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CLT UPDATE
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
CLT joins other groups demanding IRS accountability
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Three Massachusetts groups are calling on members
of the all-Democrat Massachusetts Congressional delegation to
condemn the IRS’s targeting of conservative groups for audits.
“Regardless of one’s political preference, when a
regulatory agency, like the IRS, singles out specific groups because
of their beliefs, it threatens all of our freedoms,” Mass. Fiscal
Alliance Director Paul Craney, Citizens for Limited Taxation
Director Barbara Anderson and Greater Boston Tea Party
President Christine Morabito wrote in a letter to Congressmen on
Monday.
State House News Service
Monday, May 13, 2013
Local groups urge Bay State delegation to condemn IRS
Paul D. Craney of Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance,
Barbara Anderson of Citizens for Limited Taxation and Christine
Morabito of the Greater Boston Tea Party sent a joint letter to the
United States Congressmen and Senators from Massachusetts calling on
them to join members from both parties to publicly condemn the
behavior of the IRS in their targeting of specific conservative
non-profit groups.
Joint Press Release
Monday, May 13, 2013
Outraged Bay State Democrats are blasting
President Obama for exhibiting a Nixonian abuse of power after
the stunning news that the Department of Justice secretly
obtained Associated Press phone records and the IRS targeted
conservative groups — new scandals emerging against the backdrop
of heightened Benghazi criticism.
“There’s no way in the world I’m going to
defend that. Hell, I spent my youth vilifying the Nixon
administration for doing the same thing. If they did that, there
should be hell to pay,” U.S. Rep. Michael E. Capuano
(D-Somerville) said about the IRS scandal. “Not only is it bad
government and bad to society, it is horrendous politics. The
worst thing you can do is give your opponent an easy hammer with
which to hit you.”
“It doesn’t seem to be a couple rogue
employees. This appeared to be a systemic issue,” said U.S. Rep.
Stephen F. Lynch (D-South Boston), who wants to investigate the
matter as a member of the Committee on Oversight and Government
Reform. The committee already has scheduled a hearing on the
issue for this week, Lynch said, adding, “No American should
find themselves the target of the IRS or any other federal
organization because of their political beliefs.”
The Boston Herald
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Dems vow: ‘Hell to pay’ if IRS allegations ring true
The Justice Department secretly obtained two
months of telephone records of reporters and editors for The
Associated Press in what the news cooperative's top executive
called a "massive and unprecedented intrusion" into how news
organizations gather the news.
The records obtained by the Justice
Department listed outgoing calls for the work and personal phone
numbers of individual reporters, for general AP office numbers
in New York, Washington and Hartford, Conn., and for the main
number for the AP in the House of Representatives press gallery,
according to attorneys for the AP. It was not clear if the
records also included incoming calls or the duration of the
calls.
In all, the government seized the records for
more than 20 separate telephone lines assigned to AP and its
journalists in April and May of 2012. The exact number of
journalists who used the phone lines during that period is
unknown, but more than 100 journalists work in the offices where
phone records were targeted, on a wide array of stories about
government and other matters.
Associated Press
Monday, May 13, 2013
Gov't obtains wide AP phone records in probe
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Chip Ford's CLT
Commentary
By now — as we are
— you too must be feeling overwhelmed
trying to keep up with breaking Obama Administration scandals. Every
day new lies are exposed, more facts are revealed, greater abuses
are bared. Benghazi, the IRS abuses, and late yesterday the chilling
news that even the Main Street Media is not immune from this rogue
administration's arrogance and mendacity —
that the U.S. Attorney General had been spying on Associated Press
telephones records. According to the AP report last night, "Gov't
obtains wide AP phone records in probe":
The Justice Department secretly
obtained two months of telephone records of reporters
and editors for The Associated Press in what the news
cooperative's top executive called a "massive and
unprecedented intrusion" into how news organizations
gather the news.
The records obtained by the Justice Department listed
outgoing calls for the work and personal phone numbers
of individual reporters, for general AP office numbers
in New York, Washington and Hartford, Conn., and for the
main number for the AP in the House of Representatives
press gallery, according to attorneys for the AP. It was
not clear if the records also included incoming calls or
the duration of the calls.
In all, the government seized the records for more than
20 separate telephone lines assigned to AP and its
journalists in April and May of 2012. The exact number
of journalists who used the phone lines during that
period is unknown, but more than 100 journalists work in
the offices where phone records were targeted, on a wide
array of stories about government and other matters.
When invited to sign on to a joint news release
expressing out outrage over the
IRS targeting Tea Party and other conservative groups, we jumped
at the opportunity.
You can read our joint letter below.
Beneath the letter is the U.S. Treasury Inspector
General's report and conclusion, "Inappropriate Criteria Were Used
to Identify Tax-Exempt Applications for Review."
