we'll have the latest at 6:00. captions by: caption colorado comments@captioncolorado.com >> pelley: tonight, the president and the i.r.s. late today, the president met with top officials. what will he do next? wyatt andrews and nancy cordes are on the breaking news. what did the administration know about the attack in benghazi? republicans charge cover-up, but the white house has just released its files. major garrett has the story. anna werner reports another military man assigned to combat sexual assaults is accused of sexual misconduct. and after 17 years, here come the cicadas. jim axelrod on their summer of love. >> so the male is calling. ( whistling ) captioning sponsored by cbs this is the "cbs evening news" with scott pelley. we're beginning tonight with breaking news.

president obama has just fired the acting head of the internal revenue service, steven miller. miller's head is the first to roll in the scandal over the i.r.s. targeting political-- conservative political groups. the president described himself moments ago as angry and here is what he said at the white house. >> the misconduct that it uncovered is inexcusable, and americans have a right to be angry about it. i am angry about it. i will not tolerate this kind of behavior in any agency, but especially in the i.r.s. >> pelley: the president promised full cooperation with the congress. the justice department has opened a criminal investigation. and we have more about that from nancy cordes. >> reporter: scott, we learned today from congressional sources that two i.r.s. employees in cincinnati have been disciplined by the agency.

we don't know what form that discipline took. a lot of republicans and some democrats today called for more employees to be punished, and possibly prosecuted. attorney general eric holder said i.r.s. specialists may have violated a variety of laws when they singled out conservative groups for special scrutiny, starting in 2010. >> the provisions that you have noted are ones that we are looking at, civil rights provisions, i.r.s. provisions, provisionally the hatch act. >> the hatch act prohibits federal employees from engaging in certain partisan activities. lying to congress is also a criminal offense. at least three top i.r.s. officials were asked repeatedly about reports that tea party groups were being targeted and they either denied it or dodged the questions. >> we've seen nothing but evasion in their testimony. >> reporter: republican charles boustany of louisiana sent three letters to the i.r.s. after he got complaints from conservative groups. but it took a six-month investigation by the treasury

department to confirm his suspicions that the i.r.s. was using inappropriate criteria to identify applications from organizations with the words "tea party" in their names. those criteria, according to the report, were drawn up by first- line management in cincinnati, not by the agency's top brass. but boustany still has questions. >> let's take the worst-case scenario. let's say it was lower level employees making these decisions. well, that's-- that's an agency that's run amok. that's a real problem, and that suggests to me a real culture of abuse that we need to get to the bottom of. >> reporter: three separate congressional committees have now scheduled hearings on the i.r.s. scandal, and a slate of current and former officials at the agency have been called on to testify, including, scott, steven miller, the acting commissioner who, as you mentioned, tendered his resignation today. >> pelley: they demanded his resignation and he submitted it. does that mean now he won't testify on friday?

>> reporter: well, that's what a lot of people up here are wondering, scott, whether he and other officials, now that the scepter of criminal charges have been raised by the not want to speak, might not want to say something incriminating. so there are going to be a lot of members who want them to testify. whether they'll do so, still an open question. >> pelley: nancy, thanks very much. so how did all this start? well the run-up to the last election, dozens of new political organizations tried to get tax-exempt status from the i.r.s. by claiming that they were actually social welfare groups. the i.r.s. had to investigate each to determine whether the organization was actually spending most of its time on social welfare or politics. the i.r.s. has admitted that it targeted conservative groups but what about liberals? we sent wyatt andrews to find out. >> reporter: when jeff cohen's group, the left-leaning action for progressive future, applied for an i.r.s. tax exemption, the

process was too long and slow, he says, but it was much easier for him than it was for tea party groups. cohen answered nine i.r.s. questions, many of them about the politics of his web site, but he was approved after 18 months. by contrast, tea party groups faced dozens of questions, and many are still waiting for approval after two and a half years. >> i'm for the i.r.s. toughly probing all groups applying for tax-exempt status, but they shouldn't specially scrutinize certain groups because they're on the left or the right. >> reporter: according to the treasury inspector general's report, i.r.s. scrutiny of the tea party began in 2010 in the tax exemption unit based in cincinnati. specialists here in charge of denying tax exemption to groups whose mission is primarily political, screening applications using three search terms, tea party, 9/12, and patriot. the words "tea party" became the

