The Kingdom Come

McClatchy Washington Bureau: In a U.S. patent application, a little-known Maryland inventor claims a stunning solar energy breakthrough that promises to end the planetÂ's reliance on fossil fuels at a fraction of the current cost –- a transformation that also could blunt global warming. Inventor Ronald Ace said that his flat-panel "Solar Traps," which can be mounted on rooftops or used in electric power plants, will shatter decades-old scientific and technological barriers that have stymied efforts to make solar energy a cheap, clean and reliable alternative. "This is a fundamental scientific and environmental discovery," Ace said. "This invention can meet about 92 percent of the worldÂ's energy needs."

Appearing on Tuesday night's episode of O'Reilly Factor, author and journalist Bernie Goldberg agreed with host Bill O'Reilly on a critique of some Republican opinion-makers in the media and said, "The point is that there are people on the left who will not acknowledge that Benghazi is a big story, and there are people on the right who, if Barack Obama came up with a cure for cancer, wouldn't give him credit for it. And, by the way, I mean that literally."

With the myriad scandals plaguing the White House — from the Benghazi debacle to IRS probes of conservative organizations, to the Associated Press’ phone records being seized by the Department of Justice — President Obama seems to forever be feigning ignorance.

Obama’s seeming lack of awareness of these three major issues prompted Glenn Beck to ask the question: Is there anything the president does know?

“Arrogance, fundamental transformation and intimidation” are all at play, according to Beck, in terms of the administration’s involvement with Benghazi, the IRS investigations and the recent AP-phone records seizure.

Combined, Beck coined the term “intimogate” to characterize the administration’s penchant for intimidating the media, whistle blowers, and those with dissenting political opinions.

Perhaps it is just “the Chicago way.”

Regarding the White House’s seizure of AP phone records, Beck noted that the administration “has so profoundly changed our government and what we know about our rights… that even the executive director of the AP isn’t even sure if they [Obama administration] broke the law.”

Based on the administration’s actions, Beck asked how AP journalists could ever feel comfortable reporting the truth when they will have to fear retribution from the White House.

“This president has prosecuted more whistle-blowers,” Beck added, “than all other presidents” combined. And those who criticize the president are targeted.

So does the right hand really not know what the left hand is doing?

Given the number of advisers, staffers and top aides at the president’s disposal, it seems unlikely:

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A mere 16 percent of likely U.S. voters believe that the Internal Revenue Service’s targeting of conservative groups was a coincidence, while 57 percent believe the probes were politically motivated, according to the latest Rasmussen poll.

What’s more, 57 percent believe IRS agents involved in the investigation of conservative groups should either be jailed or fired. In terms of specific break-down, 16 percent say the IRS agents should be put in jail and 41 percent believe they should at least be fired.

Only seven percent of voters believe no disciplinary action should be taken against the IRS agents while 29 percent believe that, at the very least, those involved should be formally reprimanded.

In terms of whether the Obama administration had prior knowledge about the investigations, 55 percent of likely voters think it is at least somewhat likely that the president or his top advisers were aware of the IRS probes into Tea Party and other conservative groups. That 55 percent includes 13 percent of Democrats and 34 percent of unaffiliated voters.

Only 34 percent of likely voters believe it is unlikely that the White House was aware of IRS investigations into conservative groups.

In terms of punishment for IRS agents, 44 percent of Democrats believe those involved should be formally reprimanded.

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The College Republicans at Boston University have offered a whites-only scholarship. The $250 Caucasian Achievement and Recognition Scholarship offered by chapter president Joe Mroszczyk requires that applicants have a cumulative GPA of 3.2 or higher, write two essays and be at least one-quarter Caucasian. "We are not doing this as some kind of white supremacy thing. I wanted to have a dialogue about racial preference," Mroszczyk said.

A symbol in the window of a local pub indicates the acceptance of Bitcoins for payment on April 11, 2013 in Berlin, Germany. Bitcoins are a digital currency traded on the MTGox exchange. (Photo: Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

The Bitcoin trading platform Mt. Gox in Tuwsday was issued a warrant that stopped its ability to send or accept transfers of the electronic currency through its Dwolla payment service.

Betabeat reported that the Department of Homeland Security issued a “seizure warrant” for the Dwolla account, and a copy of the warrant obtained by Ars Technica revealed it was for “unlicensed money transmitting.”

