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IRS officials in Washington were involved in targeting of conservative groups

OpportunityCost

OpportunityCost

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IRS officials in Washington were involved in targeting of conservative groups - The Washington Post

Internal Revenue Service officials in Washington and at least two other offices were involved with investigating conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status, making clear that the effort reached well beyond the branch in Cincinnati that was initially blamed, according to documents obtained by The Washington Post.IRS officials at the agency’s Washington headquarters sent queries to conservative groups asking about their donors and other aspects of their operations, while officials in the El Monte and Laguna Niguel offices in California sent similar questionnaires to tea-party-affiliated groups, the documents show.
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“For the IRS to say it was some low-level group in Cincinnati is simply false,” said Cleta Mitchell, a partner in the law firm Foley & Lardner who sought to communicate with IRS headquarters about the delay in granting tax-exempt status to True the Vote.
Moreover, details of the IRS’s efforts to target conservative groups reached the highest levels of the agency in May 2012, far earlier than has been disclosed, according to Republican congressional aides briefed by the IRS and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration ­(TIGTA) on the details of their reviews.
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In a June 3, 2011, letter to the IRS, Mitchell questioned the agency’s motivations for delaying recognition of one of her clients who had filed nearly two years earlier, writing, “Is the [group’s] opposition to Obamacare and the takeover of America’s healthcare system by the government the reason that this application has been held up and not approved?”
Catherine Engelbrecht, president of the Houston-based True the Vote, first filed for tax-exempt status in July 2010. At one point, Engelbrecht — who is still awaiting a determination from the IRS regarding her voting rights organization and a separate tea party group, King Street Patriots — said an IRS employee informed her: “I’m just doing what Washington is telling me to do. I’m just asking what they want me to ask.”
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Its just some dudes in Cincy. The IRS wasnt doing this! Suuuure they weren't. There is blood in the water on this one, expect the leaks to become a lot larger and more detailed as this goes on.
 
OpportunityCost said:
IRS officials in Washington were involved in targeting of conservative groups - The Washington Post

Its just some dudes in Cincy. The IRS wasnt doing this! Suuuure they weren't. There is blood in the water on this one, expect the leaks to become a lot larger and more detailed as this goes on.
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The steady drip drip as become a torrential downpour the dam isn't going to hold up much longer and when it burst (which it will) it will sweep Obama the tyrant and his corrupt administration away with it
 
OpportunityCost said:
IRS officials in Washington were involved in targeting of conservative groups - The Washington Post


Its just some dudes in Cincy. The IRS wasnt doing this! Suuuure they weren't. There is blood in the water on this one, expect the leaks to become a lot larger and more detailed as this goes on.
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It seems to me, one of the objectives of liberal/progressive politics is to build the power of government agencies as a means of overseeing the operation of the country. We now have new government agencies with astounding power, joining other agencies who already wield powers beyond the reach of the citizens.

When the best the Exectutive Branch can muster is a feigned bit of indignation over the actions of one of the most powerful agencies in the United States, there should be little doubt where this country is being led.
 
A lot of conservatives have long insisted that racial profiling is just fine, and now they're all flipping their **** when they've become the target of profiling. It sure is amusing to watch!

And before anyone tries to label me a hypocrite, no, I am definitely not defending these actions by the IRS. My other posts on the subject demonstrate this.
 
ocean515 said:
It seems to me, one of the objectives of liberal/progressive politics is to build the power of government agencies as a means of overseeing the operation of the country. We now have new government agencies with astounding power, joining other agencies who already wield powers beyond the reach of the citizens.
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I wouldn't say that's just a left wing thing. Republicans have done plenty to make government agencies with sweeping powers -- does the Department of Homeland Security ring a bell? Not only was that a brand new cabinet post, it also nationalized an industry.

I'm really disturbed by these allegations. The problem that I see is this -- you sweep away Obama and replace him with what? The Republican party is as much a part of this as the Democratic party is, so swapping out donkeys for elephants does NOTHING to change the dynamic. There was a sea change movement coming, but the TP and OWS never realized that they were protesting the same thing, and the two parties have each used the other to further divide Americans and conquer
 
According to Steve Miller, Acting Commisioner:

"We sought to centralize work in this area in 2010 because our office of Exempt Organizations observed a sharp increase in the number of section 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) applications coming from groups potentially engaged in political campaign intervention," Miller wrote. "Between 2010 and 2012, the number of applications for 501(c)(4) status more than doubled, from 1,591 to 3,398.
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Acting IRS Commissioner Steven Miller: We should have done 'better' | wtsp.com

Seems like a rational argument to make. More so than, it's all Obama's fault!

