Tammy Swanson (Patricia Clarkson) is the first ex-wife of Ron Swanson. Ron has been married to two different women, both named Tammy, and he hates and fears both of them. Ron explains that Tammy I was present throughout most of his young life: she witnessed his birth, was his Sunday School teacher, and even took his virginity. Tammy I returns as an IRS agent who arrives at the end of the third season (although she doesn't appear physically until the fourth-season premiere) to audit Ron. Both Ron and his second wife named Tammy panic at the news of her arrival, and Ron initially goes into hiding before deciding to come back and face her. Leslie then enlists Ron's eccentric mother (also coincidentally named Tammy) in a drinking contest to drive Tammy I away once and for all. Since Tammy I's claim she was auditing Ron was a lie designed to let her search for his hidden gold, she ends up leaving with nothing, as Ron deliberately puts a tiny amount of gold out as a decoy, being happy to sacrifice it in order to get rid of Tammy I.
