WASHINGTON (AP) — White House chief of staff Denis McDonough and other senior advisers knew in late April that an impending report was likely to say the IRS had inappropriately targeted conservative groups, President Barack Obama's spokesman disclosed Monday, expanding the circle of top officials who knew of the audit beyond those named earlier. The apparent decision to keep the president in the dark underscores the White House's cautious legal approach to controversies and reflects a desire by top advisers to distance Obama from troubles threatening his administration. A new Pew Research Center poll shows 42 percent of Americans think the Obama administration was "involved" in the IRS targeting of conservative groups, while 31 percent say it was a decision made solely by employees at the IRS. As with the IRS investigation, the White House says Obama learned only from news reporters that the Justice Department had subpoenaed phone records from journalists at The Associated Press as part of a leaks investigation. In a less far-reaching case in 2004, the Bush White House acknowledged that its counsel's office learned of a Justice Department investigation into whether Sandy Berger — the national security adviser under President Bill Clinton — had removed classified documents from the National Archives. Former IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman heads to Capitol Hill on Tuesday, giving lawmakers their first opportunity to question the man who ran the agency when agents were improperly targeting tea party groups. The Senate Finance Committee wants to know why Shulman didn't tell Congress — even after he was briefed in 2012 — that agents had been singling out conservative political groups for additional scrutiny when they applied for tax-exempt status. The IRS had said last week that Ingram shifted to overseeing the health care law rollout in December 2010, well before alarm bells went off at headquarters that a unit of the tax exempt division was targeting tea party groups for extra scrutiny.

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — The Republican National Committee chairman and a leading conservative, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, urged caution Monday for Republican critics calling for President Barack Obama's impeachment, but would not rule out impeachment altogether as new details emerged about the White House's role in the developing scandal at the Internal Revenue Service. The Internal Revenue Service has acknowledged inappropriate scrutiny of tea party groups applying for tax-exempt status ahead of the last election. White House chief of staff Denis McDonough and other senior presidential advisers knew in late April that an upcoming report was likely to find that IRS employees had targeted conservative political groups. While striking a moderate tone on impeachment, Paul said Monday that it "stretches credulity" to think no one else in the Obama administration knew about the misconduct.

"International pressure could very well be what the president of Bolivia needs to be able to finally expel the malignant cancer of corruption that is killing both the Bolivian justice system and the thousands of innocent people like Mr. Ostreicher," Penn told congressional committee looking at Ostreicher's case. Ostreicher's lawyer, Jimmy Montano, said Fernando Rivera, the former top legal adviser in the Interior Ministry and the highest government official jailed in the case, apologized in court last month and said he was following orders of Sacha Llorenti, who was then minister of the presidency and is currently Bolivia's ambassador to the United Nations.

WASHINGTON (AP) — In another case of the Obama administration investigating classified information improperly disclosed to reporters, the government is prosecuting a State Department expert on North Korea in a probe that appears to step into uncharted territory — by declaring that a journalist is committing a crime in disclosing leaked information. During the investigation of State Department adviser Stephen Kim, law enforcement officials obtained a search warrant for some private emails of James Rosen, the chief Washington correspondent for Fox News. An FBI agent seeking the search warrant spelled out the government's view of the journalist's role, saying the reporter is a co-conspirator and that there is probable cause to believe that the reporter committed a violation of criminal law. [...] it is downright chilling. In June 2009, Rosen reported that U.S. intelligence officials warned President Barack Obama and senior U.S. officials that North Korea would respond to a United Nations Security Council resolution condemning nuclear tests with another nuclear test. The Justice Department said that improper disclosure of classified information to the press can pose a serious risk of harm to national security, and said it has followed the law and its policies to protect First Amendment rights.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama on Monday told Myanmar's president during a long-awaited White House meeting that he appreciates the Asian leader's efforts to lead the country on its sometimes difficult path to democracy and assured him of U.S. support. Activists object to the invitation because of concerns over human rights in the country, but it marks a turnaround in international acceptance for Myanmar after decades of isolation and direct military rule. Obama said they discussed Thein Sein's intention to release more political prisoners, institutionalize political reform and rule of law so it endures and work to end ethnic conflict. The U.S. last month announced it is considering duty-free access for Myanmar to U.S. markets, and on Tuesday the two governments will sign a bilateral trade and investment framework agreement. White House spokesman Jay Carney said the U.S. government has begun to allow limited use of the name Myanmar as "a diplomatic courtesy" to show respect for the ambitious reforms the country is pursuing. Human rights activists and Myanmar campaigners have sharply criticized the administration for inviting Thein Sein, arguing it sends the wrong message and wastes leverage to press for further democratic change. The department said there were credible allegations of the involvement of local border security authorities in the burning of villages during the communal violence in western Rakhine State, and of Muslims being arbitrarily detained since June, and reportedly denied food, water, and sleep.