OK, this has officially become open obstruction of justice:

According to the House Ways and Means Committee, the IRS has “lost” two years of emails belonging to former head of tax exempt organizations Lois Lerner. The IRS doesn’t have a record of her emails to outside groups or government agencies from January 2009 through April 2011, conveniently encompassing some of the same time when tea party groups were being targeted for extra scrutiny and possible criminal prosecution. The IRS says the loss of emails is due to a “computer crash” and claims emails from or to Lerner from the White House, Democratic members of Congress, the Treasury Department and Department of Justice cannot be located. They do however have emails belonging to Lerner that she sent to other IRS employees.

Anyone who knows how email works knows that this is complete and utter bravo sierra.

[Saturday afternoon update]

Powerline explains how email works. As I said, this is nothing more than a blatant lie.

[Bumped]

[Update a few minutes later]

“It’s theater. It’s like the sheriff of a county in the deep south cutting loose the six guys everyone saw do the lynching in front of the victims’ families so they know just how powerless they really are.”

[Update a while later]

What was in those “lost” emails? The 2013 IRS IG report has some clues.

[Update a few minutes later]

Things at the Justice Department are “very, very bad.”

I can believe it, considering who’s been running the place for the past five and a half years.

[Update a few more minutes later]

Sharyl Atkisson has some questions for the IRS:

The Committee had requested the Lerner emails as part of its investigation into to the targeting of conservative non-profits by the IRS. The Obama administration has denied any corruption or intentional wrongdoing. Lerner took the Fifth when asked to testify to Congress. The House of Representatives subsequently held her in contempt. The lost materials are said to include any communications that may have occurred between Lerner and outside agencies or groups such as the White House, the Treasury Department, the Department of Justice, the Federal Elections Commission and the offices of Democrats.

House and Ways Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-Mich.) says that along with providing news of the emails that have been lost, the IRS suggested in the same letter to Congress that it end its investigation.

The late disclosure of the lost emails may be reason to disregard the suggestion.

But remember, not a smidgen of corruption.