U.S. tax authorities admits to targeting Tea Party groups

WASHINGTON, May 10 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Internal Revenue Services on Friday admitted to targeting Tea Party groups for a higher level of scrutiny than other organizations during the 2012 election. The White House said an investigation is underway.

Lois Lerner, the director of the IRS' department overseeing tax- exempt organizations, admitted that employees at an Ohio office had flagged groups with "patriot" or "Tea Party" for additional reviews during last year's elections to see if they violated their tax-exempt status. She said the decision did not stem out of partisan reasons, but rather representing "error in judgment."

Lerner said those employees were "less sensitive than they should have been about the impact this might have."

"We made some mistakes," Lerner said during a conference call with reporters. "We apologize."

Republicans were incensed by the revelation. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said that the IRS's announcement was proof that Republicans' concerns were well-founded, calling on the White House to conduct a "transparent, government-wide review."

White House Spokesman Jay Carney said during his regular briefing Friday that IRS' conduct was "inappropriate," and the matter was already under investigation.

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