Another day ... IRS scandal keeps getting harder to believe

And so today's addition to the ever-unfolding scandal at the Internal Revenue Service is ... (drum roll please).

More than $11,000 paid to a happiness consultant to make sure that the employees enjoyed their jobs as they were breaking rules, learning line dances and performing as the cast of "Gilligan's Island."

And the best part is ... you paid for it.

As if the targeting of conservative groups and individuals who disagreed with the administration was not enough, it seems there was a whole lot about the IRS and its endeavors and spending habits that we did not know.

And, it seems, neither did the bosses at the IRS, those who supervised the agency's activities nor the president.

And surprise, surprise, the Congress did not know much, either.

And once again we have proven unequivocally that there is a reason that so many people have been calling for cuts at the federal level.

Obviously if, in a recession, you have enough money to put employees up in presidential suites, and to pay someone to teach them to be happy, you have more than your share of areas where cuts could be made.

That is waste in government -- and precisely the reason so many these days are calling for taxpayers to stand up and to demand not only more of their money back, but more accountability from their elected leaders.

(Sounds a little like the Tea Party just might have been right, huh?)

The commentary around Washington these days is that the IRS scandal has only begun to stink -- that there is a whole lot more to the targeting of conservative groups than just a bored employee looking for a thrill.

Perhaps he or she was not able to attend the happiness seminar and needed another activity to make him or herself feel better.

And as this scandal continues to reveal itself, it is critical that a thorough investigation is done and that the directive for this gross abuse of power be traced all the way back to its source -- whomever that source might be.

And while we are at it, perhaps it is time to take a much closer look at the federal "training" budgets.

Who knows what surprises we might find there -- maybe even enough to give back some of what has been taken from the nation's military personnel.

Seems like it might be time for the recession to hit Washington.

More than time, that is.

Published in Editorials on June 4, 2013 12:16 PM