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State House News Service
Monday, May 13, 2013
Local groups urge Bay State delegation to condemn IRS
By Michael Norton
Three Massachusetts groups are calling on members of the
all-Democrat Massachusetts Congressional delegation to condemn the
IRS’s targeting of conservative groups for audits.
“Regardless of one’s political preference, when a regulatory agency,
like the IRS, singles out specific groups because of their beliefs,
it threatens all of our freedoms,” Mass. Fiscal Alliance Director
Paul Craney, Citizens for Limited Taxation Director Barbara Anderson
and Greater Boston Tea Party President Christine Morabito wrote in a
letter to Congressmen on Monday.
President Barack Obama said during a press conference Monday that he
learned about the IRS situation I news reports on Friday. “If, in
fact, IRS personnel engaged in the kind of practices that had been
reported on and were intentionally targeting conservative groups,
then that's outrageous and there's no place for it,” Obama said.
“And they have to be held fully accountable, because the IRS as an
independent agency requires absolute integrity, and people have to
have confidence that they're applying it in a non-partisan way --
applying the laws in a non-partisan way. And you should feel that
way regardless of party. I don't care whether you're a Democrat,
independent or a Republican. At some point, there are going to be
Republican administrations. At some point, there are going to be
Democratic ones. Either way, you don't want the IRS ever being
perceived to be biased and anything less than neutral in terms of
how they operate. So this is something that I think people are
properly concerned about.”
In Boston Monday morning, Congressman Michael Capuano of Somerville
predicted the IRS problems would be discussed for years. "There's no
way in the world I'm going to defend that. Hell, I spent my youth
vilifying the Nixon administration for doing the same thing. If they
did that, there should be hell to pay," Capuano said. "Not only is
it bad government and bad to society; it is horrendous politics. The
worst thing you can do is give your opponent an easy hammer with
which to hit you."
While saying “I will not tolerate it,” Obama said he was awaiting
the results of an investigation into the IRS.
Congressman Ed Markey, in the midst of his campaign for US Senate,
released a statement Monday afternoon.
“Americans want a tax system that is fair and works for everyone.
When it reviews applications for tax-exempt status, the IRS needs to
use completely unbiased, neutral analysis without any regard for the
political views of the applicants," he said. "We need more
investigation into this situation, and if any group was unfairly
treated by these inappropriate practices, that would be outrageous
and unacceptable. This kind of action by the IRS cannot be tolerated
and people must be held accountable.”
Press Release
For Immediate Release
May 13, 2013
Contact: Paul D. Craney
The Public Should Know Where Members of Congress Stand on IRS
Controversy
MassFiscal, Citizens for Limited Taxation & the Greater Boston Tea
Party Send Joint Letter
Wakefield, MA: Paul D. Craney of Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance,
Barbara Anderson of Citizens for Limited Taxation and
Christine Morabito of the Greater Boston Tea Party sent a joint
letter to the United States Congressmen and Senators from
Massachusetts calling on them to join members from both parties to
publicly condemn the behavior of the IRS in their targeting of
specific conservative non-profit groups. A
copy of the letter may be
found attached.
"Specifically targeting groups that are conservative is inexcusable.
It should not matter if these groups are conservative, progressive
or anything in between; unfair treatment has no place in this
country and it affects the freedoms of all of us," stated Paul D.
Craney, Executive Director of Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance.
"Now is the time for our Members of Congress to demonstrate their
willingness to work with both parties in publicly condemning the
behavior at the IRS. The public deserves to know how their elected
official stands on this good government issue,” concluded Craney.
# # #
The Boston Herald
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Dems vow: ‘Hell to pay’ if IRS allegations ring true
By Hillary Chabot and O’Ryan Johnson
Outraged Bay State Democrats are blasting President Obama for
exhibiting a Nixonian abuse of power after the stunning news that
the Department of Justice secretly obtained Associated Press phone
records and the IRS targeted conservative groups — new scandals
emerging against the backdrop of heightened Benghazi criticism.
“There’s no way in the world I’m going to defend that. Hell, I spent
my youth vilifying the Nixon administration for doing the same
thing. If they did that, there should be hell to pay,” U.S. Rep.
Michael E. Capuano (D-Somerville) said about the IRS scandal. “Not
only is it bad government and bad to society, it is horrendous
politics. The worst thing you can do is give your opponent an easy
hammer with which to hit you.”
“It doesn’t seem to be a couple rogue employees. This appeared to be
a systemic issue,” said U.S. Rep. Stephen F. Lynch (D-South Boston),
who wants to investigate the matter as a member of the Committee on
Oversight and Government Reform. The committee already has scheduled
a hearing on the issue for this week, Lynch said, adding, “No
American should find themselves the target of the IRS or any other
federal organization because of their political beliefs.”
