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. Elijah Cummings' (D-Md.) decision to release 205 pages of redacted interview transcripts Tuesday (here and here).
Although his name was blacked out, NPR has confirmed the "screening group" manager's name is John Shafer, a long-time IRS employee who supervised workers doing initial screenings of applications for tax exempt status in the Cincinnati field office.
"I believe releasing this transcript serves the best interest of Congress and the American people by ensuring that there is an accurate and fair picture of the management challenges facing the IRS and that recommendations for legislative reform are appropriately crafted to address the specific problems identified as a result of our oversight efforts," said Cummings, the ranking member on the House Oversight Committee, in a letter to Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), the committee's chairman.
Issa shot back with a statement saying the release of this transcript could potentially harm the committee's investigation.
"I am deeply disappointed that Ranking Member Cummings has decided to broadly disseminate and post online a 205 page transcript that will serve as a roadmap for IRS officials to navigate investigative interviews with Congress," said Issa.
What's so special about Shafer's interview?
Cummings says it "debunks conspiracy theories about how the IRS first started reviewing these cases."
For the Maryland Democrat, it certainly can't hurt that Shafer describes himself as a "conservative Republican" and also says the elevating of Tea Party cases for further review started with him, rather than someone higher up the chain.
But much like transcripts of other interviews viewed by NPR, this lengthy interview reveals just a tiny piece of the ongoing investigation.