Taxing Free Speech

by Gene Shelburne

We live in America where the Bill of Rights guarantees us the right to speak our political and religious thoughts freely. Right? Think again.

Court judgments against abortion protesters bankrupted America’s largest pro-life organization. They may not always have spoken their viewpoint wisely, but it was their viewpoint. And they were legally silenced.

In a Nov. 15, 1999, Associated Press story, reporters Larry Margasak and John Solomon document instances where powerful politicians have sought to squelch their critics by siccing IRS auditors on them.

To prove these allegations, Landmark Legal Foundation sued the IRS, forcing them to reveal who had asked for audits of certain organizations. They found that politically motivated requests for such audits increase in election years. Mark Levin, head of Landmark, said, “The documents show there’s a systematic effort by Congress and the White House to intimidate and silence organizations with whom they disagree.”

Apparently IRS officials keep careful records of such audit requests, entering the referring politician’s name into the file and forwarding White House or Congressional letters to field agents handling the audits.

The Associated Press said some requests they reviewed were marked “hot politically” or “sensitive.”

Christianity Today reports that several churches have lost their tax-exempt status when angry politicians objected to views printed in the churches’ publications.

The AP story alleges that Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), “an ally of the President,” tried unsuccessfully to set IRS auditors onto televangelist Jerry Falwell.

AP focused on the IRS woes of two non-church conservative groups, the Heritage Foundation and Citizens Against Government Waste. Costly audits of these organizations were triggered by U.S. Rep. David Skaggs (D-Colorado) in retaliation for similar audits which he said were aimed at liberal groups.

Heritage Foundation officials say they have spent over $100,000 defending themselves, and in Nov-ember, 1999, they said the harassment by IRS auditors was not over.

Did you know this sort of censorship by taxation could happen in the land of the free? Don’t wait until they target your church or organization. Now is the time to tell somebody you don’t like it.