Free Republic

--snip-- 8,000 to 10,000 Americans refuse to pay some or all of their federal taxes over war objections. Internal Revenue Service officials say they don't have figures for that specific category, but earlier this year reported an overall noncompliance rate of 16.3 percent and estimated the annual tax gap at about $345 billion. Peace activists are considering a mass tax resistance campaign next April to step up pressure to end the war in Iraq, Benn said.

WASHINGTON — Prosecutors Friday recommended four years in prison for former Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., following his guilty plea this year on criminal charges that he engaged in a scheme to spend $750,000 in campaign funds on personal items. The government suggested an 18-month sentence for Jackson's wife, Sandra, who pleaded guilty to filing false joint federal income tax returns that understated the couple's income.

President Obama will kick off the new year the same way that he kicked off the old year: by demanding that the wealthy pay their “fair share” in taxes. But while millions of small-business owners, struggling entrepreneurs, inventors, and investors brace for a double whammy of fiscal-cliff tax hikes and new Obamacare taxes, the class-warrior-in-chief’s richest pals are getting a pass.It’s a golden pass for liberal millionaires and billionaires who support higher Obama taxes for everyone but themselves. Meet the Democratic tax evaders of the year.Google. The left-wing Internet giant provided Silicon Valley’s biggest campaign-finance boost to Obama, with...

Maybe I'm not reading legislation thoroughly, but I think I am. Does anyone seriously think Obama would sponsor legislation to fire federal workers for non-payment of income taxes? Fox Business says Obama sponsored a bill in 2007 "identical" to that of yesterday's bill from Rep. Jason Chaffetz to do just that. Chaffetz wants federal employees fired if they haven't paid their taxes, and he wants no one hired who has delinquent taxes. Obama's 2007 legislation, which died in committee in a Democratically controlled Senate, called only for barring tax-evading contractors and those receiving grants. Big difference. The rest of the story...

With the initiation of so many benefits to "children" up to the age of 26, I believe it is time to create a movement to change the Age of Majority in this country to 27....yes, I borrowed this from a caller to Rush today....but, I think it's a great idea. Maybe we can start at the STATE level with this??? Here's my thoughts....add yours.... 1) No "child" under age 27 will be allowed to... VOTE ENTER a CONTRACT DRINK alcohol Have medical procedures w/o parental approval UNLESS... A) they are military B) they work fulltime (over 1800 hours per year)...

Think anyone is Washington is taking notes?... KINSHASA (Reuters) - Democratic Republic of Congo has begun to collect at source income taxes which even some of its top politicians were failing to pay, to help combat a deepening fiscal crisis, the budget minister said on Tuesday. Resource-rich but impoverished Congo has seen income from mineral exports, its primary foreign currency earner, plummet since mid-2008 as demand for its copper and cobalt has dried up due to the global economic downturn.

Americans now know that the "change we can believe in," which President Obama promised, means a taxes-optional administration. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner rode out the bad news about his failure to pay $34,000 in Social Security and Medicare taxes on income he earned while working for the International Monetary Fund, and still won confirmation. The man now in charge of the IRS says it was "an innocent mistake." Remember that line - in case you are audited. Now come reports that Obama's pick to be both his health policy czar and secretary for health and human services - former Senate...

U.S. Treasury Secretary nominee Timothy Geithner apologized Wednesday to members of the Senate Finance Committee for tax errors he committed earlier this decade that came to light during his nomination process. Mr. Geithner called the mistakes "careless" and "avoidable." He told the panel he was sorry that his past transgressions were now an issue in his confirmation at a time of deepening economic crisis. He urged Congress to act quickly and forcefully to deal with the crisis. A top administration priority is to foster economic recovery and "get credit flowing again," Mr. Geithner testified. As to his failure to pay...

Dr. Paul has praised non-violent civil disobedience as an honorable and effective means of dealing with runaway federal power, including taxation. You should, nevertheless, know what you're doing and count the cost before you begin. Taxpayer or Non-Taxpayer? Has such a question ever even occurred to you? Have you even heard of a "nontaxpayer" before? Wouldn't it be unpatriotic not to "pay your taxes" like everyone else? Taxpayer? Nontaxpayer? Which are you? Is there an unequivocal reason that you "voluntarily comply" with the world's most obscure, deceptive, and fraudulently administered tax law, Title 26 of the US Code? Are YOU...

