Obama Violating Law By Using FBI & IRS To Target Conservatives For Criminal Prosecution

[mudwhistle]

This is criminal. This is outright McCarthyism. This is a violation of the 4th Amendment. A president using the DoJ, FBI, and the IRS in a criminal conspiracy to prosecute and imprison Obama's political enemies:


Docs Reveal IRS Plan to Seek Criminal Charges of Obama Opponents

Judicial Watch: New Documents Reveal DOJ, IRS, and FBI Plan to Seek Criminal Charges of Obama Opponents
JULY 07, 2015

(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch today released new Department of Justice (DOJ) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) documents that include an official “DOJ Recap” report detailing an October 2010 meeting between Lois Lerner, DOJ officials and the FBI to plan for the possible criminal prosecution of targeted nonprofit organizations for alleged illegal political activity.

The newly obtained records also reveal that the Obama DOJ wanted IRS employees who were going to testify to Congress to turn over documents to the DOJ before giving them to Congress. Records also detail how the Obama IRS gave the FBI 21 computer disks, containing 1.25 million pages of confidential IRS returns from 113,000 nonprofit social 501(c)(4) welfare groups – or nearly every 501(c)(4) in the United States – as part of its prosecution effort. According to a letter from then-House Oversight Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) to IRS Commissioner John Koskinen, “This revelation likely means that the IRS – including possibly Lois Lerner – violated federal tax law by transmitting this information to the Justice Department.”

The documents were produced subsequent to court orders in two Judicial Watch Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuits: Judicial Watch v. Internal Revenue Service (No. 1:14-cv-1956) and Judicial Watch v. Department of Justice (No. 1:14-cv-1239).

The new IRS documents include a October 11, 2010 “DOJ Recap” memo sent by IRS Exempt Organizations Tax Law Specialist Siri Buller to Lerner and other top IRS officials explaining an October 8 meeting with representatives from the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and “one representative from the FBI” to discuss the possible criminal prosecution of nonprofit organizations for alleged political activity:

On October 8, 2010, Lois Lerner, Joe Urban [IRS Technical Advisor, TEGE], Judy Kindell [top aide to Lerner], Justin Lowe [Technical Advisor to the Commissioner of Tax-Exempt and Government Entities], and Siri Buller met with the section chief and other attorneys from the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section, and one representative from the FBI, to discuss recent attention to the political activity of exempt organizations.

The section’s attorneys expressed concern that certain section 501(c) organizations are actually political committees “posing” as if they are not subject to FEC law, and therefore may be subject to criminal liability. The attorneys mentioned several possible theories to bring criminal charges under FEC law. In response, Lois and Judy eloquently explained the following points:

• Under section 7805(b), we may only revoke or modify an organization’s exemption retroactively if it omitted or misstated a material fact or operated in a manner materially different from that originally represented.

• If we do not have these misrepresentations, the organization may rely on our determination it is exempt. However, the likelihood of revocation is diminished by the fact that section 501(c)(4)-(c)(6) organizations are not required to apply for recognition of exemption.

• We discussed the hypothetical situation of a section 501(c)(4) organization that declares itself exempt as a social welfare organization, but at the end of the taxable year has in fact functioned as a political organization. Judy explained that such an organization, in order to be in compliance, would simply file Form 1120-POL and paying tax at the highest corporate rate.

Lois stated that although we do not believe that organizations which are subject to a civil audit subsequently receive any type of immunity from a criminal investigation, she will refer them to individuals from CI who can better answer that question. She explained that we are legally required to separate the civil and criminal aspects of any examination and that while we do not have EO law experts in CI, our FIU agents are experienced in coordinating with CI.

The attorneys asked whether a change in the law is necessary, and whether a three-way partnership among DOJ, the FEC, and the IRS is possible to prevent prohibited activity by these organizations. Lois listed a number of obstacles to the attorneys’ theories:



She pointed to Revenue Ruling 2004-6, which was drafted in light of the electioneering communication rules before they were litigated.

Just prior this meeting, the IRS began the process of providing the FBI confidential taxpayer information on nonprofit groups. An IRS document confirms the IRS supplied the FBI with 21 disks containing 1.25 million pages of taxpayer records:


Following Judicial Watch’s lead, the House also found out about the IRS transmittal of the confidential taxpayer information to the FBI. Because of this public disclosure, the FBI was forced to return the 1.25 million pages to the IRS.