shorthand term for all potential political cases. jeff cohen calls the targeting of anyone's politics appalling. >> because, remember, if groups who have the name "tea party" in their name, those words, can be targeted now, in a few years, groups with the word "progressive" in their name could be targeted by the i.r.s. it's wrong in either case. >> reporter: while the report calls the search terms inappropriate, it still concludes the cincinnati office was not politically biased. of the 298 organizations the office reviewed, only a third were triggered by conservative search terms. two-third were not. however, every tea party group was reviewed. what's missing in the inspector general's report is the question of why the searches lacked political balance? scott, these investigators said the search terms-- using the search terms was wrong, but they don't report why asking the terms targeted the right. >> pelley: the administration is also dealing with sexual

misconduct in the military. today, defense secretary chuck hagel ordered everyone who is assigned to prevent sexual abuse to be retrained. one of them, an army sergeant at fort hood, texas is the latest one facing allegations, and here's anna werner. >> reporter: there are nearly 8,000 women stationed at fort hood, the army's criminal investigation is centered on a sergeant who was a sexual assault prevention and response coordinator there. we learned the sergeant allegedly had a relationship with a subordinate female soldier that involved prostitution. he allegedly approached two other female soldiers to do the same but they refuse. one of the women said he assaulted her. he has been suspended from all duties and could be charged this week. last week, police arrested

another man, air force lieutenant colonel jeffrey krusinski for allegedly groping a woman in a parking lot. he was in charge of the air force's sexual assault defense unit. defense secretary chuck hagel had this to say. >> sexual assault is a despicable crime and one of the most serious challenges facing this department. it is a threat to the safety and welfare our people and the help, reputation, and trust of this institution. >> reporter: it's hard to compare the frequency of sexual assaults in the military to the number in the general population because of the way the pentagon defines the crime, but 6% of service women reported unwanted sexual conduct in the past year, compared to just 3% of civilians. kimberly olson is a retired air force colonel. >> if i can use a battlefield analogy, it seems like the enemy is inside the wire. >> olson is president of grace after fire, providing support for women veterans, including those who have been sexually assaulted. >> commanders in the military set the kind of environment in

which their troops work, in which their troops train. if you're the kind of commander who is lackadaisical when it comes to violence or innuendoes you will create the kind of environment in which this occurs. >> reporter: olson says until the military holds those kinds of commanders accountable, thing will not change. scott, a pentagon survey said last year 26,000 women service members were sexually assaulted but never reported it. >> pelley: anna werner in texas, anna, thank you very much. late today, the white house released internal e-mails that deal with the administration's public description of the attack on the u.s. consulate inning benghazi, libya. ambassador chris stevens and three other americans were killed there last september 11. republicans say the white house covered up details of the attack while mr. obama was running for reelection. major garrett is at the white house for us tonight. major what, do we know now? >> reporter: scott, the e-mails reveal how the first draft of c.i.a. talking points prepared

for u.n. ambassador susan rice and select members of congress watered down direct references to al qaeda links to the benghazi attacks and warnings about potential attacks. this is the first version of the benghazi talking points produced by the c.i.a. at 2:27 p.m. on september 14, 2012. it says that the benghazi assault may have been, "spontaneously inspired by the protests at the u.s. embassy in cairo and evolved into a direct assault against the u.s. consulate." it also said, "we know that islamic extremists with ties to al qaeda participated in the attack." it also cites at least five other attacks against foreign interests in benghazi and that "we cannot rule out that individuals had previously surveiled the u.s. facilities." the final version, after numerous revisions, produced at 12:13 p.m. on september 15 kept the concept as spontaneous

