The IRS Will Come for You Next, Unless Congress Acts Now

[CuteOldGuy]

Do you really think you're exempt from tyranny? Are you really that stupid? From the article:

The scandal isn’t about politics—it’s about civil liberties. And Congress needs to make sure it never happens again, writes the CEO of conservative activist group FreedomWorks.

It’s not paranoia if they really are out to get you.

Nearly 500 groups applying for tax-exempt status have spoken out against the Internal Revenue Service for abusing its power, intimidating groups that were aiming to educate citizens on the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and their civic duty to hold government accountable.

It began in March 2010, when an IRS manager in Cincinnati began a bureaucratic filibuster.

Applications that contained the phrases “tea party,” “government spending,” “government debt,” “taxes,” “make America a better place to live,” “patriots,” and “9/12” were isolated from other applications and subjected to extra paperwork and inquiries, delaying some approvals by as much as 1,138 days. Targeted groups were instructed to disclose hundreds of pages of private information, including the names of volunteers, donors, and even relatives of volunteers; résumés for each governing group member; printouts of websites and social-media content, and book reports of the clubs’ suggested reading materials.

This wasn’t standard protocol—it was opposition research. The IRS abused its power, bullying groups of citizens who didn’t have the financial and legal resources to fight back and violating their First Amendment right to assemble freely and criticize the federal government.

It’s the type of corruption that developing-world juntas aspire to, and not something the greatest constitutional republic in human history should be reduced to. It is unacceptable for a government agency to profile and discriminate against some citizens because of their beliefs, whether it is political, religious, or any other voluntary personal affiliation.

This is not the first time the IRS has picked winners and losers for the benefit of a sitting president. In the 1970s, audits launched against President Nixon’s enemies were a startling component of the Watergate saga. But the current IRS scandal will be viewed as far worse in the eyes of history.

While Watergate was the product of a few bad actors, the malfeasants were caught, stopped, and brought to justice. The discrimination against the IRS’s self-categorized “Tea Party cases” was an agencywide practice that was known, discovered, and continued for years.

A report issued by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration this week took the first step toward exposing the extent of the IRS’s misbehavior. But this historic abuse of power and “unequal treatment under the law” raises fundamental questions about the sanctity of civil rights in America—and citizens deserve answers.

Unfortunately, in the days since the IRS made its official apology, the executive branch has been a revolving door of excuses and half-truths.

If President Obama is not watching over the executive branch, then who is?

Lois G. Lerner, the IRS director of tax-exempt organizations, was briefed in June 2011 that political terminology was being used as criteria to sort tax-exempt applications, yet she insisted in her recent apology that the investigations were carried out without the knowledge of upper management.

White House Press Secretary Jay Carney told reporters the White House counsel’s office learned about the IRS’s discrimination against small-government groups last month, on April 22—yet insisted that President Obama had no knowledge of the scandal until reading about it in the news with the rest of America.

Treasury Secretary Jack Lew found a sacrificial lamb in IRS Commissioner Steven Miller, requesting his resignation despite the fact that he was promoted into the position in November 2012—well after the targeting started—and was scheduled to retire from his position next month anyway.

So who is really responsible? Who knew what, and when did they know it?

The day the story broke, Carney tried to deflect blame by claiming that the “IRS is an independent enforcement agency.” However, it is a part of the Department of the Treasury, which answers to the president.

Democratic campaign strategist David Axelrod argued that the “vast” size of the federal government makes it impossible for the president to know what is going on beneath him in the executive branch.

If President Obama is not watching over the executive branch, then who is?

Attorney General Eric Holder has ordered a Justice Department and FBI investigation into the IRS that will determine if the agency broke laws in targeting conservative groups for additional review. Unfortunately, the Holder Justice Department’s ethical and constitutional track record leave it with no credibility.

Congress needs to launch a full investigation to bring the perpetrators to justice or risk setting a precedent fatal to our constitutional republic—one that forfeits our civil liberties and empowers the feds to use bureaucracy to silence the voices of dissenting civilians.

This is not a political scandal. The implications of unchecked abuses of executive power extend way beyond the battle for Congress in 2014. There are real public-policy issues at hand, such as making sure that citizens who try to obtain health-care coverage through Obamacare are not subject to the same selective abuse by unelected paper-pushers.

If the IRS can target and discriminate against one group of Americans, it can arbitrarily do it to anyone. This is an attack on the civil liberties of all Americans, and Congress needs to act now to make sure it never happens again.

Yeah. It can't happen here. It can't happen to me. Well, guess what? It has, and it will.

For more: http://www.thedailybeast.com/article...-acts-now.html

[Randy4Candy]

Whatever actual causes for concern, and there are some, gets lost in your and your article's hyperbolic hysteria. The louder you yell the less attention anyone pays.

[nevergaveitathought]

A large unwieldy self-interested government is a natural enemy to and views conservatism of all stripes as something to be defeated.

When you have government unions demanding, replete with protest signs and slogans, "tax me more" ( translation: tax you more so my job, benefits and salary are at least protected during my lifetime, who cares about after that?) there is a fundamental conflict between protectionism and self-interest and treating all people and groups equally under the law.

This IRS debacle hits at the very root of self-governance and the constitutional right of redress of grievances.

When half of America has cause to view it's own government as a tyrannical enemy, because it's own government has attacked them, we won't be long a nation.


On a lighter note, when the female reporter asked Obama when he first knew of the IRS tageting conservatism,he said letme be clear, and then stammered out something about when he learned of the AG report. What a fraud!