​

 

[SassyIrishLass]

Lois Lerner was involved in this

 

[mudwhistle]

Lois Lerner was involved in this

It looks like it was an idea that they were looking at early in the administration....and now they're greasing the skids for it by going after the Confederate Flag and anything they deem represents conservatism. First they demonize the target.....then they do em in.....to the cheers of the lynch mob.

 

[usmcstinger]

WOW! This is very scary stuff.

 

[SassyIrishLass]

Lois Lerner was involved in this

It looks like it was an idea that they were looking at early in the administration....and now they're greasing the skids for it by going after the Confederate Flag and anything they deem represents conservatism. First they demonize the target.....then they do em in.....to the cheers of the lynch mob.

Seems like a play out of the Nazi's playbook.

 

[mudwhistle]

WOW! This is very scary stuff.

Everyone is wondering why the attacks on conservatives.

It's easier to put them in jail when they're hated.

 

[AvgGuyIA]

The Congressional House should begin impeachment proceedings against Barack Hussein Obama immediately!

 

[Camp]

All those political groups lying about being social welfare organizations should loose tax exempt status and the people who have been benefiting financially should be prosecuted. It is good to finally see proof that the government was attempting to do it's job.

 

[mudwhistle]

All those political groups lying about being social welfare organizations should loose tax exempt status and the people who have been benefiting financially should be prosecuted. It is good to finally see proof that the government was attempting to do it's job.

This is about criminal prosecutions.....not taking away somebody's tax-free status.

You can't prosecute anyone in a court of law just because they oppose you politically.

 

[Camp]

All those political groups lying about being social welfare organizations should loose tax exempt status and the people who have been benefiting financially should be prosecuted. It is good to finally see proof that the government was attempting to do it's job.

This is about criminal prosecutions.....not taking away somebody's tax-free status.

You can't prosecute anyone in a court of law just because they oppose you politically.

Those people lied about being social welfare programs. Are you saying it is not against the law to lie on a government application for tax free status? You can get in trouble for lying about getting a blow job, but lying to get tax free status is OK? If this is true we need some law changes.
Even if they couldn't be prosecuted for lying on the application, they should at least loose the tax free status. That was enough of a reason for the feds to go after the thieves.

 

[mudwhistle]

All those political groups lying about being social welfare organizations should loose tax exempt status and the people who have been benefiting financially should be prosecuted. It is good to finally see proof that the government was attempting to do it's job.

This is about criminal prosecutions.....not taking away somebody's tax-free status.

You can't prosecute anyone in a court of law just because they oppose you politically.

Those people lied about being social welfare programs. Are you saying it is not against the law to lie on a government application for tax free status? You can get in trouble for lying about getting a blow job, but lying to get tax free status is OK? If this is true we need some law changes.
Even if they couldn't be prosecuted for lying on the application, they should at least loose the tax free status. That was enough of a reason for the feds to go after the thieves.

If that's the case then everyone who calls themselves a Reverand like Al Sharpton should be arrested.
These memos are about persecuting anyone who raises money, eventually anyone who says negative things on the radio against the administration or gives donations to conservative causes.

 

[mudwhistle]

The section’s attorneys expressed concern that certain section 501(c) organizations are actually political committees “posing” as if they are not subject to FEC law, and therefore may be subject to criminal liability. The attorneys mentioned several possible theories to bring criminal charges under FEC law. In response, Lois and Judy eloquently explained the following points:

• Under section 7805(b), we may only revoke or modify an organization’s exemption retroactively if it omitted or misstated a material fact or operated in a manner materially different from that originally represented.

• If we do not have these misrepresentations, the organization may rely on our determination it is exempt. However, the likelihood of revocation is diminished by the fact that section 501(c)(4)-(c)(6) organizations are not required to apply for recognition of exemption.

• We discussed the hypothetical situation of a section 501(c)(4) organization that declares itself exempt as a social welfare organization, but at the end of the taxable year has in fact functioned as a political organization. Judy explained that such an organization, in order to be in compliance, would simply file Form 1120-POL and paying tax at the highest corporate rate.

The most they can do to them, by law, is make them pay a tax. ​

 

[JakeStarkey]

All social welfare orgs should be denied tax exempt status, whether left or center or right. Then the issue will cease.

 

[Camp]

All those political groups lying about being social welfare organizations should loose tax exempt status and the people who have been benefiting financially should be prosecuted. It is good to finally see proof that the government was attempting to do it's job.