The German government's purchase of data stolen from a Liechtenstein bank has reinvigorated longstanding debates about privacy, law enforcement and international relations. Much of the fallout has followed predictable patterns. Some argue that Germany's richest citizens should be brought to justice for failing to comply with the tax laws, while others point out that it is unseemly for a nation to spy on a peaceful neighbor. The conflict between Germany and Liechtenstein also has triggered a broader debate about tax competition and the role of so-called tax havens. The Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development is trying to use...

Illegal Worker Hiring Sites Promote Racketeering by Bridget Geegan Blanton Mexico is notorious for corruption... ...and is nearly unresponsive to a persistent, staggering poverty suffered by millions of Mexicans. At the top of the Mexican power structure is an elitist, wealthy ruling class that vehemently resists even a modest level of taxation while supporting the status of Mexico as a nation dependent on American financial aid. Onerous taxation and big government is never a solution, but at the other extreme is the Mexican ruling class who has shunned any responsibility for the dire economic state of their country. In a...

A couple convicted of tax evasion were arrested peacefully at their Plainfield home Thursday night after holing up at the fortress-like compound for months, the U.S. Marshals Service said. Ed and Elaine Brown were convicted on federal tax charges in January and refused to turn themselves in to authorities when they were sentenced in April to five years and three months in prison. It was not immediately clear how they were taken into custody. "We had no indication that the Browns intended to voluntarily surrender, so we had to move forward with an operation that promised the safest possible outcome....

Publicity about a pair of ‘affluent’ Ashland panhandlers has cut handouts for some others who say they’re lucky to get enough for food Jenah Dodge panhandled in downtown Ashland Sunday carrying a cardboard sign that declared she was pregnant. A passerby cried out, "I’ve heard that one before." Dodge, who showed her swollen stomach to prove she was pregnant, just shrugged the comment off, saying, "I never lie when I get money. I believe in karma." While the 20-year-old, who says she gets $20 to $30 a day, hasn’t noticed a drop-off in donations, other panhandlers say the publicity about...

Couple fend off public ire following news article ASHLAND — Sudden notoriety and public condemnation have surprised an Ashland couple who make a living as panhandlers and refer to themselves as "affluent beggars." Jason Pancoast and Elizabeth Johnson, who have three children, think the public has been taken aback by their unconventional image of a well-fed, well-dressed family that lives off the streets. "What has happened is that we’re going along with a lifestyle that you couldn’t imagine we should have," said 34-year-old Pancoast. A story in Sunday’s Mail Tribune about the couple, who sometimes make up to $300 a...

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Broke and without enough money in the bank to pay its bills after the end of the month, the Florida Democratic Party has now been slapped with a lien by the Internal Revenue Service for failing to pay payroll and Social Security taxes in 2003. The state party's budget and finance committee voted Tuesday to ask for a new audit to account for more than $900,000 it believes somehow disappeared from the books during the 2003-2004 calendar years when the party was led by Scott Maddox, who is now seeking its nomination for governor. Maddox and successor...

Bush to Push for Bigger IRS Budget Tue Feb 1,11:02 AM ET Business - AP WASHINGTON - President Bush (news - web sites) will ask Congress to give the Internal Revenue Service (news - web sites) an extra $500 million to pursue tax evaders and increase collections, the Treasury Department (news - web sites) said Tuesday. The boost would mean a nearly 8 percent increase in the IRS budget for tax enforcement, according to a proposal to be included in the fiscal 2006 budget the president sends to Congress next week. The extra money would be used for audits, collections...

October 16, 2004 -- John Kerry's near-billionaire wife, Teresa, reported more than $5 million in total income last year but paid only 12.5 percent in federal taxes — less than the average middle-class family — according to documents released yesterday by his campaign. Teresa Heinz Kerry reported a total income of $5,072,533, including nearly $2.8 million that escaped all federal taxes because it was on interest-free investments from state, city and other public bonds. She paid $628,401 in federal taxes, or a rate of 12.47 percent. The average middle-class family pays more than 20 percent. Mrs. Kerry's rate is barely...

<p>WASHINGTON (AP) - Salary increases and unexpected expenses absorbed money the Internal Revenue Service had planned to use to track down tax evaders, government investigators said Tuesday.</p> <p>The General Accounting Office reported that even with budget increases and internal goals making compliance a top priority, the money devoted to collecting unpaid taxes declined from 2000 through 2002.</p>