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IRS Handed Defeat in Court Ruling Against Tea Party Group It Stiffed
Townhall ^ | 2016-11-06 | Cortney O'Brien

Posted on 11/06/2016 9:06:39 AM PST by justlurking

The Texas Patriots Tea Party emerged as victor in its case against the IRS. On Friday, U.S. District Court Judge Michael R. Barrett ruled that the agency must process TPTP's application for tax exempt status after a long (and seemingly politically motivated) delay.

It's now clear the IRS segregated TPTP's application in 2012 because it was a conservative political organization. It was just one instance in a larger scandal in which the IRS targeted conservatives and unfairly stalled their applications. 

The agency has insisted it no longer practices such political bias, yet the court said that doesn't solve TPTP's issue.

"Regardless of the fact the IRS purports to have stopped applying the inappropriate political advocacy criteria in 2013, the evidence is undisputed that the IRS continued to delay processing TPTP’s until August of 2016," the judge wrote in his decision."

Mark Meckler, president of Citizens for Self Governance, applauded the judge's decision.

(Excerpt) Read more at townhall.com ...


TOPICS: Extended News; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections; US: District of Columbia; US: Texas
KEYWORDS: irs; teaparty; texas
Some good news, albeit long overdue.
1 posted on 11/06/2016 9:06:39 AM PST by justlurking
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To: justlurking

“... no longer practices such political bias”

Everyone who was working in a supervisory position, in the IRS at that time, should be fired.


2 posted on 11/06/2016 9:11:58 AM PST by Fireone (The future must belong to those who tell the truth about Islam.)
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To: justlurking

Unfortunately, there is no disincentive for them to repeat the performance.


3 posted on 11/06/2016 9:15:17 AM PST by Dr. Sivana (There is no salvation in politics.)
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To: justlurking
There should be civil and criminal litigation in this issue !
Heads need to roll ... or it will continue !
4 posted on 11/06/2016 9:15:47 AM PST by Tilted Irish Kilt ("Everything HRC touches she kind of screws up with hubris.”- Colin Powell)
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To: justlurking

Mission accomplished by the Obama and Clinton machines. They have criminally tied up these organizations with vicious, legal battles until one day before the election. The machines need to be dismantled.


5 posted on 11/06/2016 9:23:55 AM PST by purplelobster
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To: Fireone

Why so many words....allow me to edit...

EVERYONE IN THE IRS should be FIRED.


6 posted on 11/06/2016 9:41:19 AM PST by proudpapa (Trump Pence 2016!!)
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To: Fireone

These scumbags will unleash hell on the right unless Trump wins.


7 posted on 11/06/2016 9:42:56 AM PST by Rome2000 (SMASH THE CPUSA-SIC SEMPER TYRANNIS-CLOSE ALL MOSQUES)
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To: justlurking

If the judge is serious, he should not only slap sanctions against the IRS, but there should be significant monetary damages, paid to all these organizations; and those IRS employees involved, all of them, should get a citation in their permanent files that they engaged in unethical “and likely” illegal activities, either on their own or at the order of their superiors, “so should no longer occupy any position of authority, trust or responsibility within the US government.”

The phrasing of this must be very exact. Since they are likely immune from prosecution, this cannot be a criminal or a civil sanction against them personally. However, it will be a huge “red flag” against their continued employment at the IRS or any other government agency. In effect, it declares them to be “unindicted co-conspirators”, which is just poison in their resumes.


8 posted on 11/06/2016 9:45:56 AM PST by yefragetuwrabrumuy (Friday, January 20, 2017. Reparations end.)
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To: justlurking

They knew that once the damage was done it wouldn’t matter.

The ends justify the means.

F U IRS!


9 posted on 11/06/2016 9:55:23 AM PST by unixfox (Abolish Slavery, Repeal the 16th Amendment)
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To: Rome2000

You are correct, and the result won’t be pretty.


10 posted on 11/06/2016 9:57:49 AM PST by Fireone (The future must belong to those who tell the truth about Islam.)
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To: Fireone

NO this just means they are now pro at it. No more practice required.


11 posted on 11/06/2016 10:16:31 AM PST by pas
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To: justlurking

Doesn’t matter..... the Tea Party was effectively killed

The victory amounts to nothing


12 posted on 11/06/2016 10:18:29 AM PST by bert ((K.E.; N.P.; GOPc;WASP .... Hilary is an Ameriphobe)
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To: yefragetuwrabrumuy
If the judge is serious, he should not only slap sanctions against the IRS, but there should be significant monetary damages, paid to all these organizations; and those IRS employees involved, all of them, should get a citation in their permanent files that they engaged in unethical “and likely” illegal activities, either on their own or at the order of their superiors, “so should no longer occupy any position of authority, trust or responsibility within the US government.”

