranted due to the apparent criminal activity by ,lois ,lerner1 former ,director of the ,exempt ,organizations ,division within the ,tax-,exempt and ,government ,entities ,division of the ,,irs1 and the ongoing disclosure of internal communications showing potentially unlawful conduct by executive branch personnel2 7#d7 appointment of a special counsel or prosecutor would be in the public interest1 given the conflict of interest for the ,department of ,justice and the strong public interest in ensuring that public officials who inappropriately target individuals for exercising their right to free expression are held accountable2 and 7#e7 ,attorney ,general ,eric ,h4 ,holder1 ,jr4 should appoint a special counsel or prosecutor1 with meaningful independence1 to investigate the targeting of conservative nonprofit advocacy groups by the ,,irs4