The warrant, in part, states:

(a) Whoever knowingly conducts, controls, manages, supervises, directs, or owns all or part of an unlicensed money transmitting business, shall be fined in accordance with this title or imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both.
(b) As used in this section—
(1) the term “unlicensed money transmitting business” means a money transmitting business which affects interstate or foreign commerce in any manner or degree…

The warrant identifies Mark Karpeles, the president and CEO of Mt. Gox, as opening a Wells Fargo bank account in May 2011 under Mt. Gox’s subsidiary company Mutum Sigillum. The application for the account, the warrant states, explicitly asked if the company exchanges currency for customers and if it “[accepts] funds from customers or [sends] the funds based on customer instructions (Money Transmitter)?”

To both of these, Karpeles answered no.

If Mt. Gox or Mutum Sigillum were transmitting money, it would need to be registered with FinCen, and neither are, according to the records mentioned in the warrant.

The warrant goes on to show how a “confidential informant” was able to reveal that the company was “engaged in a money transmitting business but is not registered with FinCen.”

Through the Dwolla account, the feds established that it has probable caused to believe Mt. Gox or Mutum Sigillum were violating 18 U.S.C. section 1960. Due to this, the Wells Fargo account and the Dwolla account, which was held through Veridian Credit Union, were subject to seizure.

This is the latest statement Mt. Gox issued on its Facebook profile, which was nearly 24 hours ago:

Like many who have contacted us, MtGox has read on the Internet that the United States Department of Homeland Security had a court order and/or warrant issued from the United States District Court in Maryland which it served upon the Dwolla mobile payment service with respect to accounts used for trading with MtGox. We take this information seriously. However, as of this time we have not been provided with a copy of the court order and/or warrant, and do not know its scope and/or the reasons for its issuance. MtGox is investigating and will provide further reports when additional information becomes known.

This news comes after bitcoin saw a rapid rise in its value within the last couple months.  The currency did go through a bit of a “bitcrash” but was still significantly higher than it had been before.

–

Related:

• Libertarian Party Accepts Bitcoin Donations (And Guess Who Owns Millions of Dollars Worth of the Digital Currency)
• There’s Now a Currency That’s Up 152% — and You Should Know About It
• Confused by Digital Currency? This Three Minute Video Has the Basics of What You Need to Know About ‘Bitcoins’
• Digital Currency Sees ‘Bitcrash’ After All-Time High

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Evan Mathis. (NFL via Getty Images)

We didn’t think it could happen, but it looks like the Internal Revenue Service has manged to make itself even ​more ​unpopular with Americans that it already was  — if that’s even possible.

For instance, Philadelphia Eagles offensive lineman Evan Mathis on Wednesday decided to express his disgust for the fed agency by posting the following photo to his Instagram account:

Yes, that’s a picture of him “urinating” (we’re not sure if he’s really doing it) on the IRS building. And, yes, the picture is captioned, “audit this.”

Now, although we have a strong feeling he’ll be forced to offer a public apology (and may even face a fine), it doesn’t sound like he regrets a thing:

#bbpBox_334726637302214657 a { text-decoration:none; color:#0084B4; }#bbpBox_334726637302214657 a:hover { text-decoration:underline; }How high are we counting?RT @DCFanaticsBlog: Evan Mathis will be apologizing later today. Count on that.May 15, 2013 1:47pm via Tweetbot for iOSReplyRetweetFavorite@EvanMathis69Evan Mathis

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(H/T: Mashable). Featured image screen grab.

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UPDATE 5:17 p.m. ET — State officials have given the all clear: “State Police say there was a thorough investigation of the seven Quabbin trespassers and the only crime they committed was trespassing.”

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A group of individuals from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Singapore were caught early Wednesday morning trespassing at the Quabbin Reservoir in Massachusetts, one of the largest man-made public water supplies in the county, CBS Boston reports.

The trespassers, five men and two women, were caught in one of the no-trespassing zones of reservoir, according to Massachusetts state police.

Police also said that the trespassers “cited their education and career interests” for being in the area and claimed they are “chemical engineers” and “recent college graduates,” CBS Boston reports.

The Quabbin, located about 65 miles from Boston, supplies several Massachusetts communities, including the state’s largest city, with clean drinking water.

