I was watching Jehmu Greene, a liberal commentator, on a Saturday morning show on Fox News. She kept saying that the Tea Party and other conservative groups should be thoroughly reviewed, because they were trying get a funding subsidy from the government. That's how she views their 501(c) tax exempt status applications, but is that right. Well 501(c) tax exempt status would allow donors to these organizations to claim a tax deduction for their contribution dollars.
I have never viewed my charitable contributions to my church as being government subsidized. You know, I never gave money to the church and thought about the tax deduction as being a "matching" contribution to the church. I never thought to myself, I was going to donate $100, but I will save $15 in taxes, so I'll write the check for $115. This concept of the government funding a charity through the tax deductions, just didn't register with me at all. It still doesn't.
All of that being said, does that have anything to do with the scandal at the IRS? In my opinion, no. The scandal is all about disparate treatment under the law. Did the IRS scrutinize left leaning organizations as closely as these organizations with the words "Tea Party" or "Patriot" in their names? Evidence would tend to say that they did not. Many of these left-wing groups are overtly political in their activities, although they may not support a particular candidate. They already have tax exempt status.
The Tea Party is an organization that promotes fiscal responsibility. I've been to a number of their meetings, and before the election last fall, a number of candidates spoke at the meetings. Some were Republican, some were Democrat, and others were non-partisan local candidates. As I have viewed the reaction of the Tea Party meeting attendees, I didn't see that they were supporting or opposing a particular party. It was ideology that was either supported or opposed. A candidate that supported growth of government, especially in healthcare, was called to task after speaking. The Tea Party folks aren't bashful about pointing out a candidate's folly. This didn't happen behind their backs, but right there at the meeting. That often happened with Democrats, but not exclusively. They passed out information that compared the voting records of all members of congress, and some Republicans didn't look so great. The Tea Party is primarily a Libertarian organization that promotes the US Constitution and freedom and fiscal responsibility. Are the Democrats really afraid of an organization that promotes these things? If so, why?
I would venture a guess that most Americans that voted for Barack Obama for president would say that they believe in freedom. I bet they like their constitutional protections for freedom of association and freedom of speech. If you ask them, I'll bet they prefer having a strong constitution. Would they have voted for a president or law maker that wants to tear down these protections of the people?
This MessAPolitico in Washington wants to stop the political dissent of the Tea Party. They don't want you to have as much freedom as the constitution allows. They want the power to control you. They don't want you donating to any cause that opposes their agenda. In fact, they would prefer to take your money and use it to buy enough votes to maintain their power and tyrannical control over the populace.
Hey IRS, free these groups from your tyranny. Give them the tax exempt status they deserve. Or give us a fair tax and no one will have any deductions. That will make it all fair. Then the government will NOT be guiding our decisions on what to do with our money.
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