WASHINGTON, Sept. 20, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- In a
terrifying move toward suppression of political speech, the
powerful majority House Ways and Means Committee launched an effort
this week to strip the tax exempt status of some 60 accredited
501(c)(3) educational organizations for espousing views widely
supported by the public but opposed by the Democratic
leadership.
The Committee hearing on Sept. 19,
ominously titled, How the Tax Code Subsidizes Hate, provides a
congressional imprimatur of approval to a troubling "far left"
trend of stifling free speech and political dissent by labeling it
as hate. The Ways and Means Committee hearing targeted 60 groups
that are on the unaccountable, discredited, and scandal-ridden
Southern Poverty Law Center's (SPLC) list of "hate groups." This
would give a private, radical fringe group based in Alabama the right to decide who can be
tax-exempt.
"If this naked effort to silence political and social views held
by a substantial number of Americans – in many cases, the majority
of Americans – were not such a terrifying assault on the First
Amendment, it would be laughable," said Dan
Stein, president of FAIR.
"In holding this hearing, the Ways and Means Committee has
essentially designated the SPLC, a shadowy and unaccountable group,
whose entire leadership structure was sacked earlier this year
because of charges of institutional racism and sexism, as the
arbiter of whose voices should be heard in debates about critical
public policy issues. Forget 'Democratic Socialism.' We're headed
full-speed toward Stalinism, if the Democratic leadership gets its
way," Stein charged.
Suppressing and defunding organizations whose political views
the SPLC opposes has long been the stated objective of the group.
Long-time SPLC hit man Mark Potok
made those objectives clear. "I want to say plainly that our aim in
life is to destroy these groups, to completely destroy them," Potok
stated.
"If anybody's tax exempt status should be called into question
it is the SPLC's," argued Stein. "The SPLC has a long and
well-documented history of inciting hatred and violence against
organizations and individuals who have stood in the way of their
radical political agenda. Moreover, they have consistently violated
the IRS rules on propaganda and failed to live up to their legal
obligations as a 'charitable' organization under the IRS code,
hoarding donations for themselves rather than using them to
advance the interests of the people they claim to represent."
"Yesterday's Ways and Means Committee hearing may have just been
some political grandstanding by the Democratic majority, for now.
Subversion of democratic principles and basic liberties does not
happen overnight. It begins with the sort of kangaroo court
hearings staged by the Committee yesterday, which should serve as a
giant red flag to anyone who values the notions of free speech and
the right to political dissent," Stein concluded.
Contact: Matthew Tragesser,
202-328-7004
ABOUT FAIR
Founded in 1979, FAIR is the country's largest immigration
reform group. With over 2 million members and supporters
nationwide, FAIR fights for immigration policies that serve
national interests, not special interests. FAIR believes that
immigration reform must enhance national security, improve the
economy, protect jobs, preserve our environment, and establish a
rule of law that is recognized and enforced.
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SOURCE Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR)