Obama Chief of Staff Got Early Word of Improper IRS Scrutiny

President Barack Obama’s chief of staff was told that an investigation found IRS employees improperly scrutinized Tea Party and small-government advocacy groups seeking tax-exempt status before the report was made public, White House press secretary Jay Carney said.

Obama wasn’t informed of the probe at the time, Carney said. Chief of staff Denis McDonough was told by White House Counsel Kathryn Ruemmler about the inspector general’s audit and the probable findings after Ruemmler was briefed on it on April 24, he said. The president has said he learned of the audit when the likely findings were first made public May 10.