IRS Selectively Targeting

[guido911]

Pardon me for being ignorant on this...but I kind of assumed that every administration uses the IRS as a weapon. Are you sure that this is the first time it has ever happened?

Really? I didn't know that. Watch the George Will clip in this story, and just imagine...

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2013/05/12/george-will-if-bush-had-irs-going-after-progressives-we-would-have-al

[RecycleMichael]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/rickungar/2013/05/10/no-dirty-politics-in-irs-investigations-of-tea-party/

No Dirty Politics In IRS Investigations Of Tea Party

The conservative blogosphere is all-atwitter this afternoon over the revelation that the Internal Revenue Service targeted various Tea Party groups in the days leading up to the presidential election of 2012.

Sadly for the critics of the president, things are not always as they initially appear to be and the effort to paint the improper IRS activity as a White House directed political dirty trick is unlikely to gain the traction opponents would like to see catch fire.

Keep in mind that the kerfuffle does not involve the targeting of groups for audits seeking evidence of a failure to pay taxes. Rather, the problem involved the IRS's review of applications filed by the various entities seeking tax-exempt status under the law.

At the time in question, many newly formed political organizations were seeking IRS certification that would allow them to  avoid paying taxes on funds raised—the overwhelming majority of these organizations being Tea Party related groups. As the IRS believed that many of those filing for exemptions were stretching the limits of qualification, some low-level staffers at the agency's Cincinnati, Ohio office decided to target for closer review those organizations with "Tea Party" sounding names, such as "patriot" and, of course, "Tea Party". In the effort to dig deeper to determine if these groups qualified, the agency people involved asked many of the filing organizations to disclose names of those who had made contributions along with other data they deemed necessary to determine if the group qualified for tax free status.

The problem is that the agents involved were not randomly conducting these checks on all the political organizations seeking tax free status and were specifically targeting the Tea Party related groups. This was, clearly, improper activity which is why the IRS issued today's apology.

What's that you say? You still don't believe that the White House was not involved in this? That's what I thought.

Maybe then, it will interest you to know that there are only two officials at the IRS that are political appointments—the commissioner (who is the boss) and the chief legal counsel.  And while you may be thinking that it would be a piece of cake for the White House to place a call to the Commissioner and nudge him into putting a little heat on Tea Party groups so that they would be kept busy defending themselves from government annoyance rather than putting their energies into defeating the President, it would not have been quite so simple a task for the White House to accomplish.

Why?

Because the Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service during the period in question was Douglas Shulman, a political appointee of President George W. Bush. In fact, not only was Commissioner Shulman a Bush appointee, he would certainly have had no motivation to do the political bidding of a Democrat president considering that Mr. Shulman had already announced prior to the election that he would be stepping down from his post in November.

If you imagine that the President's staff had the ability to go around the top political appointee at the IRS and attempt to influence the civil servants who work at the agency, consider how many levels of civil servants the White House staff would have had to persuade to do their bidding given that those who pursued the policy were well down the totem-pole of seniority, working away at the Cincinnati office.

Indeed, to suggest that the White House could get career civil servants to do its political dirty work would truly defy the laws of political reality.

If you doubt this—and you are someone who believes that the State Department behaved improperly in the Benghazi matter—consider the inability of State to direct the three highly placed State Department civil servants who testified before Congress this week to do as the politicians asked. This should give you some indication as to just how impossible it is for elected or politically appointment officials to get government civil servants to participate in their political schemes—let alone keep it all a secret heading into a presidential election.

Of course, all the obvious and logical explanations in the world for what really happened here will prove insufficient when it comes to  persuading some Tea Party groups that this was not the work of the White House.

As proof of what we can expect, check out what Tea Party Patriots co-founder Jenny Beth Martin had to say when calling for President Obama to personally apologize—

"It is suspicious that the activity of these 'low-level workers' was unknown to IRS leadership at the time it occurred. President Obama must also apologize for his administration ignoring repeated complaints by these broad grassroots organizations of harassment by the IRS in 2012, and make concrete and transparent steps today to ensure this never happens again."

