NICE MANEUVER – AT 11:36 A.M. ET:  This is the way it's done in Washington.  From Fox: 

The Internal Revenue Service is crying poor in the face of budget cuts and weighing the possibility of its own short-term shutdown -- even warning that tax refunds could be delayed next year.

IRS Commissioner John Koskinen gave details Thursday on ways the tax-collection agency might try to cut costs. He said everything from taxpayer services to enforcement efforts could be affected.

But, in a move that could impact millions, he said there could be a lag in refunds being processed.

"Everybody's return will get processed," Koskinen told reporters. "But people have gotten very used to being able to file their return and quickly getting a refund. This year we may not have the resources, the people to provide refunds as quickly as we have in the past."

In recent years, the IRS says it was able to issue most tax refunds within 21 days, if the returns were filed electronically. Koskinen wouldn't estimate how long they might be delayed in the upcoming filing season, which is just a few weeks away.

Congress cut the IRS budget by $346 million for the budget year that ends in September 2015. The $10.9 billion budget is $1.2 billion less than the agency received in 2010. The agency has come under heavy fire from congressional Republicans for its now-halted practice of applying extra scrutiny to conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status.

COMMENT:  I suspect this will all be worked out.  No political party wants to be linked with delayed refunds. 

Reminds me of the stories about the Navy, just before World War II, announcing that enemy submarines had been sighted off our East Coast, the announcements coming just before the Navy budget was up for approval.

Of course, we still don't know the full truth about the IRS scandals.  Maybe now, with a Congress entirely controlled by Republicans, we'll find out.

December 20, 2014