Acting Commissioner of IRS Resigns Over Scandal

Hoping to get ahead of the breaking scandal involving the IRS targeting Conservative organizations seeking tax-exempt status, President Obama said he told Treasury Secretary Jack Lew to seek the resignation of acting IRS Commissioner, Steven Miller.

At a press conference this evening, the President announced that Miller had resigned and vowed to work with Congress and Lew to put safeguards in place to keep such targeting from happening again. Obama stated that he was angry, and that this type of behavior would not be tolerated in any department, but in particular from the IRS, given the influence and reach that they have.

Miller issued a statement regarding his resignation, saying that there was a “strong and immediate need” to restore public trust in the nation’s tax agency. According to reports, Miller has known for some time that there were reports of applications taking longer than they should, and had identified “rogue employees” as those responsible for targeting Conservative and Tea Party groups.

The Justice Department has begun and investigation into the IRS, and The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee will hold a hearing on May 22, according to an aide for Rep. Darrell Issa, the Committee’s chairman. No successor to Miller has been named at this time.