Clearly, Ms. Martin has very little grasp on how widespread the activities of the IRS are if she imagines that, in the big picture, the relatively small number of reviews of Tea Party related applications in the Cincinnati office was going to somehow capture the attention of the IRS Commissioner...who happens to be a Republican appointee.

One wonders if Ms. Martin's indignation has anything to do with the fact that she and her husband were indebted to the IRS in the amount of over half a million dollars when they filed bankruptcy in 2008? Maybe it is Ms. Martin who owes the apology?

Still, the opportunity to make some political hay over the error will likely prove irresistible to the GOP.

[Conan71]

And now this. Is there some reason Eric Holder still has a job?  Oh right, Peter Principle.

Too bad there's not an (R) as president right now, impeachment proceedings would have already started.

WASHINGTON The Justice Department secretly obtained two months of telephone records of reporters and editors for The Associated Press in what the news cooperative's top executive called a "massive and unprecedented intrusion" into how news organizations gather the news.

The records obtained by the Justice Department listed incoming and outgoing calls, and the duration of each call, for the work and personal phone numbers of individual reporters, general AP office numbers in New York, Washington and Hartford, Conn., and the main number for AP reporters in the House of Representatives press gallery, according to attorneys for the AP.

In all, the government seized those records for more than 20 separate telephone lines assigned to AP and its journalists in April and May of 2012. The exact number of journalists who used the phone lines during that period is unknown but more than 100 journalists work in the offices whose phone records were targeted on a wide array of stories about government and other matters.

In a letter of protest sent to Attorney General Eric Holder on Monday, AP President and Chief Executive Officer Gary Pruitt said the government sought and obtained information far beyond anything that could be justified by any specific investigation. He demanded the return of the phone records and destruction of all copies.

"There can be no possible justification for such an overbroad collection of the telephone communications of The Associated Press and its reporters. These records potentially reveal communications with confidential sources across all of the newsgathering activities undertaken by the AP during a two-month period, provide a road map to AP's newsgathering operations, and disclose information about AP's activities and operations that the government has no conceivable right to know," Pruitt said.

The government would not say why it sought the records. U.S. officials have previously said in public testimony that the U.S. attorney in Washington is conducting a criminal investigation into who may have leaked information contained in a May 7, 2012, AP story about a foiled terror plot. The story disclosed details of a CIA operation in Yemen that stopped an al Qaeda plot in the spring of 2012 to detonate a bomb on an airplane bound for the United States.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57584275/justice-department-obtains-2-months-of-ap-phone-records-in-probe/

[Ed W]

And now this. Is there some reason Eric Holder still has a job?  Oh right, Peter Principle.

Too bad there's not an (R) as president right now, impeachment proceedings would have already started.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57584275/justice-department-obtains-2-months-of-ap-phone-records-in-probe/

Where was AP's outrage when the government asked AT&T to eavesdrop on the rest of us without warrants?  Where was their anger when the Patriot Act allowed telecoms to intercept nearly all communications in the country?

[Conan71]

Where was AP's outrage when the government asked AT&T to eavesdrop on the rest of us without warrants?  Where was their anger when the Patriot Act allowed telecoms to intercept nearly all communications in the country?

The AP didn't break any laws nor violate anyone's liberties if they were not expressing outrage, they had no obligation to. OTOH, it appears the DOJ has trampled on the liberties of a number of reporters and their sources, and apparently has broken laws it is expected to enforce.

Where's the call for accountability under this administration?  Excuse it because of poor prior examples? 

[heironymouspasparagus]

More straw man bullcrap. Try to stay focused with me in this thread.

The government is targeting individuals/groups for additional IRS scrutiny. Okay.

The government is focusing on one group of people. Okay?

This one group of people doesn't like this current administration. Okay?

This intrudes upon and perhaps violates their First Amendment rights to free speech and association. Okay?

