Yet More About That “IRS Thing”

Remember that “IRS thing” Doc Baily and I have each written about previously here at TAH?  You know, where private advocacy groups were apparently targeted for “special attention” by the IRS based on political philosophy, ethnicity, or  because they “contradict the Administration’s public policies”?

Well, it’s possible that’s not all that was going on.  According to an article at the Daily Caller yesterday, it appears that information might have also been “leaked” by a person or persons at the IRS for partisan political purposes.  Specifically, it appears that paperwork showing a donation made by GOP Presidential candidate Mitt Romney to the National Organization for Marriage (which received a large amount of airplay during the last Presidential campaign) may have been leaked by the IRS.

If you’re thinking that’s illegal – you’re correct.  See the Daily Caller article for details.

Separately, in a book written well before this latest IRS brouhaha became public, former SECDEF Donald Rumsfeld indicated that corporate executives often refrain from public criticism of the President or his policies out of fear of possible future retaliation by government agencies.   He indicates that corporate executives often considered possible actions by the IRS, SEC, congressional committees, and other government agencies before voicing public opposition.

Rumsfeld does not come out and state that he has knowledge of such abuse.  However, the implication is reasonably clear:  corporate executives have seen enough “temporal coincidences” between public statements against Presidential positions or polices and additional regulatory scrutiny to notice – and to be wary.

Stay tuned.  This looks to be getting “curioser and curioser” with each passing day.

Category: "Your Tax Dollars At Work", Crime, Politics