Posted on 09/15/2006 7:35:38 PM PDT by freepatriot32
WASHINGTON - The Internal Revenue Service has revoked the tax-exempt status of the anti-abortion organization Operation Rescue West for prohibited political activity during the 2004 election.
President Troy Newman said the Wichita, Kan., group, now known as Operation Rescue, relinquished its charitable status and reorganized more than a year ago.
"We gave it back. We didn't fight any sort of deal," he said.
The laws that permit some organizations to organize as tax-exempt entities also bar them from participating in or intervening in elections, including advocating for or against any candidate.
The IRS revoked the group's tax-exempt status last week, and it was reported Friday by The New York Times.
The tax agency said earlier this year that it found violations in three of four churches, charities and other civic groups suspected of running afoul of restraints on political activity. It did not identify any of those organizations.
Most of those examinations found only a single, isolated incident of prohibited campaign activity. In a few cases, they found flagrant violations of the law.
IRS Commissioner Mark Everson called the amount of political intervention discovered through their examinations "disturbing" for the impact it could have on the integrity of churches and charities.
The examinations looked at only a tiny fraction of the more than 1 million tax-exempt groups organized under section 501(c)(3) of the tax law.
LOL. These groups are tax-exempt organizations but not charitable organizations, meaning they don't pay income tax but the public cannot give them money and deduct it on their tax returns. You can only do that if a group is (501)(c)(3). That's what the IRS revoked here.
My guess would be that the groups you named are all 501(c)(5)or 501 (c)(6), the classifications for labor unions and business leagues/professional societies, etc.
The arcane mix of the Income Tax System and statutes used to limit political campaigning strike once again against free political speech under the Bill of Rights.
- Amendment I
- Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
If anyone would like to be added to this ping list let me know.
John Linder in the House(HR25) & Saxby Chambliss Senate(S25) offer a comprehensive bill to kill all federal income, SS/Medicare payroll, and gift/estate taxes outright replacing them with with a national retail sales tax administered by the states.
H.R.25,S.25
A bill to promote freedom, fairness, and economic opportunity by repealing the income tax and other taxes, abolishing the Internal Revenue Service, and enacting a national retail sales tax to be administered primarily by the States.Refer for additional information:
NARAL is not a charitable organization. They don't have favored tax status because like you point out they lobby way too much to qualify and they endorse candidates for office--verboten. They must be a (c)(4).
Planned Parenthood probably gets away with some lobbying on grounds that it is not their primary activity.
And half the black churches in the country are involved in direct political activity.
I don't know how many are, but you are on to something there that the feds just don't have the cojones to deal with.
abridge
Pronunciation: &-'brij
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Form(s): abridged; abridg·ing
Etymology: Middle English abregen, from Anglo-French abreger, from Late Latin abbreviare, from Latin ad- + brevis short -- more at BRIEF
1 a archaic : DEPRIVE b : to reduce in scope : DIMINISH <attempts to abridge the right of free speech>
- Amendment I, Constitution of the United States:
- "Congress shall make no law ... abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, "
Do you not understand?
I discussed the importance of abolishing the income tax because of its tendency to form a habit of servility in the souls of a people that accepts it. Servility of soul is bad not only in itself, it is also an open door through which will soon walk the abuses of ambitious government power. Leaders who find themselves with governmental power over a servile people will be quick to conclude that such a people exist to serve them. |
Screw the IRS. I demand that the Republicans demolish the IRS .
Amen. And truth(hahaha).org, and all of their lying ilk.
Geezer, the individuals who work in these groups have not lost their personal right to engage in political speech. It is the organization that is restricted in exchange for the very favorable privilege of PAYING NO TAXES.
If you maintain the government can't do this, take it up with the courts, not me.
Yes, it is a very strong reason to support tax reform.
Geezer, the individuals who work in these groups have not lost their personal right to engage in political speech. It is the organization that is restricted in exchange for the very favorable privilege of PAYING NO TAXES.
An organization is nothing more than an assembly of individuals acting to common purpose.
Conditioning any right guraranteed under the constitution exercised either individually or in assembly cannot by predicated merely on the payment or non-payment of taxes. There is only one purpose of taxation authorised for the collection of taxation, the payment of the nations bills.
Constitution for the United States of America:
- Article I Section 8: "The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises, to pay the debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States;
Note the lack of authority to use the collection or taxes regulate who may exercise the right of free speech and who may not.
