FRIDAY
MARCH 10
2000
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THE POWER TO DESTROY
Report on political
audits imminent
Probe targets IRS harassment
of non-profits critical of Clinton
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By Julie Foster
¸ 2000 WorldNetDaily.com
A congressional investigation into politically-motivated audits performed by the Internal Revenue Service at the behest of the Clinton White House has concluded after more than three years, and a report of the probe's findings is set to be released at the end of next week, WorldNetDaily was told by congressional staff.
The Joint Committee on Taxation launched the probe in 1997 after congressional offices were bombarded with correspondence decrying the suspicious targeting for IRS audits of non-profit organizations critical of the Clinton administration. One of the groups thus audited was the Western Journalism Center, founded by WorldNetDaily Editor and CEO Joseph Farah.
When WJC's audit began in 1996, Farah filed a Freedom of Information Act request for documentation related to the audit's origin. After numerous delays, the IRS and Treasury Department finally produced nearly 1,000 pages of information, many of which were heavily redacted.
Included in the documents was a letter written by Beverly Hills resident Paul Venze to the White House questioning the legitimacy of the center's non-profit status, since it was leading an investigation into the circumstances of the controversial death of White House Deputy Counsel Vincent Foster.
According to the Treasury Department's report titled, "Questionable Exempt Organization Examination Activity," the White House faxed Venze's letter to the IRS.
Contradicting IRS officials and their Justice Department lawyers in two suits pending against the agency by the center and its legal counsel, Judicial Watch the Treasury report states unequivocally and repeatedly that the audit began with a letter forwarded from the White House to the IRS.
"The audit originated from a taxpayer who faxed a letter to the White House expressing his concern over a one-page advertisement paid for by WCJ (Western Center for Journalism) that asked for contributions to Foster's death," explained the official Treasury Department report. "The fax was forwarded to the EO (Exempt Organizations) National Office and then to the respective Key District Office for appropriate actions."
After Farah blew the whistle on the case and a pattern of other seemingly political audits in October 1996 in the Wall Street Journal, a firestorm of protest ensued, resulting in the congressional investigation, as well as the resignation of IRS Commissioner Margaret Milner Richardson.
The IRS eventually closed the case against the Western Journalism Center, finding no evidence of wrongdoing, and extending the center's tax-exempt status.
In a prepared statement sent last year to many who made inquiries about the status of the probe, Joint Committee Chairman Bill Archer, R-Texas, explained the delays.
"Unfortunately, due to the investigation's complexity, scope and because it involved privileged information about individual tax returns, the committee's final report has been delayed considerably beyond our original hopes," Archer said. "This investigation has become far more voluminous than was originally anticipated. As my original letter to the JCT (Joint Committee on Taxation) makes clear, I take allegations(cont)
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