Waxman the Hun goes after accounting rules

...we still have political witch-hunts. But instead of hunting Hollywood people, it's now Hollywood people who do the hunting. America's top witch-hunter today is Congressman Henry Waxman (D., Calif.), whose district includes West Hollywood, Beverly Hills and Malibu. And instead of hunting communists, Waxman hunts capitalists.

That's what he's doing by commanding the appearance before his powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee next month by top executives of AT&T, Caterpillar, Verizon and Deere. Not only do these executives have to show up for hearings, but in advance of it, they have to provide internal documents including emails. It's basically a criminal investigation being conducted outside regulatory or law enforcement channels.

And what's the crime? None at all that I can see. Waxman is focusing on the noncash charges to earnings this quarter these companies are taking -- measured in the billions -- as a result of the changing tax treatment of health care benefits, as a direct consequence of the enactment this month of ObamaCare.

Huh?