The acting commissioner of Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Steven Miller, who is also the most senior tax official in the US, has been fired by Barack Obama over the firm’s special scrutiny of conservative groups, which the President described as "inexcusable".
The move aims to enable a "speedy end" to a scandal over the targeting of conservative groups by employees at the IRS office in Cincinnati, Ohio.
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Speaking at the White House, Obama said that the Treasury secretary, Jack Lew, had asked Miller, to resign "in the light of a critical report from the inspector general", which found that ineffective management at the IRS had allowed agents to target conservative groups inappropriately for over 18 months.
Groups with the words ‘Tea Party’ or ‘Patriots’ in their titles had been picked out by IRS officials and subjected to requests for tax-exempt status to extra scrutiny.
"Americans are right to be angry about it. I am angry about it. I will not tolerate this in any agency, especially in the IRS," Obama said.
Obama added that the move was an essential step as, given the controversy surrounding the audit, a new leadership will be required to"restore confidence going forward".
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By GlobalDataNew safeguards would be put in place to prevent similar situations in future, said Obama.
