Senator Marco Rubio called today for the resignation of acting IRS commissioner Steven Miller.
“It is clear the IRS cannot operate with even a shred of the American people’s confidence under the current leadership,” Rubio wrote in a letter today to Treasury secretary Jack Lew. “Therefore, I strongly urge that you and President Obama demand the IRS Commissioner’s resignation, effectively immediately. No government agency that has behaved in such a manner can possibly instill any faith and respect from the American public.”
Before becoming acting commissioner, Miller served as an IRS deputy commissioner.
In the letter, Rubio also stated that any IRS employees “must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law” if found involved in targeting tea-party groups illegally.
“The public expects your complete cooperation with both congressional investigations and potential criminal inquiries,” Rubio wrote. “If investigations reveal that bureaucrats or political appointees engaged in unconstitutional or criminal targeting of conservative taxpayers, they must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
“At a bare minimum, those involved with this deeply offensive use of government power have committed a violation of the public trust that has already had a profoundly chilling effect on free speech,” he added. “Such behavior cannot be excused with a simple apology.”