Tamara Keith

IRS Staffer: "What I Did Was Not Targeting"

Tamara Keith — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:34:00 +0000

Another interview with a key IRS employee, another oblique connection to Washington, D.C., and yet still no explosive revelations in the scandal surrounding the agency's targeting of Tea Party groups.

That, it seems, was precisely the point of Rep.

6 Surprising Things About The IRS Scandal

Tamara Keith — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:24:00 +0000

Hundreds of pages of transcribed interviews reveal that IRS employees in Washington were involved at an early stage in the improper targeting of Tea Party groups — but at least so far the trail stops well short of the White House.

Based on interviews with two longtime IRS employees working in the Cincinnati field office, there's no smoking gun, no direct connection to the Obama administration or even any indication that those involved in the flagging of conservative groups had political motives.

Rather, the transcripts from the ongoing investigation, recently viewed by NPR, paint a more mu

How The Senate Farm Bill Would Change Subsidies

Tamara Keith — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 07:18:00 +0000

The Senate voted Monday to approve its version of the farm bill, a massive spending measure that covers everything from food stamps to crop insurance and sets the nation's farm policy for the next five years.

The centerpiece of that policy is an expanded crop insurance program, designed to protect farmers from losses, that some say amounts to a highly subsidized gift to agribusiness. That debate is set to continue as the House plans to take up its version of the bill this month.

For farmer Scott Neufeld, crop insurance is an integral part of his family's business.

Conservative Advice To GOP: Don't Legislate, Focus On Scandals

Tamara Keith — Fri, 17 May 2013 19:07:00 +0000

Heritage Action, the political activist offshoot of the conservative Heritage Foundation, has some advice for House Speaker John Boehner and Majority Leader Eric Cantor: focus on the scandals plaguing the Obama administration and stay away from legislation that could "highlight major schisms" within the House Republican Conference.

In a letter this week to the leaders, Heritage Action CEO Michael Needham says "outrage over Benghazi" and the IRS targ

Cantor's Rebranding Effort Tested By House Republicans

Tamara Keith — Wed, 08 May 2013 06:51:00 +0000

When the House votes Wednesday on a bill called the Working Families Flexibility Act, it will be the latest test of a Republican effort at rebranding.

The architect of that effort in the House, Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., has so far had a mixed record.

In February, Cantor gave a major policy speech at the American Enterprise Institute.