Here’s how the New York Times puts it in this morning’s editorial: “The obsession among House conservatives to hobble the Internal Revenue Service is about to pay off this tax season in foolhardy budget cuts to the agency that will cost the government an estimated $2 billion in lost revenue. That works out to about $6 in lost taxes for every $1 in cuts Congress made in reducing the I.R.S. budget another 3 percent this year, according to the Treasury Department. The slashed budget is a victory for penny-wise-and-pound-foolish politicians.”

Here’s the rewrite: “The fidelity of the House conservatives to the promises they made to voters is about to pay off in budget cuts to the I.R.S. whose abuses inspired voters to deliver to the Republicans not only the House but the Senate. The budget cuts will reduce by $2 billion the amount the taxpayers will have to pay the government. That works out to $6 saved by taxpayers for every $1 in cuts Congress makes in reducing the I.R.S. budget a measly 3 percent this year. Imagine if the I.R.S. budget were slashed more. Either way, this is a victory for the taxpayer and a defeat for the state.”