This is about criminal prosecutions.....not taking away somebody's tax-free status.

You can't prosecute anyone in a court of law just because they oppose you politically.

Those people lied about being social welfare programs. Are you saying it is not against the law to lie on a government application for tax free status? You can get in trouble for lying about getting a blow job, but lying to get tax free status is OK? If this is true we need some law changes.
Even if they couldn't be prosecuted for lying on the application, they should at least loose the tax free status. That was enough of a reason for the feds to go after the thieves.

If that's the case then everyone who calls themselves a Reverand like Al Sharpton should be arrested.
These memos are about persecuting anyone who raises money, eventually anyone who says negative things on the radio against the administration or gives donations to conservative causes.

I got no problem with going after Sharpton or anyone else that uses tax free status to fund political agendas. I believe those memos are about doing just that. The tax free status meant for social welfare programs was and still is being abused. The invented scandal is just a way of keeping these thieves operating. It has been successful. It has countered any effort to prevent political groups from abusing the system.

 

[mudwhistle]

In an alphabet soup of corruption, the Obama Administration’s IRS, FBI, and DOJ have once again been exposed attempting to target and prosecute political opponents.


New documents reveal that several IRS officials, including Lois Lerner, colluded with the FBI and the Department of Justice (DOJ) on “several possible theories to bring criminal charges” against conservative groups as early as 2010.

As the Washington Free Beacon reports:

Newly obtained documents from the conservative educational foundation Judicial Watch detail an official memo from October 2010 of a meeting between Lois Lerner and officials at the Department of Justice and the FBI to plan for the prosecution of targeted nonprofit organizations.

A lawsuit filed under the Freedom of Information Act produced the documents which included the memo as well as revelations that the Justice Department wanted IRS employees to turn over sensitive documents before giving them to Congress, Judicial Watch said in a press release Tuesday. . . .

An IRS document confirms that the organization supplied the FBI with 21 computer disks containing 1.25 million pages of confidential information from more than 113,000 tax returns.

Meeting notes from this high level October 8, 2010 meeting show that former top IRS official Lois Lerner and several other IRS officials “met with the section chief and other attorneys from the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section, and one representative from the FBI, to discuss recent attention to the political activity of exempt organizations.” Those discussions focused on “several possible theories to bring criminal charges” against these conservative groups.

This level of collusion between the IRS, FBI, and DOJ at the time conservative groups were being targeted for their political beliefs by Lerner’s division of the IRS is suspect to say the least. However, it is exacerbated by the fact that Lerner and the DOJ continued these conversations for years. Nearly three years later, in fact two days before Lerner issued her faux “apology” for targeting conservatives, Lerner wrote an email to the Chief of Staff for the acting Commissioner of the IRS explaining ongoing discussions with senior DOJ officials to “piece together false statement cases about applicants.”

As this information became public last year, I asked, “Did Lois Lerner Want Conservatives to go to Jail?” It seems the resounding answer today is yes.

In fact, in furtherance of this collusion, the IRS had sent the FBI 21 computer disks, which included 1.25 million pages of presumably confidential taxpayer information on 113,000 non-profit groups. This could have encompassed nearly every 501(c)(4) group in the country.

The IRS was hitting conservatives from every angle.

The “recent attention” discussed at this October 2010 meeting between Lerner, other IRS officials, the DOJ, and FBI is the same “media attention” on conservative organizations that started the targeting of the Tea Party under Lois Lerner’s watch beginning several months earlier in 2010.

As I’ve written before, understanding the timeline of the earliest events in the targeting is the key to understanding what actually happened. As ACLJ Executive Director Jordan Sekulow and I chronicled in the Washington Times:

[E]mails show that within 24 hours of the first Tea Party case being flagged in early 2010, senior IRS officials under Ms. Lerner’s command in Washington took control. . . .

Feb. 25, 2010: In an email chain between senior IRS officials in Washington and field offices in Cincinnati and California titled “High Profile Case — Does [Exempt Organizations] Technical Want It?” Holly Paz, who would later become Ms. Lerner’s deputy in Washington, was made aware that a “potentially politically embarassing [sic] case involving a ‘Tea Party‘ organization” had been flagged. By the next morning, Ms. Paz requested that it be sent to Washington, “given the potential for media interest.”

