Q to former IRS chief: "Your agency demanded to know the content of prayers. Izzat okay?" IRS chief won't answer.

Is there anything systemically wrong with Democratic party government?  Well this morning the former head of the IRS appeared before a House committee investigating the alleged IRS targeting of conservative groups.

Representative Aaron Schock was questioning former IRS chief Steven Miller.  Schock read a paragraph stating that a pro-life group in Iowa had received a letter from the IRS demanding that the group "list the content of the members of your organization's prayers."

You read that right.

Rep. Schock then asked the former IRS chief if he thought that was an appropriate question for the IRS to ask Americans.

Miller refused to respond substantively.  Here's the video clip; the question noted above is at 40 seconds in.

I thought the post that referred to this had to have been satire--until I viewed the clip.  If you wrote this as fiction no one would believe it--way too paranoid, they'd say.

In evaluating Miller's non-response, keep in mind that Miller was only the acting chief of the IRS for about six months.  His term was due to expire in just over two weeks, so Obama's "firing" him cut his term by a grand total of 20 days before when it would normally have expired.

So having already been "fired," one would think Miller could afford to be candid and admit that the demand by the IRS agent to "list the content of members' prayers" was not only inappropriate but outrageous.  But being a Democrat and Obama supporter, Miller did no such thing.

A normal person might be curious as to why Miller would be so reluctant to condemn a practice that strikes most people as outrageous.  What business does the IRS have demanding to know the content of a citizen's prayers??

Here's a theory:  Miller refused to condemn the outrageous question because he almost certainly encouraged his subordinates to ask it--just as his superiors up the chain told him to slow-walk applications by conservative groups.  If he'd criticized the practice--leaving division heads like Lois Lerner hanging out to dry--the chances would go way up that someone thrown under the bus would take exception to being the scapegoat.

Here's Miller responding to a representative who asked "Who told the IRS agents to target conservative organizations?" 
    Miller doesn't respond.
    Rep:  You conducted that investigation.  Who was responsible?
    Miller:  I don't have that name, sir.
    Rep:  Did you even *try* to find out?  Did you ask anybody?
    Miller:  Of course.
    Rep:  Who did you ask?
    Miller [hesitates]:  I'd be happy to provide a list.
    Rep:  You don't have that name either.
    Miller:  I asked the senior technical advisor.
    Rep [immediately]:  And what was the senior technical advisor's name?
    Miller [clearly taken aback by the fast followup question]:  Nancy Marks.
    Rep:  And what did Nancy tell you?  Who's responsible?
    Miller: That I don't remember to be honest with you.
    Rep:  You don't remember again.

It's an astonishing performance that can't be fully appreciated just from the transcript.  One can't help but come away with the overwhelming impression that the guy is lying his ass off.  And the big question is:  Now that he's been fired, why in the world is he lying about what he knew?

Oh, that's right:  He knows that if he rats out the Obama-supporting thugs he'll never be able to get a job again.