The acting head of the Internal Revenue Service has resigned, forced out by the White House after it came to light that the agency had illegally targeted conservative groups during the last presidential campaign.
The scandal emerged over the last week, as investigations by journalists revealed the IRS had singled out groups with the words "Tea Party" or "Patriots" in their names for extra scrutiny when those groups applied for tax-exempt status.
"I've reviewed the Treasury Department watchdog's report, and the misconduct that it uncovered is inexcusable," said President Obama in an announcement Wednesday night. "It's inexcusable, and Americans are right to be angry about it, and I am angry about it. I will not tolerate this kind of behavior in any agency, but especially in the IRS, given the power that it has and the reach that it has into all of our lives. And as I said earlier, it should not matter what political stripe you're from -- the fact of the matter is, is that the IRS has to operate with absolute integrity. The government generally has to conduct itself in a way that is true to the public trust. That's especially true for the IRS," he said.
Steven T. Miller stepped down after Secretary of the Treasury Jack Lew requested his resignation, an attempt to clean house before further investigations. "Today, Secretary Lew took the first step by requesting and accepting the resignation of the acting commissioner of the IRS, because given the controversy surrounding this audit, it's important to institute new leadership that can help restore confidence going forward," Obama said.
The president will hold a lengthier press conference on the scandal tomorrow. For now, Democrats are trying to limit the damage, emphasizing that the improper scrutiny happened over a relatively short period. Still, profuse apologies are pouring from the White House. "I'll do everything in my power to make sure nothing like this happens again by holding the responsible parties accountable, by putting in place new checks and new safeguards, and going forward, by making sure that the law is applied as it should be -- in a fair and impartial way," said Obama.
But Republicans are likely to seize upon the opportunity to derail other initiatives favored by the administration, like immigration reform and gun control.