An official recognition that Democrats are using their positions in government to suppress opposition political activity.
The Tea Party Gets an Apology from the IRS
AP
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Philip Bump 11:17 AM ET
A representative of the Internal Revenue Service has issued a verbal apology to a number of Tea Party groups that were asked an unusually complex set of questions to justify their non-profit status.
In early 2012, a number of groups affiliated with the Tea Party complained that the IRS was requesting an enormous amount of detailed information as it considered their tax exempt status. In February of that year, Fox News reported on the concerns.
In letters sent from IRS offices in Cincinnati earlier this month, chapters including the Waco (Texas) Tea Party and the Ohio Liberty Council were asked to provide a list of donors, identify volunteers, financial support for and relationships with political candidates and parties, and even printed copies of their Facebook pages.
"Some of what they (the IRS) asked was reasonable, but there were some requests on there that were strange," Toby Marie Walker, president of the Waco Tea Party told FoxNews.com. "It makes you wonder if they do this to groups like ACORN or other left-leaning groups.”
Apparently not. During a conference earlier today, Lois Lerner, the IRS staffer in charge of non-profit designations, apologized for the unusual request, according to the AP. Lerner said that "low-level workers" in Cincinnati began additional reviews of organizations that included "tea party" or "patriot" in their names.
At the time of the groups' initial complaints, some lawyers explained why additional reviews might be warranted.
"These tea party groups, a lot of their material makes them look and sound like a political party," said Marcus S. Owens, a lawyer who advises tax-exempt organizations and who spent a decade heading the IRS division that oversees such groups. "I think the IRS is trying to get behind the rhetoric and figure out whether they are, at their core: a political party," or a group that would qualify for tax-exempt status.
As the AP notes in its brief story on the apology, non-profits can engage in a limited amount of political activity.
The Blaze reported on some of the questions the IRS asked of a group in Ohio, as detailed by the group.
A hard copy printout of the website
List all Social Media outlets being used (Facebook, Twitter, etc) and include hard copy printouts of every posting
A narrative description of every activity of your organization since June 30, 2010 (filing date) – And they do not want a mere description of the event, but full details – including; who conducted it, their qualifications, who was allowed to take part in the activities and how they were selected, was there a fee?
The IRS also wants to know about the members of the group and their roles and more, asking specifically for the “name, address, and corporate federal ID of all organizations that are members of our organization”
A search of the IRS database indicates that at least three organizations did receive tax exempt status: Chestertown Tea Party Festival Inc. in Maryland, Tea Party Magazine in San Francisco, and Ellas Tea Party in Phoenix.
Members of the Tea Party — the name of which is often said to be an acronym for "taxed enough already" — embrace the principle that the size of government should be reduced. Today's developments are unlikely to weaken that belief.
Originally posted by sasquatch672Of course the system will target political groups. Don't ya think the Patriot act and NDAA will be used to do the same? They already have!!!!
An official recognition that Democrats are using their positions in government to suppress opposition political activity.
The Tea Party Gets an Apology from the IRS
AP
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Philip Bump 11:17 AM ET
A representative of the Internal Revenue Service has ...[text shortened]... ent should be reduced. Today's developments are unlikely to weaken that belief.
Originally posted by joe beyserI just don't want any more questions on why I want (much) low(er) taxes and (much) smaller government. At least in the private sector your money gets stolen honestly.
Of course the system will target political groups. Don't ya think the Patriot act and NDAA will be used to do the same? They already have!!!!
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It's actually not that uncommon. They scrutinize any 501c3 application that looks like it might be political in nature to see if it's 501c4 activity being masqueraded as 501c3. It's happened to a slew of left wing groups over the years, and in a local case involving an environmental center set up for educational purposes some years back it delayed the process so long that the group lost the opportunity for a very large grant. Was that politically motivated by the Reagan administration? Maybe. It's also quite plausible that it's a long term mandate presuming that everything is fraud until proven otherwise.
Originally posted by KunsooA rare time I agree with you. Administrations of both parties use police powers against their enemies. The more power is entrusted in government, the more potential there is for abuse.
It's actually not that uncommon. They scrutinize any 501c3 application that looks like it might be political in nature to see if it's 501c4 activity being masqueraded as 501c3. It's happened to a slew of left wing groups over the years, and in a local case involving an environmental center set up for educational purposes some years back it delayed the proce ...[text shortened]... le that it's a long term mandate presuming that everything is fraud until proven otherwise.