OpportunityCost said:
IRS officials in Washington were involved in targeting of conservative groups - The Washington Post







Its just some dudes in Cincy. The IRS wasnt doing this! Suuuure they weren't. There is blood in the water on this one, expect the leaks to become a lot larger and more detailed as this goes on.
Click to expand...
 
We are in uncharted territory with the level of abuse and corruption committed by this government. Benghazi, the Gustapo (aka the IRS), HHS, seizing AP's phone records, etc... it goes on and on. And this is just what we know about so far. It doesn't seem like impeachment is enough. Can they do a mass impeachment? That might work.

Oh, wait, I forgot. All these abuses, the entire way that they run the government, but guess what? Obama? Knows nothing about it. He just found out. Holder? He knows nothing. Hillary? Nope, didn't know a thing about what's going on.

Limited government, remember that? That is why they are attacking the Constitution. It goes against all they stand for.

Boy, if you support these people, you really have to check your brain at the door to believe them.
 
Apparently you didn't watch the Republican nomination close enough. With the exception of Ron Paul, those lackeys were willing to shred the constitution in the name of terrorism.

Anthony60 said:
We are in uncharted territory with the level of abuse and corruption committed by this government. Benghazi, the Gustapo (aka the IRS), HHS, seizing AP's phone records, etc... it goes on and on. And this is just what we know about so far. It doesn't seem like impeachment is enough. Can they do a mass impeachment? That might work.

Oh, wait, I forgot. All these abuses, the entire way that they run the government, but guess what? Obama? Knows nothing about it. He just found out. Holder? He knows nothing. Hillary? Nope, didn't know a thing about what's going on.

Limited government, remember that? That is why they are attacking the Constitution. It goes against all they stand for.

Boy, if you support these people, you really have to check your brain at the door to believe them.
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rocket88 said:
I wouldn't say that's just a left wing thing. Republicans have done plenty to make government agencies with sweeping powers -- does the Department of Homeland Security ring a bell? Not only was that a brand new cabinet post, it also nationalized an industry.

I'm really disturbed by these allegations. The problem that I see is this -- you sweep away Obama and replace him with what? The Republican party is as much a part of this as the Democratic party is, so swapping out donkeys for elephants does NOTHING to change the dynamic. There was a sea change movement coming, but the TP and OWS never realized that they were protesting the same thing, and the two parties have each used the other to further divide Americans and conquer
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DHS consolidated powers already in place within other agencies. The Patriot Act pushed the envelope. What I'm refering to are new agencies like the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau, or the government take over of student loans. I'm refering to the massive expansion of the IRS through Obamacare. I'm refering to dramatic expansion of EPA's reach, with their Environmentl Justice offensive looming just around the corner. This list goes on and on. Ever heard of the Bureau of Health Information Technology? Look up their budget.

The stunning revelation in this IRS matter is the apparent partisanship, and the coverup prior to the election last November.
 
ocean515 said:
DHS consolidated powers already in place within other agencies. The Patriot Act pushed the envelope. What I'm refering to are new agencies like the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau, or the government take over of student loans. I'm refering to the massive expansion of the IRS through Obamacare. I'm refering to dramatic expansion of EPA's reach, with their Environmentl Justice offensive looming just around the corner. This list goes on and on. Ever heard of the Bureau of Health Information Technology? Look up their budget.

The stunning revelation in this IRS matter is the apparent partisanship, and the coverup prior to the election last November.
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The IRS was trying to address a problem but they did it in a blatently partisan and frankly stupid way.

Allow me to play devils advocate.

The IRS was trying to address the issue of political groups who raise millions of dollars to spend on campaign ads, but use a loophole in the tax system to gain tax exempt status. The number of these groups have skyrocketed since the citizens united ruling and there may be some groups who are given tax exempt status but they should not have recieved it in the first place.
 
Unitedwestand13 said:
The IRS was trying to address a problem but they did it in a blatently partisan and frankly stupid way.

Allow me to play devils advocate.

The IRS was trying to address the issue of political groups who raise millions of dollars to spend on campaign ads, but use a loophole in the tax system to gain tax exempt status. The number of these groups have skyrocketed since the citizens united ruling and there may be some groups who are given tax exempt status but they should not have recieved it in the first place.
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Billions have been spent by 501c3 and 501c4 liberal groups in the decade prior to Citizens United. I am not aware of similar investigations into their activity. In fact, I am more aware of calls for investigations of their tax exempt status, than I am aware of any that were actually done.