And by the way, the IRS has been doing this for some time now.

http://gretawire.foxnewsinsider.com/2013/05/11/ap-exclusive-senior-irs-officials-knew-irs-targeting-tea-party-groups-as-early-as-2011/

Let's walk down memory lane, just a few months ago when some in here were all DAMNED upset about a private company kicking out a bunch of atheists from their restaurant. Oklahoma Joe's can't do that; that's discrimination. But when the IRS, a government entity, targets groups with  "Tea Party," "Patriot" or "9/12 Project", that is not discrimination because those people are "astroturf" [thank Nancy Pelosi clone] and deserve it.  

All the reports I have heard so far said that 300 organizations were pulled out for further investigation.  75 were the tea's.  The right question that could provide adequate information would be to see how many in the same number of years slid on through without issue and how many of those were tea related.  I bet there were plenty of each that got on through with no issues.

And why were the 300 pulled out to look at - what is the "official explanation"?  If it was only tea related, why did the other 75% get pulled?


Oh, and for the record, lest anyone forget...I am NO fan of the IRS.  And in fact, feel it should be abolished, or at least reduced by 90% (or more!)  As I have expressed before around here.

[Hoss]

All the reports I have heard so far said that 300 organizations were pulled out for further investigation.  75 were the tea's.  The right question that could provide adequate information would be to see how many in the same number of years slid on through without issue and how many of those were tea related.  I bet there were plenty of each that got on through with no issues.

And why were the 300 pulled out to look at - what is the "official explanation"?  If it was only tea related, why did the other 75% get pulled?


Oh, and for the record, lest anyone forget...I am NO fan of the IRS.  And in fact, feel it should be abolished, or at least reduced by 90% (or more!)  As I have expressed before around here.

Likely because it's a witch hunt, just like Benghazi is turning out to be.  There were 30 diplomats killed during Bush's watch as President, yet there was never this level of hand-wringing like I've seen here.

The Teaheads cherry picked this.  Liberals do the same.  It's just the Tea Partiers screech louder.

[Vashta Nerada]

Oh, nothing except being punished for exercising their first amendment rights. Thanks for both the softball, and letting everyone in this forum see your ignorance/bias.

Did someone say First Amendment outrage?

The Justice Department's secret acquisition of two months of telephone records of Associated Press reporters and editors represents a serious overreach of government power and a genuine threat to independent journalism in the United States.

It is not unusual for government prosecutors to seek phone records as part of their pursuit of the unauthorized disclosure of sensitive information. But the normal starting point for such a move is to notify the news organization, and thus give it a chance to legally challenge a request that could jeopardize the identity of a confidential source.

The Justice Department's own policy calls for such media subpoenas to be "as narrowly drawn as possible" and for a "reasonably limited time period."

Such restraints were absent in this case. The Justice Department informed AP on Friday that advance notice was waived because it could have posed "a substantial threat to the integrity of the investigation."

As disturbing as the backdoor effort to obtain the records was the breadth of the search. The AP phone records obtained by the Justice Department covered two months (April-May 2012) and the work and personal phone lines of both individual journalists and general office numbers in New York, Washington and Hartford, Conn. The records listed incoming and outgoing calls, and the duration of each. The time frame and reporters involved have raised speculation that the probe could involve a May 7, 2012, AP story about a foiled terror plot.

AP President and CEO Gary Pruitt, who sent a letter of protest to Attorney General Eric Holder on Monday, called the seizure a "massive and unprecedented intrusion" into a news-gathering organization.

President Obama, who pledged to run "the most transparent administration in history," owes Americans an explanation for this serious breach of trust with press freedom.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/opinion/editorials/article/Feds-seizure-of-AP-phone-records-breach-of-trust-4512453.php

[heironymouspasparagus]

Likely because it's a witch hunt, just like Benghazi is turning out to be.  There were 30 diplomats killed during Bush's watch as President, yet there was never this level of hand-wringing like I've seen here.

The Teaheads cherry picked this.  Liberals do the same.  It's just the Tea Partiers screech louder.

Here is a list (from the Daily Kos)....

