Ron Paul praises convicted tax evaders

WCAX TV 3 News (Vermont) ^ | 26 June 2007 | AP Staff Writer

[Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus]

New Hampshire's convicted tax evaders Ed and Elaine Brown have gained a new supporter: presidential hopeful Ron Paul.

In an interview with RogueGovernment.com, the Texas congressman compares the Browns to Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Junior. He says the Browns are suffering like those leaders.

The Browns are holed up in their Plainfield (New Hampshire) home and have threatened violence against federal officials if marshals come to arrest them. They were convicted of an elaborate scheme to hide millions of dollars in income. Their protest has become a rallying cry for anti-tax activists and militia members.

[Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus]

What a great way to start up another round of the old "was the 16th amendment really ratified" argument. Enjoy!

[ritewingwarrior]

“have threatened violence against federal officials if marshals come to arrest them”

I respect their stand against taxation, and Mr. Paul’s support of them, but comments that they will lead to violence in the end are not to be supported. It is too bad that we can not get the support against excess taxation and wasteful spending together that the illegals do.

[TexasAg1996]

I’ll skip that argument for now. I’ll just say I don’t remember reading about Gandhi or King saying they’d kill anyone. Oh, and Ron Paul is looking more loopy every day. I guess the best I can say about him is that he hasn’t made campaign videos where he stares into the camera for 2-3 minutes.

[Stevieboy]

The Browns are holed up in their Plainfield (New Hampshire) home and have threatened violence against federal officials if marshals come to arrest them.

My understanding is that they've said they would defend themselves if the feds storm their house. They haven't threatened anyone. Warned yes, but that's different.

[pnh102]

I was actually surprised Ron Paul didn’t announce this sooner. Is he going to announce next that he’s pro-choice too?

[DesScorp]

“I respect their stand against taxation, and Mr. Paul’s support of them”

I don’t. They’re nuts, and so is Paul. While I want my taxes to be low, it takes money to run things, and paying taxes is our duty. Nothing is free, including government, whether it be good or bad. When Paul compared these two idiots to Martin Luther King and Ghandi, he shows just how far over the edge he himself has gone.

[TexasAg1996]

Agreed. I certainly don’t remember Ghandi arming himself, barricading himself into his compound, and saying he’d never be taken alive or that he’d shoot anyone trying to arrest him.

[dfwgator]

[italianquaker]

He would be better served running for the price is right job, what a clown

[Do Be]

but comments that they will lead to violence in the end are not to be supported. It is too bad that we can not get the support against excess taxation and wasteful spending together that the illegals do.

I am curious at what point you might support violence.

At what level, for you, are taxes too high, and when they reach that level, what will you do?

Since it is obvious to anyone who is paying any attention at all that spending is out of control, at what point are you willing to say enough is enough and what will you do about it.?

Sometimes violence is the only thing that those in power will respond to. Look how terrified the "press", all over the world, was publish stupid cartoons of Mohammed.

Please do not take offense to my questions. They are questions I have been asking myself recently. I am beginning to wonder if I will ever show courage against what is obviously tyranny.

These "tax evaders" may be the truest patriots in the country. Willing to risk all to defend their liberty.

[billbears]

Far be it from me to interrupt the Ron Paul bashing but where is the actual quote he said this?

[TexasAg1996]

Our taxes used to be much higher. Remember the "pre-Reagan" tax rates?

And don't forget, we fought the war of independence because of taxation without representation. You can't use the same justification when it's our elected representatives raising the taxes. I don't know if violence would be justified when it is our elected representatives setting the tax rates or otherwise doing something we don't like but that is otherwise Constitutional. That's just an invitation to anarchy. (And yes, I'm assuming the 16th Amendment is valid as held by our Constitutionally-embodied court system throughout the years).

[ikka]

This news article does not have the actual quote of what Ron Paul said. Any chance you can find a link to a transcript, full or partial?

[keyd]

Far be it from me to interrupt the Ron Paul bashing but where is the actual quote he said this?


You should have let them go on for another page. Nothing like reading commentary on something someone didn't watch lol.

[TexasAg1996]

I assume you can get it at http://www.roguegovernment.com/. The web page splashes “LEE INTERVIEWS CONGRESSMAN RON PAUL” at the top and includes some youtube videos.

[chesty_puller]

threatened violence against federal officials

Yeah Buddy! That's the Gandhi I remember. Paul is an idiot.

[Abcdefg]

this means you watched the interview and you know for a fact that he praised these people?

[Flavious_Maximus]

If the government passed a law that taxed you to breathe air, would you pay it? This is no different when the IRS says they can tax your labor. The point is that humans HAVE to work to survive and provide provisions for their families. If you tax my labor then you have made me a slave, simple as that. All the services from government are already paid for by other taxation (corporate tax, property tax, gas tax, utility tax, etc.) They do not need to tax your labor.

[TexasAg1996]

We live in a representative republic. If you don't like laws that are passed by our elected representatives and that are declared Constitutional by our court system, work to change the laws. Don't sit there and tell me violence is justified just because you don't like a law. That's a recipe for civil war given the hugely divergent world views that people in this country have (we'd win any civil war, of course, since we have more guns and are better shots, but that's really not the point).

you tax my labor then you have made me a slave, simple as that.

Your dictionary must have a different definition for slave than mine. In my book, a slave is someone who is property, who cannot choose what work to do, who cannot choose where to go, etc. Taxing your wages hardly makes you a slave.

The point is that humans HAVE to work to survive and provide provisions for their families.

It's just silly to say people need to work so you can't tax their wages but it's OK to tax their gas or utilities. People need utilities like electricity, water, and sewage. Most people need gas to get to work (unless you're an enviro-nut who thinks we all need to live and work in small villages and most of us never need see any place more than 50 miles from our homes).

They do not need to tax your labor

I agree they don't need to tax our wages to get enough money for the essential things the federal government needs to do. But they do, and it's Constitutional. I'll hope, work, vote for the right people, and pray they change that in my lifetime.

[Grunthor]

“In an interview with RogueGovernment.com, the Texas congressman compares the Browns to Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Junior. He says the Browns are suffering like those leaders.”

Kook, thy name is Paul!