Listening in to NPR again today and there's another, more interesting aspect to this debacle.
The IRS apparently has a tax-exempt classification specifically for non-profit political groups that actively lobby their causes. The catch? They need to disclose who exactly their benefactors are.
Funny how many of these groups, which at first blush sound like they belong in the above described category, opted for the one that does not require such disclosures.
Of course, to play devil's advocate here, there is clear-cut evidence that the IRS was negligent. Why on earth would you target small organizations, some with as few as five members, when there are others with a hundred times the funding and personnel that should have been scrutinized more closely? That, without a doubt, does not make sense.
The IRS apparently has a tax-exempt classification specifically for non-profit political groups that actively lobby their causes. The catch? They need to disclose who exactly their benefactors are.
Funny how many of these groups, which at first blush sound like they belong in the above described category, opted for the one that does not require such disclosures.
Of course, to play devil's advocate here, there is clear-cut evidence that the IRS was negligent. Why on earth would you target small organizations, some with as few as five members, when there are others with a hundred times the funding and personnel that should have been scrutinized more closely? That, without a doubt, does not make sense.