Both U.S. Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Malden) and the GOP’s Gabriel
Gomez, rivals in the Senate special election, slammed the
administration’s actions, as new reports emerged yesterday that the
Department of Justice seized two months’ worth of phone records from
Associated Press reporters and editors. Gomez called it “another
troubling example of overzealous federal agencies restricting our
First Amendment rights.”
Markey said in a statement: “The Justice Department has many
questions it now must answer as to why this sweeping request for
information was ever necessary. As we work to prevent terrorist
attacks against our country, we must continue to respect our laws
and uphold our constitutional rights, including freedom of the
press.”
Obama yesterday called the IRS actions “outrageous” if true, saying
those responsible must be held “fully accountable.”
“I’ve got no patience with it,” he added. “I will not tolerate it,
and we will find out exactly what happened.”
The Treasury Department apologized Friday for “inappropriate”
targeting of groups seeking tax-exempt status with “Tea Party” or
“patriot” in their names, and others that stated their purpose was
to question government spending or power. The IRS initially blamed
low-level employees, but emails have since shown top officials knew
as early as 2011.
“I’m old enough to remember Watergate, and I’m not saying this is
another Watergate, but when the IRS is involved, it really hits
home,” said U.S. Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.). The references to the
Nixon administration recalled the massive abuse of power scandals
such as the bugging of the Democratic National Committee
headquarters at the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C. Nixon
aides also directed so-called “plumbers” to plug leaks — operatives
digging up dirt on people such as Pentagon Papers whistleblower
Daniel Ellsberg.
Nixon’s aides maintained a so-called “enemies list,” with the intent
of turning the IRS on them. A congressional investigation later
found undue IRS audits were not carried out under Nixon.
Herald wire services contributed to this report.
Associated Press
Monday, May 13, 2013
Gov't obtains wide AP phone records in probe
By Mark Sherman
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department secretly obtained two
months of telephone records of reporters and editors for The
Associated Press in what the news cooperative's top executive called
a "massive and unprecedented intrusion" into how news organizations
gather the news.
The records obtained by the Justice Department listed outgoing calls
for the work and personal phone numbers of individual reporters, for
general AP office numbers in New York, Washington and Hartford,
Conn., and for the main number for the AP in the House of
Representatives press gallery, according to attorneys for the AP. It
was not clear if the records also included incoming calls or the
duration of the calls.
In all, the government seized the records for more than 20 separate
telephone lines assigned to AP and its journalists in April and May
of 2012. The exact number of journalists who used the phone lines
during that period is unknown, but more than 100 journalists work in
the offices where phone records were targeted, on a wide array of
stories about government and other matters.
In a letter of protest sent to Attorney General Eric Holder on
Monday, AP President and Chief Executive Officer Gary Pruitt said
the government sought and obtained information far beyond anything
that could be justified by any specific investigation. He demanded
the return of the phone records and destruction of all copies.
"There can be no possible justification for such an overbroad
collection of the telephone communications of The Associated Press
and its reporters. These records potentially reveal communications
with confidential sources across all of the newsgathering activities
undertaken by the AP during a two-month period, provide a road map
to AP's newsgathering operations and disclose information about AP's
activities and operations that the government has no conceivable
right to know," Pruitt said.
The government would not say why it sought the records. Officials
have previously said in public testimony that the U.S. attorney in
Washington is conducting a criminal investigation into who may have
provided information contained in a May 7, 2012, AP story about a
foiled terror plot. The story disclosed details of a CIA operation
in Yemen that stopped an al-Qaida plot in the spring of 2012 to
detonate a bomb on an airplane bound for the United States.
In testimony in February, CIA Director John Brennan noted that the
FBI had questioned him about whether he was AP's source, which he
denied. He called the release of the information to the media about
the terror plot an "unauthorized and dangerous disclosure of
classified information."
Prosecutors have sought phone records from reporters before, but the
seizure of records from such a wide array of AP offices, including
general AP switchboards numbers and an office-wide shared fax line,
is unusual.
In the letter notifying the AP, which was received Friday, the
Justice Department offered no explanation for the seizure, according
to Pruitt's letter and attorneys for the AP. The records were
presumably obtained from phone companies earlier this year although
the government letter did not explain that. None of the information
provided by the government to the AP suggested the actual phone
conversations were monitored.
Among those whose phone numbers were obtained were five reporters
and an editor who were involved in the May 7, 2012, story.
The Obama administration has aggressively investigated disclosures
of classified information to the media and has brought six cases
against people suspected of providing classified information, more
than under all previous presidents combined.
The White House on Monday said that other than press reports it had
no knowledge of Justice Department attempts to seek AP phone
records.