Donald Rumsfeld was Secretary of War Defense between 2001 and 2006, so none of this should be news to him:
June 14, 2002, U.S. consulate in Karachi, Pakistan
Suicide bomber kills 12 and injures 51.

February 20, 2003, international diplomatic compound in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Truck bomb kills 17.

February 28, 2003, U.S. consulate in Karachi, Pakistan
Gunmen on motorcycles killed two consulate guards.

July 30, 2004, U.S. embassy in Taskkent, Uzbekistan
Suicide bomber kills two.

December 6, 2004, U.S. consulate in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Militants stormed and occupied perimeter wall. Five killed, 10 wounded.

March 2, 2006, U.S. consulate in Karachi, Pakistan
Suicide car bomber killed four, including a U.S. diplomate directly targeted by the assailants.

September 12, 2006, U.S. embassy in Damascus, Syria
Gunmen attacked embassy with grenades, automatic weapons, and a car bomb (though second truck bomb failed to detonate). One killed and 13 wounded.

January 12, 2007, U.S. embassy in Athens, Greece
A rocket-propelled grenade was fired at the embassy building. No one was injured.

July 9, 2008, U.S. consulate in Istanbul, Turkey
Armed men attacked consulate with pistols and shotguns. Three policemen killed.

March 18, 2008, U.S. embassy in Sana'a, Yemen
Mortar attack misses embassy, hits nearby girls' school instead.

September 17, 2008, U.S. embassy in Sana'a, Yemen
Militants dressed as policemen attacked the embassy with RPGs, rifles, grenades and car bombs. Six Yemeni soldiers and seven civilians were killed. Sixteen more were injured.
So did those attacks (and the 9/11 ones, for that matter) happen because of "perceived American weakness"? Is that what Rumsfeld wants to argue—that our country's diplomatic missions were targeted because George Bush's America was perceived as weak?

As for Obama, the attacks in Cairo and Benghazi are the first two attacks on a U.S. diplomatic mission in an ostensibly peaceful country during his entire presidency—and they were sparked by that idiot wingnut Islamophobe Terri Jones. The embassy in Afghanistan was targeted by the Taliban last Sept. 13, but that's a country at war.

If you buy Rumsfeld's nonsense, you can tally the numbers to determine which administration was "perceived weaker."

[Conan71]

Wait, now people left wingnuts are claiming Terry Jones is responsible for Benghazi?

[Vashta Nerada]

Oh, nothing except being punished for exercising their first amendment rights. Thanks for both the softball, and letting everyone in this forum see your ignorance/bias.

It took this guy how long to notice the black helicopters?
Welcome to the real world.

[heironymouspasparagus]

Wait, now people left wingnuts are claiming Terry Jones is responsible for Benghazi?

Nnnooooo....I  am  typing  slowly  so  you  can  understand   .... 


The RWRE is getting their panties in a wad over 4 killed in Benghazi - which is perfectly fine with me - as long as we revisit the past history and get all twisted up over the previous failures, too.  If Obama deserves impeachment, Bush deserved it 8 times as much!  I think war crime trials may be in order all around!

[RecycleMichael]

I completely agree. I am sad for the victims of Benghazi and trying to make political hay from it seems insincere if you ignore the attacks that have occurred under a republican President.

[Gaspar]

Bad news: the White House is corrupt.
Good news: they're incompetent at corruption, too.

[Gaspar]

Bwahahahaha.
I'm going to be disappointed if the late night folks don't do something outstanding with this one.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/16/us/politics/under-fire-white-house-pushes-to-revive-media-shield-bill.html?hp&_r=0

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration sought on Wednesday to revive legislation that would provide greater protections to reporters from penalties for refusing to identify confidential sources, and that would enable journalists to ask a federal judge to quash subpoenas for their phone records, a White House official said.

Translation: "We vow to protect you from unscrupulous, unconstitutional and unethical actions by people like us!  We will do whatever it takes to legislate against our own efforts, even as we effort against this legislation."

This should be good for another two years of speaking tours.  I believe this puppy has finally discovered its own tail.