Interesting -- I was away for my computer for a bit, working on something else. I thought about this article, and had a very similar thought.

A worth pursuit of a Trump administration would be an "Accountability in Government" Act. I don't think he can do it by Executive Order, but I think he could come up with a friendly Congressman to introduce a bill. Without it, it's almost impossible for a judge to impose disciplinary action on an employee, due to separation of powers.

Short version: If a court finds misconduct by a government agency and orders them to act, or act differently, then the responsible employee(s) shall be suspended without pay for 1 year, or terminated completely and forfeit all benefits -- depending on the severity of the offense.

This Act shall supersede any clause of a collective bargaining contract. In other words, there's no appeal to a review or disciplinary board that will just rule in favor of the employee.

The employee's only defense is proof of a superior's contrary order. And, that proof shall invoke the consequences of this Act against the superior. Political appointees would not be exempted.

Destruction or non-retention of evidence would be considered proof of misconduct. And, invoking the 5th Amendment would be grounds for immediate termination.

As a result, I think you would see a lot of employees telling their boss: "put it in writing, please". And that alone will impose a chilling effect on outlaw behavior.

13 posted on 11/06/2016 10:34:09 AM PST by justlurking
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To: Fireone

>>Everyone who was working in a supervisory position, in the IRS at that time, should be fired.

I disagree. They should be jailed.


14 posted on 11/06/2016 10:34:53 AM PST by generally ( Don't be stupid. We have politicians for that.)
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To: justlurking

Well worth repeating. This is the kind of Constitutional thinking I come to FreeRepublic for in the first place.

“1) an “Accountability in Government” Act. I don’t think he can do it by Executive Order, but I think he could come up with a friendly Congressman to introduce a bill. Without it, it’s almost impossible for a judge to impose disciplinary action on an employee, due to separation of powers.

2) If a court finds misconduct by a government agency and orders them to act, or act differently, then the responsible employee(s) shall be suspended without pay for 1 year, or terminated completely and forfeit all benefits — depending on the severity of the offense.

3) This Act shall supersede any clause of a collective bargaining contract. In other words, there’s no appeal to a review or disciplinary board that will just rule in favor of the employee.

4) The employee’s only defense is proof of a superior’s contrary order. And, that proof shall invoke the consequences of this Act against the superior. Political appointees would not be exempted.

5) [The Clinton article] Destruction or non-retention of evidence would be considered proof of misconduct. And, invoking the 5th Amendment would be grounds for immediate termination.

6) As a result, I think you would see a lot of employees telling their boss: “put it in writing, please”. And that alone will impose a chilling effect on outlaw behavior.

Trump’s legal team, attention please.


15 posted on 11/06/2016 11:21:58 AM PST by Chad N. Freud (FR is the modern equivalent of the Committees of Correspondence. Let other analogies arise.)
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To: generally

Can’t argue with that!


16 posted on 11/06/2016 11:35:43 AM PST by Fireone (The future must belong to those who tell the truth about Islam.)
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To: justlurking

Who is getting fired at IRS over this?


17 posted on 11/06/2016 11:59:43 AM PST by Freedom_Is_Not_Free (The Confederate Flag is the new "N" word.)
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To: justlurking

Two things: the first government official court was established in France during the reign of Napoleon Bonaparte. Any citizen who felt wrong by a particular bureaucrat or official could bring his case before the court for an impartial decision. It was abolished as were a slew of other reforms, when Napoleon was deposed.

Second, sanctions should include not only a lifetime bar from their working for any federal agency or bureau again, in any capacity; but also to bar them from working for any corporation or NGO that has a contract with the federal government. This latter part is the threat that would truly terrify them, since many of them rotate between corrupt government jobs and corrupt civilian jobs.

And most of the corporations and NGOs out there have at least *some* dealings with the feds.


18 posted on 11/06/2016 2:25:48 PM PST by yefragetuwrabrumuy (Friday, January 20, 2017. Reparations end.)
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To: proudpapa

The flat tax candidate would have done just that!


19 posted on 11/07/2016 4:07:55 AM PST by momincombatboots (Pray for Sky, 20, two gunshots to abdomen, college student, hostess, easy prey n transformed US)
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