"We are not involved in decisions made in connection with criminal
investigations, as those matters are handled independently by the
Justice Department," spokesman Jay Carney said.
Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., chairman of the investigative House
Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said on CNN, "They had an
obligation to look for every other way to get it before they
intruded on the freedom of the press."
Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., chairman of the Senate Judiciary
Committee, said in an emailed statement: "The burden is always on
the government when they go after private information, especially
information regarding the press or its confidential sources. ... On
the face of it, I am concerned that the government may not have met
that burden. I am very troubled by these allegations and want to
hear the government's explanation."
The American Civil Liberties Union said the use of subpoenas for a
broad swath of records has a chilling effect both on journalists and
whistleblowers who want to reveal government wrongdoing. "The
attorney general must explain the Justice Department's actions to
the public so that we can make sure this kind of press intimidation
does not happen again," said Laura Murphy, the director of ACLU's
Washington legislative office.
Rules published by the Justice Department require that subpoenas of
records of news organizations must be personally approved by the
attorney general, but it was not known if that happened in this
case. The letter notifying AP that its phone records had been
obtained through subpoenas was sent Friday by Ronald Machen, the
U.S. attorney in Washington.
William Miller, a spokesman for Machen, said Monday that in general
the U.S. attorney follows "all applicable laws, federal regulations
and Department of Justice policies when issuing subpoenas for phone
records of media organizations." But he would not address questions
about the specifics of the AP records. "We do not comment on ongoing
criminal investigations," Miller said in an email.
The Justice Department lays out strict rules for efforts to get
phone records from news organizations. A subpoena can be considered
only after "all reasonable attempts" have been made to get the same
information from other sources, the rules say. It was unclear what
other steps, in total, the Justice Department might have taken to
get information in the case.
A subpoena to the media must be "as narrowly drawn as possible" and
"should be directed at relevant information regarding a limited
subject matter and should cover a reasonably limited time period,"
according to the rules.
The reason for these constraints, the department says, is to avoid
actions that "might impair the news gathering function" because the
government recognizes that "freedom of the press can be no broader
than the freedom of reporters to investigate and report the news."
News organizations normally are notified in advance that the
government wants phone records and then they enter into negotiations
over the desired information. In this case, however, the government,
in its letter to the AP, cited an exemption to those rules that
holds that prior notification can be waived if such notice, in the
exemption's wording, might "pose a substantial threat to the
integrity of the investigation."
It is unknown whether a judge or a grand jury signed off on the
subpoenas.
Arnie Robbins, executive director of the American Society of News
Editors, said, "On the face of it, this is really a disturbing
affront to a free press. It's also troubling because it is
consistent with perhaps the most aggressive administration ever
against reporters doing their jobs — providing information that
citizens need to know about our government."
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., a potential 2016 presidential candidate,
said: "The Fourth Amendment is not just a protection against
unreasonable searches and seizures, it is a fundamental protection
for the First Amendment and all other Constitutional rights. It sets
a high bar — a warrant — for the government to take actions that
could chill exercise of any of those rights. We must guard it with
all the vigor that we guard other constitutional protections."
The May 7, 2012, AP story that disclosed details of the CIA
operation in Yemen to stop an airliner bomb plot occurred around the
one-year anniversary of the May 2, 2011, killing of Osama bin Laden.
The plot was significant both because of its seriousness and also
because the White House previously had told the public it had "no
credible information that terrorist organizations, including al-Qaida,
are plotting attacks in the U.S. to coincide with the (May 2)
anniversary of bin Laden's death."
The AP delayed reporting the story at the request of government
officials who said it would jeopardize national security. Once
officials said those concerns were allayed, the AP disclosed the
plot, though the Obama administration continued to request that the
story be held until the administration could make an official
announcement.
The May 7 story was written by reporters Matt Apuzzo and Adam
Goldman with contributions from reporters Kimberly Dozier, Eileen
Sullivan and Alan Fram. They and their editor, Ted Bridis, were
among the journalists whose April-May 2012 phone records were seized
by the government.
Brennan talked about the AP story and investigation in written
testimony to the Senate. "The irresponsible and damaging leak of
classified information was made ... when someone informed The
Associated Press that the U.S. government had intercepted an IED
(improvised explosive device) that was supposed to be used in an
attack and that the U.S. government currently had that IED in its
possession and was analyzing it," he wrote.
He also defended the White House decision to discuss the plot
afterward. "Once someone leaked information about interdiction of
the IED and that the IED was actually in our possession, it was
imperative to inform the American people consistent with government
policy that there was never any danger to the American people
associated with this al-Qaida plot," Brennan told senators.
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NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this
material is distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior
interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes
only. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml
Citizens for Limited Taxation ▪
PO Box 1147 ▪ Marblehead, MA 01945
▪ 508-915-3665
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