For example, one of the great complaints behind the ACORN mess was their tax exempt status and their clear partisan electioneering in support of President Obama. In the end, it wasn't investigations into their tax status that sent them underground.

While it's convenient to point to Citizens United and the influx of applications, the elephant in the room remains the status quo among tax exempt organizations as existed prior to the SCOTUS decision, and the way in which the IRS went about their task, including the silence they maintained prior to the election, once these actions were fully known.
 
Deuce said:
A lot of conservatives have long insisted that racial profiling is just fine, and now they're all flipping their **** when they've become the target of profiling. It sure is amusing to watch!
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And a lot of liberals have long insisted broad group profiling is inherently wrong and shouldn't be done, and are now flipping their **** at the audacity of people making noise about the IRS targeting political groups of a particular ideology and not saying more than a passing "ho hum that's bad" about the profiling going on (IF they even give that much).

Funny how you hypocritically respond to call out hypocrites.
 
This kind of thing is really not okay. This country is founded on political freedom. No political group, not even skinhead neo-Nazis, get treated any differently.

As to this specific incident, I'm having a hard time sympathizing. The issue is that conservative groups were being put through scrutiny before being able to take advantage of the anonymous political spending allowed to organizations by Citizens United. The sources of their funding and the location of their expenditures were examined. These groups shouldn't be able to do what they want to do and should be disclosing all this information. No one should be able to.

So yeah, focusing on one political faction over another is not okay. But no faction should be able to anonymously take in and spend on political campaigns.
 
Deuce said:
A lot of conservatives have long insisted that racial profiling is just fine, and now they're all flipping their **** when they've become the target of profiling. It sure is amusing to watch!

And before anyone tries to label me a hypocrite, no, I am definitely not defending these actions by the IRS. My other posts on the subject demonstrate this.
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Conservatives arent being racially profiled to stop them from killing Americans, so not sure how that relates.
 
ocean515 said:
Billions have been spent by 501c3 and 501c4 liberal groups in the decade prior to Citizens United. I am not aware of similar investigations into their activity. In fact, I am more aware of calls for investigations of their tax exempt status, than I am aware of any that were actually done.

For example, one of the great complaints behind the ACORN mess was their tax exempt status and their clear partisan electioneering in support of President Obama. In the end, it wasn't investigations into their tax status that sent them underground.

While it's convenient to point to Citizens United and the influx of applications, the elephant in the room remains the status quo among tax exempt organizations as existed prior to the SCOTUS decision, and the way in which the IRS went about their task, including the silence they maintained prior to the election, once these actions were fully known.
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Such groups existed before the citizens united decision, there have been a lot more of them since that decision. Frankly i think The IRS made a stupid decision in seeing a connection of tea party and right wing groups and their tax status. They should focused on the monetary issues, not what political group they supported.
 
Chaddelamancha said:
Apparently you didn't watch the Republican nomination close enough. With the exception of Ron Paul, those lackeys were willing to shred the constitution in the name of terrorism.
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Ah, misdirection. One of the cornerstones of the left. Oh, they were willing to shred the Constitution at the "nomination". Okay, well, I guess all is excused. IRS, as you were. LOL.

Got to do better than that.
 
So you are willing to look beyond the "right" and their skirting of the constitution, but wave a big flag when the left do it?

Your post was nothing but fluff aimed at disparaging the "left" and provided nothing of substance about the OP. None of this has been tied to anyone on the "left". The Acting Commissioner, Steve Miller, has come out saying this groups were focused on after Citizens United because the sheer number of groups that popped up. He has stated that it wasn't the best way to handle, which I think everyone can agree on, but it seems to be a perfectly sane answer, until we find out otherwise. Until then, just continue to disparage the "left" if you think that will make others buy into your argument.

Anthony60 said:
Ah, misdirection. One of the cornerstones of the left. Oh, they were willing to shred the Constitution at the "nomination". Okay, well, I guess all is excused. IRS, as you were. LOL.

Got to do better than that.
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ocean515 said:
It seems to me, one of the objectives of liberal/progressive politics is to build the power of government agencies as a means of overseeing the operation of the country. We now have new government agencies with astounding power, joining other agencies who already wield powers beyond the reach of the citizens.

