Treasury Knew About IRS Inquiry in 2012: Inspector

Here's your daily dose of IRS "cover up" outrage fodder: The Treasury Department’s inspector general says he told top Treasury officials about the IRS probe in 2012, the New York Times reports. J. Russell George told the Congressional hearing today that he informed both members of the House Ways and Means Committee and the Deputy Treasury Secretary about the allegations as part of a briefing, though not his conclusion that the targeting had been improper.

Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said he learned about the investigation in mid-March this year—about half a month after he was sworn in—but that he didn't know the real details until last week, reports Bloomberg. "I didn’t know any of the details of it until last Friday," he told Bloomberg TV. "When I learned about it, from the moment I learned about it, I was outraged." He said he believes his predecessor Timothy Geithner received a similar "heads up," reports ABC News. "I have to assume [he knew], as I was aware of the fact of the matter being subject to a review," he said. "That’s very different from the substance of the findings." (More J Russell George stories.)