Midday Roundup: A portrait of Lois Lerner, in her own words

Lois Lerner speaks. Former IRS official Lois Lerner, who remains at the center of the scandal involving the agency’s targeting of conservative groups, broke her silence today in an interview with Politico. She claims she’s become a pariah, unemployable, and plagued by death threats. Despite the evidence that’s piled up around her to indicate at least some culpability in orchestrating a policy to stonewall her boss’s critics, Lerner remains unapologetic. She said she did nothing wrong. “The portrait that emerges shows Lerner is, indeed, fierce, unapologetic, and perhaps even tone-deaf when she says things that show her Democratic leanings,” Politico reporter Rachael Bade concludes. “She had a quick temper and may have intimidated co-workers who could have helped her out of this mess. It’s easy to see how Republicans have seized on the image of a devilish figure cracking down on conservative nonprofits.”

At-home attacks? ISIS released a recruiting message of sorts yesterday, urging its supporters to kill Westerners in retaliation for their governments’ bombing raids against the militants. “If you can kill a disbelieving American or European, especially the spiteful and filthy French, or an Australian or a Canadian or any other disbeliever, then rely upon Allah, and kill him in any manner or way however it may be,” a spokesman for the group says in the 42-minute recording released on social media. The terror group also is touting its European recruits, releasing videos of fighters from the U.K. armed for battle. President Barack Obama plans to ask the UN to lead a global effort to prevent the hundreds of Westerners fighting with ISIS in Syria and Iraq from retuning to their home countries to perpetrate terror attacks. Making the rounds of the Sunday TV talk shows, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power warned not to expect a quick solution to the ISIS threat.

Slouchy Service. An Army veteran suffering from depression scaled the fence surrounding the White House, bolted across the lawn, and walked into the iconic building through the front door on Friday evening. He was carrying a knife. The Secret Service is pretty embarrassed about the whole thing, obviously. The agency whose sole job is to keep the first family safe now wants to add extra fortifications to the “people’s house.” Some say such measures are necessary (see the above item about ISIS). But others suggest the Secret Service, plagued with scandals in the last few years, should just focus on doing its job.

Retrial. A Florida man goes back on trial today for firing 10 rounds into an SUV full of teenagers, killing one of them. Michael Dunn claimed he feared for his life after the teens acted threateningly when he asked them to turn down their loud music. Prosecutors claim the shooting was motivated by prejudice and contempt. Dunn is white and his victim, 17-year-old Jordan Davis, was black. The first jury that considered the case couldn’t decide what happened that afternoon in November 2012, hence the retrial. Dunn, 47, was convicted of three counts of attempted second-degree murder for endangering the other teens in the SUV and could face up to 60 years in jail on those counts. State Attorney Angela Corey, who also prosecuted the Trayvon Martin case, is hoping to persuade a new jury to convict Dunn in Davis’ death.

Praying for Satanists. Hundreds of Christians protested the so-called “black mass” held last night in a small theater in the Oklahoma City Civic Center. Only 42 people attended the event, organized by a local self-described Satanist. While the ceremony didn’t generate much interest from its intended audience, it created a media frenzy, filling the civic center parking lot with television news crews. One protestor was arrested after she broke past police guarding the entrance and tried to get in the door, shouting, “Jesus loves you!” Police led Joan Bell away after she stayed by the door, praying. “He still loves them, and He’ll always love them,” Bell said. “I just want them to know that. I wanted to get in there so I could say that to them. I don’t know if they heard me.”