IRS ACTING COMMISSIONER HAS RESIGNED

[JB]

The Internal Revenue Service official in charge of the tax-exempt organizations at the time when the unit targeted tea party groups now runs the IRS office responsible for the health care legislation

Nothing to worry about. Move along. The government is here to help you.

We're listening on your phone, we'll know when you're sick.

[Elspeth]

WASHINGTON (AP) — As second top Internal Revenue Service official has announced plans to leave the agency amid the controversy over the targeting of tea party groups.


An internal IRS memo says Joseph Grant, commissioner of the agency’s tax exempt and government entities division, will retire June 3. Grant joins Steven Miller, who was forced to resign as acting IRS commissioner on Wednesday.


As part of his duties, Grant oversaw the IRS division that targeted tea party groups for additional scrutiny when they applied for tax-exempt status.

Commissioners are not rank and file GS employees or SES careerists. Commissioners are political appointees, assigned these spots by the administration. This is actually the right level to start the firings. (Four rank and file GSers are not: were just following orders.) Remember, government employees don't set policy, they just implement it. Policy comes from the political appointees brought in by the President.

In other words, this resignation is more or less an admission that this IRS thing was not "rogue" GSers--ok, that makes me laugh; you have to know GSers in government to realize why that's funny--but orders from the top.