When the best the Exectutive Branch can muster is a feigned bit of indignation over the actions of one of the most powerful agencies in the United States, there should be little doubt where this country is being led.
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Good afternoon, ocean515. :2wave:

Maybe if the government stopped all the "let's concentrate on tightening the screws on the American people" crap, and instead started doing the job they were elected to do, we would not be discussing their failures in Benghazi! That showed me more about what they really think of us than anything else they could have done! :thumbdown: We're apparently expendable...that is until they need us to provide more tax money for them to spend on things like the latest solar company who filed bankruptcy shortly after they received millions of our tax dollars! Odd how our hard-earned money goes into a bottomless pit never to be seen again, with nothing to show for it.. you'd think they would at least give us each a solar panel or a solar wind-chime, or something for our contribution... :bs:
 
Chaddelamancha said:
So you are willing to look beyond the "right" and their skirting of the constitution, but wave a big flag when the left do it?

Your post was nothing but fluff aimed at disparaging the "left" and provided nothing of substance about the OP. None of this has been tied to anyone on the "left". The Acting Commissioner, Steve Miller, has come out saying this groups were focused on after Citizens United because the sheer number of groups that popped up. He has stated that it wasn't the best way to handle, which I think everyone can agree on, but it seems to be a perfectly sane answer, until we find out otherwise. Until then, just continue to disparage the "left" if you think that will make others buy into your argument.
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Well, you seem to completely miss the point that with any number of scandals, or potential scandals that come out, Obama and crew no nothing about any of it. Get it? Who the hell is running the place if they don't know anything, which I don't believe. Do you really think that it is even possible that Holder knew nothing about what they did to the AP?

Steve Miller says "it wasn't the best way to handle" that? LOL, are you freakin' kidding??? That's like Jared Laudner saying what he did wasn't the best way to handle his situation.

Oh, and your substance was where?
 
My substance was the link to Steve Miller's response. And comparing this to a lone gunman just shows an inability to look at this issue from a partisan standpoint. I find it hard to distinguish the scandals tied to Obama and the ones tied to members of the GOP. They are all a bunch of lying, thieving bastards looking out for their own.

Anthony60 said:
Well, you seem to completely miss the point that with any number of scandals, or potential scandals that come out, Obama and crew no nothing about any of it. Get it? Who the hell is running the place if they don't know anything, which I don't believe. Do you really think that it is even possible that Holder knew nothing about what they did to the AP?

Steve Miller says "it wasn't the best way to handle" that? LOL, are you freakin' kidding??? That's like Jared Laudner saying what he did wasn't the best way to handle his situation.

Oh, and your substance was where?
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The Obama Administration is clearly using Government Agencies as billyclubs to harass and intimidate Americans

The Left will obviously circle the wagons to protect and coddle their Messiah, but that's only going to erode what little credibility they have left. They made the mistake of putting all their eggs in the Obama basket and will go down with this sinking ship. Hopefully mocked and shunned into obscurity for defending the rampant Fascism emanating from the White House under this corrupt lying "President"

Keep defending this thuggery Progs :lol:
 
Unitedwestand13 said:
Such groups existed before the citizens united decision, there have been a lot more of them since that decision. Frankly i think The IRS made a stupid decision in seeing a connection of tea party and right wing groups and their tax status. They should focused on the monetary issues, not what political group they supported.
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Exactly. It they focused on the money, people could still consider the IRS to be the fire breathing dragon that it is. With the obvious bias and coverup, it's taken on a whole level of distrust.
 
Anthony60 said:
Ah, misdirection. One of the cornerstones of the left. Oh, they were willing to shred the Constitution at the "nomination". Okay, well, I guess all is excused. IRS, as you were. LOL.

Got to do better than that.
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It doesn't excuse the IRS, but I think it's pretty obvious that Romney was just as much a big government guy as Obama. So were both Bushes, Clinton, Reagan....
 
If anyone read the source material...there are tea party organizations that applied for tax exempt status in 2010 before the election that still havent been granted. Problem 1.

There are organizations that are already tax exempt being asked for membership lists, donation lists--including names and addresses, volunteer lists, meeting roll calls. Problem 2.

Government officials are stonewalling this and every time a new piece of information comes out, it went higher up the chain of command. Problem 3.

Chicago politicians and their crooked power wielding ways should never coincide with the amount of power the executive branch can wield. People should be getting fired from top to bottom over this. Yet, as of now, no one has. What does that lead you to infer?
 
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