[Randy4Candy]

Hmmm, apples and oranges is a good start to a fruit salad but they're not worth a damn for comparison's sake. If the IRS' actions can be proven to go back to Obama then the process will take over and there are plenty of right wing politicians who will ensure that any substantial proof will not go away. Just look at what they are doing now with smoke and mirrors with regards to any verifiable facts. So far, this is long on supposition and short on proof, The Teawipes' extrapolations regarding the imminent seizure of anything from guns to personal wealth is even more of a reach. While it is good to be vigilant in protecting rights, it is smarter from a practical standpoint as it applies to enlisting broad support, to have a lot less hysteria and much more fact based solutions to what the problem appears to be at this time. There isn't an IRS agent under every bed in America any more than there were communists under every bed in the 1950s when Joe McCarthy was pulling out his bullshit. The majority of the country knows that all of this is as premature as the dust up over Benghazi turned out to be. Though that may not be over, the release of the email chain regarding the initial public responses to those events by the government has set the idea that it was all a reelection ploy quite a ways back. In light of this, banking on the public remembering the Benghazi thing with significant negative implications in 2016, if it only goes this far, is a pretty shaky bet. My concern is that useful steps to rectify the actual offenses by the IRS will not be taken because there is perceived to be more political hay to be made by continual efforts to make it into more than it can be proven to be. That, in a nutshell, is the problem with the "not-so-loyal opposition" because concrete, doable and useful actions are forsaken for overblown hype and publicity - much like 99.9% of the offerings from the Teawipes and Libraritarians on this board. Offering nothing achievable in favor of wild fantasies just doesn't cut it. It is childish and will result in the exact opposite result you folks seek. And, if you think continued travel on this road will eventually lead to a massive and popular revolutionary uprising - think again.

We can go into why the Eisenhower administration decided to interpret the meaning of the word "exclusive" as "primarily" if you like. In those times of great union strength, my money's on them trying to find a way to funnel more non-union money to Republicans as a means to counteract the unions. But, in the end, unless there is found to be some memo somewhere, my thoughts on that will remain only suppositions - just like most of what you jokers try to post as fact with regards to whether or not Obama is behind the IRS' actions. The difference is that I understand the difference and you don't.

[Whirlaway]

What happened at the IRS WAS political.

It was directed by Obama............Obama didn't pick up a phone and instruct the IRS to go after his opponents, that isn't how things are done in Washington....but make no mistake, the IRS Scandal started at the top.

[Randy4Candy]

Originally Posted by Whirlaway

What happened at the IRS WAS political.

It was directed by Obama............Obama didn't pick up a phone and instruct the IRS to go after his opponents, that isn't how things are done in Washington....but make no mistake, the IRS Scandal started at the top.

Like I said, PROVE IT, your Teawipe feel good suppositions are as meaningless as your statement "that isn't how things happen in Washington." There should be hell to pay for those who can actually be shown to have done something wrong. Otherwise, it's all about your wet dreams.

[Whirlaway]

Of course you will suspend all critical thinking for the sole purpose of defending the indefensible..............that is the very definition of an Obamazombie.

The bureaucrats at the Internal Revenue Service did exactly what the president said was the right and honorable thing to do.


http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...googlenews_wsj


And over time it will be proved; just as the lies of Benghazi have been unraveled...; The IRS scandals started at the top, no ifs, ands, or buts !

A more curious question is how serious are you about your "hell to pay" for the perpetrators bluster ? But I suspect even with smoking gun evidence of Obama's involvement you would weasel out by invoking a "we technically weren't alone" dodge; or the "meaning of is is" escape !

[i'va biggen]

Originally Posted by Whirlaway

What happened at the IRS WAS political.

It was directed by Obama............Obama didn't pick up a phone and instruct the IRS to go after his opponents, that isn't how things are done in Washington....but make no mistake, the IRS Scandal started at the top.

got any hard evidence besides the hard on you have for Obie?

[Guest032516]

Originally Posted by i'va biggen

got any hard evidence besides the hard on you have for Obie?

Of course he doesn't.

[steamyromance]

Originally Posted by i'va biggen

got any hard evidence besides the hard on you have for Obie?

At least all the bullshit should bug you libs if only cause you have to defend it every 10 minutes on here.
Wake up !
Irs, labor dept. fbi, going after Republicans or there contributors > As supporters of the current administration that should piss you off. If only because it supports all the fear about it, gives the rest of us ammo to bash ya with.
Wake up, at least admit you need to elect some smarter libs, ok.

[i'va biggen]

Originally Posted by steamyromance

At least all the bullshit should bug you libs if only cause you have to defend it every 10 minutes on here.
Wake up !
Irs, labor dept. fbi, going after Republicans or there contributors > As supporters of the current administration that should piss you off. If only because it supports all the fear about it, gives the rest of us ammo to bash ya with.
Wake up, at least admit you need to elect some smarter libs, ok.

Not a lib cowboy, up whirly spreads BS daily with no prominence. Welcome to his ass kissing crowd.

[Yssup Rider]

does anybody find it ironic that the right leaning, ahem, members of this forum attack opposing views by lumping all of them into a single category?

Who else in history did that?

[Randy4Candy]

Originally Posted by Yssup Rider

does anybody find it ironic that the right leaning, ahem, members of this forum attack opposing views by lumping all of them into a single category?

Who else in history did that?

Adolph Stalin?

Dick Cheney?

George Lincoln Rockwell?

Joseph McCarthy?

MopBoy Q. Corneyhole?

What a krewe...

[Guest040616]

Originally Posted by Randy4Candy

Adolph Stalin?

Dick Cheney?

George Lincoln Rockwell?

Joseph McCarthy?

MopBoy Q. Corneyhole?

What a krewe...

You forgot Joseph Hitler!

[Randy4Candy]

Originally Posted by bigtex

You forgot Joseph Hitler!

Dammit! I knew there was something.....