Videos: Rep. Trey Gowdy shreds former IRS Commissioner after catching a big mistake made by Lois Lerner

Once again, a man first elected to Congress in 2010, on a wave of Tea Party support (ironic in that IRS treatment of Tea Party groups is at the heart of this scandal), is once again setting the standard for his Congressional colleagues. Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC) didn't just walk away from today's House Oversight Committee Hearing into the IRS Scandal having best represented the anger of the American people when it comes to the scandal.

He also may have been instrumental in changing the course of future events when it comes to the testimony of IRS official Lois Lerner who, today asserted her fifth amendment rights only after issuing an opening statement that included her proclamations of innocence. Committee Chairman, Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) dismissed Lerner when it became apparent that she would not testify. Gowdy spoke up and was quite angry with Issa's decision.

Gowdy was applauded by those in attendance but Lerner was still dismissed:



Now, it appears that Issa will be recalling Lerner, based on her giving an opening statement. If Lerner is recalled, Gowdy will have been instrumental in pushing for it.

Some time after Lerner was dismissed, Gowdy, who was one of the last committee members to get his chance to talk to witnesses, set his sights on former IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman, who had already taken a beating from both Democrats and Republicans.

Gowdy gave no quarter to Shulman.

Videos: Most notable exchanges with Outgoing IRS Commissioner at House Ways and Means

When IRS Commissioner Steven Miller testified in front of the House Ways and Means Committee about the scandal that has befallen the Obama administration, there were multiple exchanges worth noting. Rather than doing several separate posts, I decided to put them into one.

First up (no particular order), Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA). In this exchange, Kelly truly represented not only his own constituents but those belonging to most in Congress. The evidence is in the standing ovation he received when he was done grilling Miller.



Next, Rep. Dave Reichert (R-WA) revealed during his questioning of Miller that the congressman had been a cop for 30 years. At this point, those watching realized why his questioning was so effective. When Miller was asked a "yes" or "no" question and continued to repeat the same lawyered up response, it became obvious Reichert busted him. He then successfully got Miller to give up a name. The clip ends with Reichert shaking his head in disgust.



Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) dressed down the Commissioner by quoting from testimony given by Miller at a previous hearing that directly contradicts what has been learned since, via the scandal itself.



Next up, Rep. Tom Reed (R-NY) elicits an amazing statement from Miller early on in this clip that shows just how out of touch the Commissioner is. As Reed is pointing out that Miller is suffering no real consequences for a scandal that would mean serious consequences for private citizens, Miller rhetorically asks, "nothing bad is happening to me, Congressman?" as if to disagree with the assertion.



Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX) provided a real-life example of IRS harassment and then asks, "Is this still America?"



Rep. Aaron Schock (R-IL) highlighted the harassment of pro-life groups. Miller could not answer a question about why IRS agents asked one pro-life group to explain the content of its 'prayers'. In light of the revelations brought to light in the Kermit Gosnell trial, this is a particularly chilling reality. Schock asked the IG (seated next to Miller) about letters sent by Senators Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Max Bauchus (D-MT), and Al Franken (D-MN) to the IRS in which they asked for heavier scrutiny of Tea Party groups.



Rep. Charles Boustany (R-LA) began by playing a video of a response from the previous IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman at a hearing in 2012, in which Shulman's testimony contradicts what the scandal has revealed is accurate.

Rep. Jim Gerlach (R-PA) hones in on the issue of sharing confidential taxpayer information. Again, Miller had trouble answering questions and attempted to re-phrase the ones asked so he could answer it the way he wanted to. That didn't work.

Rep. Peter Roskam (R-IL) pressed Miller on conversations the Commissioner had with Lois Lerner, the woman in charge of Tax-exempt filings, after which Miller referred to needing to look at his "notes". Roskam seized on the revelation that notes were in existence by asking Miller about these "notes", to which Miller suddenly couldn't remember if he had any. This is a short-term memory problem that rivals Tom Hanks during a Saturday Night Live skit. Roskam also followed-up on Reichert's previous questioning of Miller. It's a good one.

Rep. Pat Tiberi (R-OH) referred to a real-life example of IRS harassment of an Ohio Tea Party group, the Liberty Township Tea Party (LTTP). Tiberi pointed to a list of questions that LTTP which were utterly ridiculous.

Miller: We provided horrible customer service.

Tiberi: You targeted an individual!

Video: More fireworks between Darrell Issa and Eric Holder

Over the past couple of years, there have quite a few epic exchanges between Rep. Darrell Issa and Attorney General Eric Holder, mostly over Operation Fast and Furious. Issa, the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, is also a member of the House Judiciary Committee, which is where he often appears a bit more unfettered with respect to challenging Holder. As such, the Judiciary Committee is where the most compelling exchanges between the two men usually takes place.

Yesterday was no exception and it didn't even involve questions about any of the three major scandals that have befallen the White House in recent days.

Some might remember Barack Obama's controversial appointment of Thomas Perez as Secretary of Labor a couple of months ago. Over the past several years, Perez had been the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights division. Aside from his extremely suspect testimony in front of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights about the New Black Panther Party (NBPP) case or his involvement in targeting the state of Arizona back in 2010 over SB 1070, an immigration law signed by Governor Jan Brewer, Perez was also involved in shady quid pro quo deal with the state of Minnesota.

This is what Issa decided to hammer Holder over yesterday and it was, again, epic. As an added bonus, Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (the registered Democratic socialist who asked where on the planet Mars astronauts planted the U.S. flag) butts in without having a case. If she was smart enough to understand how stupid she looked, she wouldn't have butted in at all.

For a fuller appreciation of what was going on here, PowerLine wrote about the case back in March and lays it out quite well.

This is a must-watch, even if it isn't about any of the three big scandals.

Audio: Today's Podcast

On today's show...

Analysis of the Oversight Committee hearing on Benghazi.

Video: Darrell Issa previews Benghazi hearings on Face the Nation

House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) appeared on Face the Nation to preview the May 8th Benghazi hearings. Gregory Hicks will be one of those witnesses and the quotes attributed to him that were read by host Bob Schieffer were indeed shocking. Without question, UN Ambassador Susan Rice's five Sunday show appearances on 9/16/12 - five days after the attacks - will come under renewed and even more intense scrutiny.

May 8th is likely going to be very significant.



During an appearance on Fox News one day earlier, former UN Ambassador John Bolton expressed shock at how high up the chain of command the whistleblowers go. Hicks - next in line after Stevens - is certainly an example of what Bolton was talking about.

Via Freedom's Lighthouse:

Audio: Today's Podcast

On today's show...

* Why do conservative politicians partner with registered socialists?
* Upcoming Benghazi hearings (Hillary's spokesman implicated in coverup?)
* Why is there not more contrasting of Fast and Furious with Sandy Hook at NRA Convention?
* Update on Saudi prisoner in Colorado (renewed interest)?