Free Republic

Acting IRS administrator Danny Werfel is set to appear as the lone witness on Thursday before the House Ways and Means Committee to testify on his report — an update on the agency’s follow-up to an inspector general’s report concluding it inappropriately targeted tea-party groups — in which he said the agency’s discrimination was not limited to conservative organizations but occurred across the ideological spectrum. One member of the committee, who happens to be the fourth-ranking Republican in Congress, is not buying Werfel’s claims. “The IRS is in full spin mode,” Representative Peter Roskam tells National Review Online. The Illinois...

DENVER (AP) - Republican and Democratic lawmakers are challenging Colorado's strict and tax & spending limits in federal court. The Denver Post reported that the suit would be filed Monday. Among those challenging the Taxpayers Bill of Rights - or TABOR - are Democratic Rep. Andy Kerr of Lakewood and former Republican state Sen. Norma Anderson. TABOR requires lawmakers to ask voters to raise taxes. It also limits the amount of tax revenue the state can keep and spend. The suit alleges that it violates the U.S. Constitution's guarantee of a small-R "republican" government where elected representatives make decisions on...

AUGUSTA -- Organized labor, AARP and the Maine Municipal Association are leading an effort to defeat a citizen-initiated tax measure called the Taxpayer Bill of Rights. The measure, sometimes called TABOR, seeks to limit government spending to the increase in inflation when adjusted for population gains or losses. If there's a need to exceed that amount, it must be approved by two-thirds of the governing body and by a vote of the citizens. It also requires a two-thirds vote of the governing body -- the state, a town, school district, county, or utility district -- for any tax increases, as...

Why Does Governor Napolitano Think Arizona Should have the Lowest Security Standards in the Nation? Governor Janet Napolitano made a big show of sending a “bill” to the federal government for the costs of illegal immigration, complete with tough talk and finger-pointing. However, by vetoing meaningful reform in her own backyard, she is turning a blind eye to fraud, identity theft and other crimes committed in Arizona by illegal immigrants. I sponsored Senate Bill 1511 -- “secure and verifiable identification” -- to establish a standard for identification used by state and local government as recommended by FBI testimony. The FBI...

As part of the Iraq supplemental appropriations bill, Congress voted to support legislation for the use of federal troops on the Mexican-American borders. The National Border Control Council and the Fraternal Order of Police endorsed the legislation mandating the stationing of U.S. troops on the Mexican-American border to support the U.S. Border Patrol. [SNIP] On a more personal note, Virginia Sen. George Allen said, "Legal immigration has been and is the lifeblood of our nation. My own mother followed the process and emigrated to the U.S. from Tunisia after World War II. I have the greatest respect for the ingenuity,...

This is a dynamite article, but unfortunately can't give you anything but the link under the FR rules because it's USA Today. http://story.news.yahoo.com/s/usatoday/20050518/ts_usatoday/mexicansgotoarizformedicalhelp/nc:716

Feinstein targets agricultural workers. Senator plans to introduce an industry-specific bill, rather than a sweeping measure on immigration. Sen. Dianne Feinstein said Tuesday that she ... plans to introduce her own measure to provide a path toward legalization only for longtime undocumented agriculture workers. Feinstein, D-Calif., said any new guest-worker program – even one requiring employees to eventually return to their home country – would be a "magnet for illegal immigration" and something she could not support. SNIP Under Feinstein's idea, which hasn't yet been finalized, longtime undocumented agricultural workers would get a "blue card," allowing them to continue to...

One overlooked development coming out of the 2005 Session of Georgia's Legislature was the creation of a study committee to examine the potential benefits of enacting a Taxpayer's Bill of Rights(TABOR)(view the bill by clicking here). Proposed by State Representative Donna Sheldon (R-105), the study committee would examine TABOR as implemented and proposed in other States to determine if a similar measure would benefit Georgia. TABOR has been in place in Colorado since 1992 with tremendous positive effect. Dr. Barry Poulson of Americans For Prosperity gives TABOR a strong endorsement:Since TABOR was put in place, Colorado has returned more than...