March 16-17, 2010: The same email chain, now titled “High Profile Case — EO Technical Would Like It,” continues, with Ms. Paz acknowledging that she had “one Tea Party case up here” and instructing Cincinnati to send “a few more cases” to Washington and to “hold the rest.” Ms. Paz, from Washington, clearly instructed the Cincinnati IRS office that Washington would be responsible for future Tea Party cases, stating, “we will work with [Cincinnati] in working the other cases.” The chain continues with senior IRS officials in Cincinnati and California confirming their implementation of Washington’s orders to “hold” the “Tea Party cases.”

April 23, 2010: Steven Grodnitzky, the acting manager of EO Technical, directly below Ms. Paz in Washington, instructed his staff to create a “[Sensitive Case Report] for the Tea Party cases.” He further instructed senior IRS officials in Cincinnati and California that his office in Washington was working on the first “2 Tea Party cases” and that their offices should “coordinate” with his office and set up “a call” before developing the rest of the cases. Emails over the next few days between Mr. Grodnitzky in Washington and IRS officials in Cincinnati and California, under the subject line “Tea Party Cases,” show that coordination being put in place.

July 6, 2010: Ms. Paz instructed Mr. Grodnitzky to follow up with the IRS teams in Cincinnati and California and remind them “we have been handling Tea Party applications the last few months.” Mr. Grodnitzky, again from Washington, reiterated the instructions, “[Exempt Organizations Technical] is working the Tea Party applications in coordination with Cincy … . Because the Tea Party applications are the subject of an SCR, we cannot resolve any of the cases without coordinating with Rob.” “Rob” is presumably Rob Choi, who was then director of rulings and agreements in Washington, directly below Ms. Lerner. It was Ms. Paz who replaced Mr. Choi as Ms. Lerner’s deputy in December 2010.

From there, we know the applications of conservative groups were held for two more years, until senior IRS officials in Washington, including the IRS chief counsel’s office, developed unconstitutionally intrusive demand letters, which began being sent out in early 2012.

For more than three years the IRS was targeting, delaying, and abusing the constitutional rights of conservative groups. At the same time, over the course of three years, Lerner and the IRS were colluding with the FBI (likely illegally providing it confidential information on those groups) and the DOJ to “piece together” criminal charges against these same groups.

The connection and unthinkable abuse of power could not be more clear.

Yet, we are only learning the details of this ongoing corruption drip by drip because for years the IRS has successfully stonewalled every attempt to obtain any information about this scandal by employing a “special project team” of “hundreds of lawyers” to hid the truth.

But all of that is beginning to change.

At the ACLJ, we continue to press for the truth and accountability with two ongoing lawsuits against the IRS. Recently, in one of our cases, we were able to force the IRS to turn over key documents for review by a federal judge – documents the IRS has fought for years to keep hidden. In our other case, representing dozens of targeted conservative groups from 22 states, we are preparing to file an important brief on appeal. We will continue fighting for justice as the more we learn the worse it gets.





Matthew Clark is Senior Counsel for Digital Advocacy with the ACLJ. A lifelong citizen of the Commonwealth of Virginia, he lives with his wife and four children in Northern Virginia. Follow Matthew Clark: @_MatthewClark.

BOMBSHELL FBI DOJ Colluded with IRS Lerner to Bring Criminal Charges Against Conservatives RedState​

 

[mudwhistle]

All those political groups lying about being social welfare organizations should loose tax exempt status and the people who have been benefiting financially should be prosecuted. It is good to finally see proof that the government was attempting to do it's job.

This is about criminal prosecutions.....not taking away somebody's tax-free status.

You can't prosecute anyone in a court of law just because they oppose you politically.

Those people lied about being social welfare programs. Are you saying it is not against the law to lie on a government application for tax free status? You can get in trouble for lying about getting a blow job, but lying to get tax free status is OK? If this is true we need some law changes.
Even if they couldn't be prosecuted for lying on the application, they should at least loose the tax free status. That was enough of a reason for the feds to go after the thieves.

If that's the case then everyone who calls themselves a Reverand like Al Sharpton should be arrested.
These memos are about persecuting anyone who raises money, eventually anyone who says negative things on the radio against the administration or gives donations to conservative causes.

I got no problem with going after Sharpton or anyone else that uses tax free status to fund political agendas. I believe those memos are about doing just that. The tax free status meant for social welfare programs was and still is being abused. The invented scandal is just a way of keeping these thieves operating. It has been successful. It has countered any effort to prevent political groups from abusing the system.

The memos are about criminal prosecution of political enemies.

