She’s allowed to plead the 5th. Nothing Issa can do about it. What did you think he would do, go down and punch her in the face?
Ask her a few questions and make her plead the fifth on camera. That’s what you can do.
I had hoped that she would be asked maybe a dozen or two dozen questions, and she would have had to plead the 5th each and every time like I’ve seen many times in my lifetime on Capitol Hill. I wanted her to have to say it for EVERY question. On the record. Let the American people watch & see how corrupt the IRS is on live tv.
They let her off way too easy this morning in my opinion.
More scenes we'd like to see.
Actually an Executive Order by Ike calls for her firing if someone in her position pleads the 5th.
She’s allowed to plead the 5th. Nothing Issa can do about it. What did you think he would do, go down and punch her in the face?
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Just repeatedly ask her “embarassing” questions such as “Has anyone from the Obama administration coordinated with you for the targeting of Tea Party organizations”.
Let her assert her right against self-incrimination over and over and over again. The Democrats certainly would have done that had the shoe been on the other foot.
But the Republican? Nah, the Republicans want to be “nice”.
She might have that right...but think about how terrible this is.
The IRS is supposed to be subject to congressional oversight...yet she refuses to answer questions. She obviously doesn’t believe she works ‘for’ the people.
Boehner should say that’s it, if the IRS won’t answer questions of congress, their funding is cut off.
I believe that if she is granted immunity, her 5th amendment rights against self incrimination become moot.
With no possibility of criminal prosecution there is no incrimination.
No, what he could have done was say,
“OK, Miss Lerner, but we haven’t asked you any questions yet, and since you aren’t just testifying in front of us, but in front of all the other taxpayers that will be tuning in to watch this through the various means with which they may do that, we’d like you to at least listen to a question or two first before you decide you want to invoke.”
To which Lerner would say:
“I’m indicating that I won’t answer any question you put before me today, and as such, refuse to testify?”
To which Issa would say:
“Ms Lerner, you don’t see any irony in your invoking your fifth amendment right, even before we’ve asked any questions, and your agency’s established practice of habitually violating everybody elses first, fourth, and probably seventh amendment rights under that very same document?
That’s one question I’d like to see you answer before you walk out of here today.
Here’s another, unless you’ve got another pressing engagement, do you think you might humor us and at least listen to some questions today and decide on invoking after each one? We’ve gone to all the trouble to get together today, and since we have oversight on your agency, we just thought you might like to at least convey a little concern that either incompetence on a scale we haven’t invented yet, or criminality on a scale that I think will actually help bridge the gap between the two parties in terms of agreeing on its ability to shatter the founders original vision of liberty.
It was your watch, after all, and I’d like to ask you, as the captain, why your boat’s on the rocks and your passengers have been robbed, raped of their privacy, and exposed to the political elements? I’d like to do it before we consider you for becoming captain of the good ship Obamacare, which the IRS is going to be enforcing on everyone who wasn’t lucky enough to wangle an exception.
To be more plain, I’m going to insist you humor us today, if it isn’t too much trouble. Sound Constitutional to you and your attorney, Ms. Lerner?
And, before you leave, you are going to answer my first question, about the irony of relying on the Constitution here today, when the question before us is whether the IRS is decent enough to allow the rest of us that benefit in their dealings with the IRS?.”