Sens. Tom Coburn and James Inhofe have become the faces of pushback on federal emergency spending. Now the deadly and devastating tornado in their home state has put them in an awkward position.
Under Douglas Shulman's watch, IRS personnel singled out some conservative groups for extra scrutiny. That, he conceded Tuesday, has "justifiably led to questions" about the tax agency's motivation.
There is word of another controversial leak investigation by the Department of Justice. The target is Fox News reporter James Rosen, who was monitored by the department after breaking a story about North Korea's nuclear weapons program in 2009.
IRS and Treasury officials can expect a hard time in their appearances on Capitol Hill Tuesday. A key question that so far has not gotten much attention: How did it come to be that social welfare organizations became vehicles for political activity?
The measure includes farm and food subsidies totaling almost $100 billion. Lawmakers have trimmed more than $2 billion in annual farm spending. The question, though, is whether to trim more.