demonstration but removed references to al qaeda or affiliated groups, previous attacks on diplomatic facilities, or the possibility of premeditated surveillance. this page shows how much of it happened. handwritten changes ordered by deputy c.i.a. director michael morrell after a white house meeting september 15. top c.i.a. officials told us morrell's changes coincidentally reflected those expressed by top state department officials. senior u.s. intelligence officials told us that c.i.a. did not want to compromise the f.b.i. investigation by suggesting, even by implication, who might have been involved. and, scott, senior u.s. intelligence officials also tell us that they wanted to protect classified information already developed on possible culprits. >> pelley: more on this tomorrow. major, thank you very much. how much would someone pay for a perfect diamond? we'll show you. america's future warplane makes a historic flight. and at the vatican, it's a bird in hand. when the cbs evening news continues.

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>> pelley: we got a glimpse into the future of warfare this week. the navy has tested its newest technology, launching a stealth drone from an aircraft carrier and david martin was there. >> reporter: the x47-b rolled on to the flight deck of the aircraft carrier "george h.w. bush" off the coast of virginia, its every move controlled by robo deckhands. call sign salty dog 502 was

hooked spot catapult for a first-ever carrier launch of an unmanned aircraft. ted branch, in charge of carrier aircraft for the atlantic, called it historic. >> the unmanned system you saw flying today is a big part of the evolution we're going to see for naval aviation and the navy as we continue down the path. >> reporter: flying itself in response to computerized commands, the x47-b, made two passes over the ship before returning to its base in maryland pain flight that was eight years and $1.4 billion in the making. >> you saw x47 today fly precisely where we wanted it to be. it went exactly where it was supposed to be. >> reporter: the navy plans to put four to six of these stealth-like aircraft on each of its 10 carriers, eliminating the need to construct secret drone

bases in different parts of the world and according to rear admiral william moran, the navy's director of air warfare, freeing navy aircraft of human limitations. >> when you bring in an unmanned capability that can take off and stay up for 12, 14 hours, half a day, that's a pretty significant improvement in capability. >> reporter: but putting it in the middle of a deck filled with 70 manned aircraft will be a significant complication. all of a sudden you're going to put a robot in the middle of that? are you convinced that that will work? >> i'm convinced. it's just another aircraft. we've done a lot of studies, a lot of preliminary work to understand the ballet that occurs on that flight deck to make sure that we can launch and recover it safely and operate it safely. >> reporter: the navy plans to deploy carrier drones as early as 2018. at first, they'll be loaded with cameras and used for round-the- clock surveillance but there's little doubt they will one day carry weapons.

first, the x47-b has to prove it can actually land on an aircraft carrier. that is scheduled to happen some time this summer. david martin, cbs news, aboard the "george h.w. bush." >> pelley: what's the price of perfection? well, have a look at this diamond. it is flawless and more than 101 carets. it took nearly two years to cut it from a rough diamond twice its size. today, it sold at auction in switzerland for more than $26.5 million, a record for a colorless diamond. they're singing a love song. up next, the cicadas. up nthe cicadas. with the spark miles card from capital one, bjorn earns unlimited rewards for his small business.

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>> pelley: everything has its season. everything has its time. and for cicadas, the time is now. after living underground on the east coast for 17 years, its insects, billions of them, are about to resurface. and as jim axelrod tells us, they'll be making plenty of noise and love. >> see if you can find one of those cicadas, and if you find one, point to it and let us know. >> reporter: these preschoolers at the cora hart shore and

arboretum in short hills, new jersey are, getting their first glimpse at one of the marvels of nature. >> i see a lot of holes. oh, you found one! >> they're disgusting! >> reporter: like clockwork, the cicadas, who belong to what scientists call brood 2, are digging their way out. >> so this is a cicada hole and there is a cicada nynph. he has studied the life cycle of cicadas for 20 years. >> they synchronize their development, and they have long life cycles and when they come out they come out in massive numbers. >> reporter: what is triggering that? >> well, they are counting the seasons because they are down underground feeding on the roots and count the number of times it leaves out, and they monitor soil temperature and when it hits 64 degrees fahrenheit out they come. >> the eastern united states an estimated 1 million cicadas per

acre will blanket the region from north carolina to connecticut. within days of emerging, the cicada nymph sheds its skin and morphs into an adult. before dying, the rest of the four- to six-week life is devoted to finding a mate and making babies, which is where all the racket comes in. a chorus of males singing to attract females can reach 90 decibels, and loud as a lawn mower. that's due to their hollow abdomens that amplify the cicadas' love songs. >> so the male is calling... ( whistling ) and then about a third of a second after he starts that, the female clicks her wings just like that. it's a little quiet sound and a little movement. >> reporter: in a couple of months, the buzzing will be gone, and the next time these little ones hear it, they'll be 20-somethings. jim axelrod, cbs news, short hills, new jersey. >> pelley: this is how saint

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that has dozens of cops searching for a suspect. ne misconduct is inexcusable i am angry about it i will t tolerate this behavior in ay >> pelley: it was a month ago today that two bombs went it was a month ago today that two bombs went off near the finish line of the boston marathon. three people were killed, 282 injured and of those, 15 lost limbs. six people are still in the hospital tonight. michelle miller talked to a man whose battle for recovery is only beginning. >> reporter: when the second bomb went off, 34-year-old mark fucarile was just four feet away. half of his right leg was blown off. and despite 15 surgeries, doctors still aren't sure if they can save his shattered left leg. >> if they can't get me to the best usable shape, we should cut it off because it will be just a useless leg. and to have a prosthesis would be better. >> reporter: and you're okay with that? >> yeah, 100%. >> reporter: what's a good day

for you? >> not being in the pain i'm in right now. >> reporter: right now. you're pushing through it, though? >> yes. it's still hard because of the pain, like i said, feels like this leg is still here and i'm getting pains that are like the thing's twisted, you know, through a meat grinder. >> reporter: fucarile was literally on fire when rescuers got to him. the flames caused third-degree burns on his back. his body is covered in bruises from shrapnel, a piece of metal remains lodged in his heart. >> everybody has had it hard, everybody. you know? all the victims, not one injury is easier than another. just because i'm here longer doesn't mean someone else's pain is not worse. >> reporter: in the last 30 days, fucarile's family, including his fiancee jennifer regan, and his 5-year-old son gavin, have taken shifts to make sure he is never alone.

stephanie barron is his sister. >> i wish for him to be home with his son and have some kind of normalcy again. i know he'll get there. he is the strongest person. >> i just want to get back to living life with my girl and my son and plan our wedding and, you know, see my brother get married. he postponed his wedding for me, you know? i'm his best man. he wants me to stand there by his side. >> reporter: he says having family, friends, even strangers by his side continues to be his best medicine. michelle miller, cbs news, boston. >> and that's the "cbs evening news" for tonight. for all of us at cbs news all around the world, good night. captioning sponsored by cbs captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org

>> your realtime captioner: linda marie macdonald in the south bay for a suspect - who stabbed 3 peo 2 of them - children. we begin with breaking news. right now there's a manhunt in the south bay for a suspect who stabbed three people. two of them children. good evening, i'm allen martin. >> i'm elizabeth cook. the search area is in along an avenue in alum rock where police search teams are going door to door. chopper 5 captured the search in the neighborhood where about 75 law enforcement officers are scouring the neighborhood. here is what we know so far. according to the sheriff's office, this incident happened about 3:30 this afternoon. they are telling us that someone stabbed three people and that two victims are children under 5 years old. they were rushed to the hospital. we are told the other victim,

the third person, an adult woman. a sheriff's spokesman says her injuries are very serious. >> earlier chopper 5 captured pictures of search teams checking backyards in the neighborhood using police dogs to pick up the trail or check for evidence. other officers were conducting searches house to house. one home in the neighborhood is blocked off by police tape. at least 75 officers are working the scene now. kpix 5's len ramirez is at the scene now. len, what can you tell us? >> reporter: we're at alum rock avenue in viewmont where this tragedy happened this afternoon. police have cordoned off the street viewmont and several others in the area as they continue to go yard by yard looking for a suspect. the sheriff's department is reporting this as a double homicide. sometime taf