Learner Emails Now Part of Criminal Probe

[Kathianne]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/federal-eye/wp/2015/02/27/investigators-probing-for-criminal-activity-with-lois-lerners-missing-emails/


The inspector general’s office said it is working to identify any messages that the IRS has not already sent to congressional investigators, who are examining the Lerner’s involvement in the IRS targeting scandal.The watchdog agency found the backed-up emails by consulting with IRS information-technology specialists, according to TIGTA Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Tim Camus.

“They were right where you would expect them to be,” he said at the rare late-night hearing, which lasted until about 10 p.m.
IRS Commissioner John Koskinen testified before Congress last year that the backups were no help in recovering Lerner’s lost emails, in part because the IRS overwrites them every six months.

Camus said the IRS’s technology specialists told investigators that no one from the agency asked for the tapes, raising doubts about whether the agency did its due diligence in trying to locate Lerner’s emails, or possibly greater troubles.
“There is potential criminal activity,” Camus said.

...

[jimnyc]

Yep, I knew there had to be backups/data somewhere. I said way back when that the 'fact' that they didn't have MANY backup tapes, was ludicrous.

[darin]

Nobody better be convicted over this until the lunatic is out of office - or they will be simply pardoned.

[Kathianne]

http://www.judicialwatch.org/press-room/press-releases/documents-obtained-judicial-watch-reveal-top-hillary-clinton-advisers-knew-immediately-assault-benghazi-armed-attack/


(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced today that on February 11, 2015, it uncovered documents from the U.S. Department of State (http://www.judicialwatch.org/document-archive/benghazi-ops-alert-foia/) revealing that top aides for then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, including her then-chief of staff Cheryl Mills, knew from the outset that the Benghazi mission compound was under attack by armed assailants tied to a terrorist group. The documents were produced as a result of a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the State Department (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Department of State ((No. 1:14-cv-01511 (http://www.judicialwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/09-09-14-JW-v-State-01511-Clinton-Notes-Benghazi.pdf)). The documents make no reference to a spontaneous demonstration or Internet video, except in an official statement issued by Hillary Clinton.

Judicial Watch lawsuit focused on Mrs. Clinton’s involvement in the Benghazi scandal:



Any and all records concerning, regarding, or related to notes, updates, or reports created in response to the September 11, 2012 attack on the U.S, Consulate in Benghazi, Libya. This request includes but is not limited to, notes, taken by then Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton or employees of the Office of the Secretary of State during the attack and its immediate aftermath.


The chain of internal emails tracks the events surrounding the terrorist attack in real time beginning immediately upon its inception.


On September 11, 2012, at 4:07 PM, Maria Sand (who was then a Special Assistant to Mrs. Clinton) forwarded an email from the State Department’s Operations Center entitled “U.S. Diplomatic Mission in Benghazi is Under Attack (http://www.judicialwatch.org/document-archive/benghazi-ops-alert-foia-page-3/) (http://www.judicialwatch.org/document-archive/benghazi-ops-alert-foia-page-3/)(SBU) [Sensitive But Unclassified]” to Cheryl Mills (then-Chief of Staff), Jacob Sullivan (then-Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy), Joseph McManus (then-Hillary Clinton’s Executive Assistant), and a list of other Special Assistants in the Secretary’s office:



The Regional Security Officer reports the diplomatic mission is under attack. Tripoli reports approximately 20 armed people fired shots; explosions have been heard as well. Ambassador Stevens, who is currently in Benghazi, and four COM [Chief of Mission] personnel are in the compound safe haven. The 17th of February militia is providing security support.


On September 11, 2012, 4:38 PM, State Department Foreign Service Officer (https://www.linkedin.com/pub/lawrence-randolph/4/7a/636) Lawrence Randolph forwarded Mills, Sullivan and McManus an email from Scott Bultrowicz, who was the former director of the Diplomatic Security Service (ousted following review of the attack) (http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2012/12/22/diplomatic-securitys-top-agent-leaves-office-after-scathing-benghazi-report-the-director-of-the-security-service-is-among-those-ousted-from-office-following-a-review-into-the-benghazi-attacks-sources-say), with the subject line, “Attack on Benghazi (http://www.judicialwatch.org/document-archive/benghazi-ops-alert-foia-page-4/) 09112012”:

...

