MSNBC host Krystal Ball excused the actions of IRS agents who targeted conservative organizations seeking tax-exempt status on The Last Word Monday night, saying budget cuts left them without the resources to do their jobs and they had to "enforce the law as they understood it."
"The other big story here I think that has been missed in the press is the fact that the IRS budget has been cut to the point that these agents can't do their jobs," she said. "They do not have the resources to do their jobs, so they were trying with the limited resources they have to enforce the law as they understood it. It was not proper, but you can understand with what they're working with, why they went in that direction."
Ball's implication: agents had no nefarious motives but, because of budget cuts, misinterpreted the law which led them to single out groups bearing words like "Tea Party," "Patriot" and "Constitution" in their titles for additional scrutiny.
Letters have shown that IRS higher-ups requested information about conservative organizations seeking 501 (c)(4) status, debunking the theory that the scandal was simply the result of lower-level agents going rogue. Also, IRS senior officials knew Tea Party groups were being targeted back in 2011.
Rep. Jose Serrano (D., N.Y.) made a similar statement to Ball at the House Appropriations Subcommittee hearing earlier Monday on the scandal, claiming that funding cuts to the government agency would only serve to promote more scandals.
The new Acting Commissioner for the IRS Danny Werfel and Treasury inspector general of tax administration Russell George appeared before the subcommittee to face questions about the scandals:
Congressmen peppered the two witnesses with questions about the IRS’s management and behavior, although they did not always receive definitive answers.
When asked, the IRS inspector general was not able to say whether the IRS targeted conservative groups applying for tax-exempt status for political reasons.
"That was not the focus of our audit," said George. He noted that his office is continuing to look into this matter.