Not to mention the express prohibition in the Bill of Rights against any such action in the significance of the word:
abridge
Pronunciation: &-'brij
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Form(s): abridged; abridg·ing
Etymology: Middle English abregen, from Anglo-French abreger, from Late Latin abbreviare, from Latin ad- + brevis short -- more at BRIEF
1 a archaic : DEPRIVE b : to reduce in scope : DIMINISH <attempts to abridge the right of free speech>
And the injunction against making any law in that regard:
- Amendment I, Constitution of the United States:
- "Congress shall make no law ... abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, "
If you maintain the government can't do this, take it up with the courts, not me.
And just who responsibility is it to assure the courts ultimately abide by the constitution?
The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt."
-John Philpot Curran: Speech upon the Right of Election, 1790.
"Actually, the "price" we pay for civilization-- true civilization-- is nothing more, and nothing less, than the inconvenience attendant upon scrupulously respecting our neighbors' rights."
-Peter E. Hendrickson
LOL. We have courts geez. File a suit.
LOL. We have courts geez. File a suit.
And just who's responsibility is it to assure the courts ultimately abide by the constitution? Your answer speaks for you.
I see you have no interest in correcting the essential problem by replacing those who make the law and changing the laws to those more conformant with fundamental liberties guaranteed under the consitution.
Not surprising.
"a free people that pays slave taxes to its government is willingly training itself for bondage." "I discussed the importance of abolishing the income tax because of its tendency to form a habit of servility in the souls of a people that accepts it. Servility of soul is bad not only in itself, it is also an open door through which will soon walk the abuses of ambitious government power. Leaders who find themselves with governmental power over a servile people will be quick to conclude that such a people exist to serve them." --Alan Keyes 1999 |
I guess it gives the pro-choice crowd the right to rename the other side the pro-murder or pro-killer crowd. Not wise to go down that road, but then that would take members of the left actually using their brain.
Now your point about a national sales tax, that would eliminate tax write offs, which would eliminate some of the control the government has on what people can say or do. So I figure that true tax reform will never really happen until the government figures out a way to hold tax revenues over peoples heads.
As an aside. For a person who lives their life by what the Bible says, and votes by their convictions, its impossible for them to seperate politics and religion. If ALL churches didn't have a tax exempt status, that the money given wasn't a write off, then preaching the Bible against "political" issues wouldn't be a problem. But I guess its more important for people to have a write off, versus hearing the Word of God convict them on society or politics.
Now your point about a national sales tax, that would eliminate tax write offs, which would eliminate some of the control the government has on what people can say or do. So I figure that true tax reform will never really happen until the government figures out a way to hold tax revenues over peoples heads.
Guaranteed it won't happen if we don't place their ability to exercise power at risk by voting those out of office that refuse to make the necessary changes.
OTOH, one can be assured:
The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt."
-John Philpot Curran: Speech upon the Right of Election, 1790.
we bring upon ourselves that which is appropriate to our lack of exercise of responsibility as an American citizen.
Revocation of charters comes awfully close to prohibition.
Nobody is removing freedom of speech from these organization's.
Removal is not the criteria.
Even passing a law that is merely an attempt in reduction scope of one's right to exercise free speech is prohibited under the first Amendment, whether that right be exercised individually or in peaceful assembly of individuals in an organization.
Note the language of that 1st Amendment and its usage
abridge
Pronunciation: &-'brij
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Form(s): abridged; abridg·ing
Etymology: Middle English abregen, from Anglo-French abreger, from Late Latin abbreviare, from Latin ad- + brevis short -- more at BRIEF
1 a archaic : DEPRIVE b : to reduce in scope : DIMINISH <attempts to abridge the right of free speech>
And the clear prohibition against making any law in that regard:
- Amendment I, Constitution of the United States:
- "Congress shall make no law ... abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, "
to step beyond that express prohibition by even the least represents a grave violation of the provisions of the Constitution and Bill of Rights:
"I consider the foundation of the Constitution as laid on this ground; That `all powers not delegated to the United States, by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States or to the people.' To take a single step beyond the boundaries thus specifically drawn around the powers of Congress is to take possession of a boundless field of power, no longer susceptible of any definition."
Thomas Jefferson: Opinion, February 15, 1791
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