It clearly states you can't do that. All you can do is make them pay a higher tax.

The thing is.....political organizations have the right to tax-free status if they are non-profit.


This is the Obama Administration doing worse than just harassing conservative groups....but discussing locking them up.

Basically, this is what dictators do.

 

[Camp]

I think an intelligent and open discussion is not wanted by the OP regarding the Judicial Watch fund raising effort. That is all the nonsense above and in the OP is. Nothing new or groundbreaking. No smoking gun. Just an attention getting article that will encourage folks to send funds to Judicial Watch.

 

[Camp]

All those political groups lying about being social welfare organizations should loose tax exempt status and the people who have been benefiting financially should be prosecuted. It is good to finally see proof that the government was attempting to do it's job.

This is about criminal prosecutions.....not taking away somebody's tax-free status.

You can't prosecute anyone in a court of law just because they oppose you politically.

Those people lied about being social welfare programs. Are you saying it is not against the law to lie on a government application for tax free status? You can get in trouble for lying about getting a blow job, but lying to get tax free status is OK? If this is true we need some law changes.
Even if they couldn't be prosecuted for lying on the application, they should at least loose the tax free status. That was enough of a reason for the feds to go after the thieves.

If that's the case then everyone who calls themselves a Reverand like Al Sharpton should be arrested.
These memos are about persecuting anyone who raises money, eventually anyone who says negative things on the radio against the administration or gives donations to conservative causes.

I got no problem with going after Sharpton or anyone else that uses tax free status to fund political agendas. I believe those memos are about doing just that. The tax free status meant for social welfare programs was and still is being abused. The invented scandal is just a way of keeping these thieves operating. It has been successful. It has countered any effort to prevent political groups from abusing the system.

The memos are about criminal prosecution of political enemies.

It clearly states you can't do that. All you can do is make them pay a higher tax.

The thing is.....political organizations have the right to tax-free status if they are non-profit.


This is the Obama Administration doing worse than just harassing conservative groups....but discussing locking them up.

Basically, this is what dictators do.

You know very well that if they are ordered to pay taxes and don't pay the taxes they could go to jail.

 

[mudwhistle]

This is about criminal prosecutions.....not taking away somebody's tax-free status.

You can't prosecute anyone in a court of law just because they oppose you politically.

Those people lied about being social welfare programs. Are you saying it is not against the law to lie on a government application for tax free status? You can get in trouble for lying about getting a blow job, but lying to get tax free status is OK? If this is true we need some law changes.
Even if they couldn't be prosecuted for lying on the application, they should at least loose the tax free status. That was enough of a reason for the feds to go after the thieves.

If that's the case then everyone who calls themselves a Reverand like Al Sharpton should be arrested.
These memos are about persecuting anyone who raises money, eventually anyone who says negative things on the radio against the administration or gives donations to conservative causes.

I got no problem with going after Sharpton or anyone else that uses tax free status to fund political agendas. I believe those memos are about doing just that. The tax free status meant for social welfare programs was and still is being abused. The invented scandal is just a way of keeping these thieves operating. It has been successful. It has countered any effort to prevent political groups from abusing the system.

The memos are about criminal prosecution of political enemies.

It clearly states you can't do that. All you can do is make them pay a higher tax.

The thing is.....political organizations have the right to tax-free status if they are non-profit.


This is the Obama Administration doing worse than just harassing conservative groups....but discussing locking them up.

Basically, this is what dictators do.

You know very well that if they are ordered to pay taxes and don't pay the taxes they could go to jail.

That is a totally different situation. Your problem is you can't read.

I even pointed out what they were discussing.

Since this meeting IRS tax returns have been released and used to harass donors. Every conservative talk-show host has come under IRS investigation. A Fox New journalist had his phone tapped. They're doing everything but indict people for opposing the Obama Administration. I figure....it's only a matter of time before they find something they think is actionalble.

 

[mudwhistle]

I think an intelligent and open discussion is not wanted by the OP regarding the Judicial Watch fund raising effort. That is all the nonsense above and in the OP is. Nothing new or groundbreaking. No smoking gun. Just an attention getting article that will encourage folks to send funds to Judicial Watch.

The problem with people like you is you've been brainwashed into thinking anything goes when it comes to punishing political opponents.

That's what Obama wants.......the country to hate the right so much that throwing them in jail and impinging on their civil rights is perfectly fine.


Just like a bunch of Nazis.