[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 40 (Tuesday, March 11, 2014)]
[House]
[Page H2263]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
THE IRS SHOULD BE FORTHCOMING
(Mr. COLLINS of Georgia asked and was given permission to address the
House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
Mr. COLLINS of Georgia. Madam Speaker, the American people have not
received the answers they deserved from the IRS. Lois Lerner appeared
before the Oversight Committee last week and again refused to provide
any insight into her IRS actions in this case.
How can the President claim that there isn't even a ``smidgeon of
corruption'' in the IRS targeting scandal? The investigation is still
ongoing. If the President truly believes that the IRS did nothing
wrong, then instruct them to cooperate with our investigation.
If Lois Lerner truly did nothing wrong, which I doubt, then she
should testify and lay the issue to rest. If, as the evidence suggests,
the targeting of conservative groups was intentional, then what would
be wrong with her explaining why she refuses to testify and continues
to reassert her Fifth Amendment rights?
The American people deserve to know if their freedom of speech was
abridged for political reasons and if this administration is dedicated
to silencing those with opposing views. I call on Lois Lerner and the
IRS to be forthcoming so we can ensure that this never happens again.
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