[Kathianne]

Even her name!

http://hotair.com/archives/2015/08/25/irs-lois-lerner-had-another-private-e-mail-account-used-for-official-business-as-toby-miles/


IRS: Lois Lerner had another private e-mail account used for official business … as “Toby Miles”POSTED AT 12:01 PM ON AUGUST 25, 2015 BY ED MORRISSEY
It’s amazing how these supposedly “old news” investigations keep turning up new information (http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/aug/24/irs-finds-yet-another-lois-lerner-email-account/?page=all), no? More than three years after the exposure of IRS political targeting of administration critics, an attorney for the agency admitted in a new court filing late yesterday that Lois Lerner used another personal e-mail account for official government business. Lerner, who famously took the Fifth at a Congressional hearing, identified herself as “Toby Miles” on the other account, raising new questions about her activities:



Lois Lerner (http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/lois-lerner/) had yet another personal email account used to conduct someIRS (http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/internal-revenue-service/) business, the tax agency confirmed in a new court filing late Monday that further complicates the administration’s efforts to be transparent about Ms. Lerner (http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/lois-lerner/)’s actions during the tea party targeting scandal.


The admission came in an open-records lawsuit filed by Judicial Watch (http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/judicial-watch/), a conservative public interest law firm that has sued to get a look at emails Ms. Lerner (http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/lois-lerner/) sent during the targeting.


IRS (http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/internal-revenue-service/) lawyer Geoffrey J. Klimas told the court that as the agency was putting together a set of documents to turn over to Judicial Watch (http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/judicial-watch/), it realized Ms. Lerner (http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/lois-lerner/) had used yet another email account, in addition to her official one and another personal one already known to the agency.


“In addition to emails to or from an email account denominated ‘Lois G. Lerner (http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/lois-lerner/)‘ or ‘Lois Home,’ some emails responsive to Judicial Watch (http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/judicial-watch/)’s request may have been sent to or received from a personal email account denominated ‘Toby Miles (http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/toby-miles/),’” Mr. Klimas told Judge Emmet G. Sullivan, who is hearing the case.

Jeff Dunetz scoffs (http://yidwithlid.blogspot.com/2015/08/lois-lerner-used-second-email-account.html) at the most transparent administration evah:



Boy oh boy, private email accounts seem to be a bad habit of this, the most transparent administration since the big bang, billions of years ago.

That’s certainly one issue in this, but it’s hardly the only issue. Let’s not forget that the government has stalled for years in producing Lerner’s e-mails, both with Congress and with the court in this FOIA action. Her e-mails were the central fight this case, and yet the IRS now says they’ve just stumbled onto the “Toby Miles” sockpuppet account. This comes just a few weeks after Judge Emmet Sullivan threatened to jail IRS commissioner John Koskinen for contempt (http://hotair.com/archives/2015/07/30/judge-to-irs-attorneys-im-about-to-charge-koskinen-personally-with-contempt/) if the IRS kept stonewalling on the e-mails. With this filing, Sullivan has to be livid at three years of deception on the key part of this case. One can only wonder what Congress will do.


Even more importantly, this raises all sorts of questions about why Lerner would need an e-mail address under a false identity. There have been indications that Lerner coordinated this effort with other agencies, notably her former employer, the Federal Elections Commission, but no substantial paper trail yet exists for it. In part, that may be because the IRS has stalled on her official e-mail records for so long, but it might be because any coordination was done on a private account under a fake name. Klimer admits that at least some of the “Toby Miles” communications could be responsive to Judicial Watch’s FOIA demand.


The Washington Times notes that the House Ways and Means Committee’s criminal referral on Lerner mentioned the “Toby Miles” account, but that was in reference to an e-mail on Lerner’s official IRS account:



The House Ways and Means Committee also approved a criminal referral asking the Justice Department to look into Ms. Lerner (http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/lois-lerner/)’s conduct, but its status is not clear.


Mr. Obama has said the problems at the IRS (http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/internal-revenue-service/) stemmed from bad laws and lack of funding, not from political bias, and a bipartisan report from the Senate Finance Committee could not reach any firm conclusions about the extent of targeting.


Curiously, the Ways and Means Committee criminal referral mentioned the Toby Miles email address, identified as tobomatic@msn.com. The address came to light because it was included on an email that also had Ms. Lerner (http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/lois-lerner/)’s official account on the chain of recipients.

Last summer, the Ways and Means report suggested that the account belonged to Lerner’s husband, Michael Miles. Klimer’s filing now puts that assumption in serious doubt, and perhaps puts Miles within range of the probe as well. Sullivan’s reaction to this filing, and the reaction of Ways and Means, will be worth watching.