Fox News Panel Clashes After Alan Colmes Says IRS Went After 'Only a Handful' of Tea Party Groups

Photo Credit: Fox News

In an appearance on Fox News today, conservative writer Jim Pinkerton and liberal radio host Alan Colmes clashed over the media's perceived ideological attachment to the Obama administration and coverage of the ongoing Internal Revenue Service (IRS) scandal.

The center of their discussion? Whether the media are being complicit in covering up potential political motivation for the government's targeting of the Tea Party and conservative groups.

Pinkerton argued that the media are more in bed with the Obama administration than any other preceding Democratic presidency. Colmes, naturally, disagreed.

"To say that never before has the media been so in line with the party in power is to me just patently absurd," Colmes said, highlighting his view that the media seemingly pressed for and supported the War in Iraq under President George W. Bush.

"I don't see the marriage between the media and what the administration is doing on the left as much as Jim does," he added.

While the liberal commentator attempted to downplay the number of conservative organizations being targeted by the IRS (he said it was "only a handful"), Pinkerton shot back, noting that nearly one quarter of the groups were ideologically right-of-center. The conservative writer and pundit also charged that groups funded by billionaire George Soros seemed to be defending the IRS's actions.

Here's how Mediaite frames the rest of the discussion:

Colmes noted that editorial writers and columnists with the New York Times and The Washington Post have criticized the IRS unequivocally. “This isn’t a liberal consortium supporting what’s going on,” Colmes said.

Pinkerton noted that it is not all left-leaning media outlets, but there has been a nearly uniform defense of the IRS by organizations funded by Soros. Colmes and Pinkerton battled over the connection that was being drawn between Soros and liberal outlets defending the IRS. [...]

Pinkerton and Colmes then exploded over the assertion that the IRS evenly targeted liberal and conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status.

“Every show on MSNBC, except for Morning Joe, is saying that the IRS did the right thing,” Pinkerton asserted. “That’s where the bias comes in.”

Watch the clip, below:

(H/T: Mediaite)