“State Police say there were no warrants or advisories on any of the individuals and ‘there was no evidence that the seven were committing any crime beyond the trespassing,” the CBS Boston report notes.

“All seven were allowed to leave and will be summonsed to court for trespassing. The FBI is investigating and routine checks of public water supplies have been increased following the incident.”

The seven individuals reside in Amherst, Cambridge, Sunderland, Northampton, and New York City.

“Police have not released their names because a court date has not been set,” the report adds.

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Featured image Wiki Commons.

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By:  Patrick Goodenough

read more

President Obama. (Getty Images)

President Obama took a break from his regularly scheduled events Wednesday to speak for three minutes and 24 seconds on the increasingly-serious Internal Revenue Service scandal.

“I’ve reviewed the Treasury Department watchdog’s report, and the misconduct that it uncovered was inexcusable,” the president said. “It’s inexcusable, and Americans are right to be angry about it, and I’m angry about it.”

He added later that Steven Miller, the IRS acting commissioner, had tendered his resignation.

And that was about everything the president said.

The presser, as noted in this post’s headline, was incredibly brief. Brief to the point where more than a few people have asked: “What was the point of that?”

Conservative author and columnist Charles Krauthammer offers his analysis: “[The announcement] was a holding operation. That was the absolute minimum he could have done. He relieves one person – he obviously had to – he had to relieve at least one person and he chose, of course, the acting commissioner.”

“But I would’ve expected more,” he added. “The other actions he announced are, up to now, meaningless. Obama, this administrating, has said a hundred times they’re going to hold X, Y, or Z accountable for all kinds of behavior.”

He continued:

In Benghazi, regarding a lot of other scandals, he even speaks about Syrian generals are going to be held accountable. It means nothing.

And then he says there’s going to be an investigation from Treasury. Well, that just means that the left hand of the government investigating the right hand. He did say he’d cooperate with Congress, but then he has the chutzpa to essentially warn republicans not to make this into a political event.

[W]e’re talking about is the IRS applying political criteria — inexcusably, unconstitutionally, probably criminally — and deciding who it’s going to investigate.

“I found this the bare minimum,” he concluded. “It’ll hold them for 12 hours, but no more.”

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The Way This Tea Party Group Responded to the IRS’ Request for its Reading List Is Pretty Awesome

A construction company destroyed one of the largest pyramids in Belize with backhoes and bulldozers while extracting rock for a road project. The destruction at the Nohmul complex in northern Belize was detected last week, said Jaime Awe of the Belize Institute of Archaeology. The structure dates back at least 2,300 years and sits on private land, but Belizean law puts all pre-Hispanic ruins under government protection. The community-action group Citizens Organized for Liberty Through Action called the destruction "an obscene example of disrespect for the environment and history."

(Wall Street Journal) David Axelrod, a former White House adviser and senior strategist for Barack Obama’s presidential campaigns, said Wednesday that the administration should release emails related to last year’s terrorist attack in Benghazi, Libya.

The White House so far has resisted calls to make the emails public, as Republicans’ demands for their release have intensified and as portions of the correspondence have leaked out in media reports. Administration officials have said the emails, which show the discussion among several agencies as they developed “talking points” about the assault on the American diplomatic compound, were provided to lawmakers months ago.

On MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Mr. Axelrod suggested that the White House should go further, saying, “I think they would benefit from getting all these emails out in public.”

(Haaretz) “If Syrian President Assad reacts by attacking Israel…he will risk forfeiting his regime,” a senior Israeli official told the New York Times on Wednesday.

The Times’ White House correspondent Mark Landler wrote that the official contacted the newspaper on his own initiative.

Landler added that the official had been briefed in the last two days by other senior Israeli officials, who have intimate knowledge of the recent developments in Syria. He spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the topic.

The official added that Israel is considering further strikes in Syria in order to prevent the transfer of advanced weapons into Hezbollah’s hands.

What do you get when you combine guns, hunting, NFL quarterback Colt McCoy and a one-in-a-million-type feat? A viral video for sure.

Below is a YouTube post by Austin Stone church, a prominent church in Austin, TX. In it, a man can be seen walking through the brush with his shotgun when his buddies alert him to a quail coming his way. Instead of raising his gun (a good decision considering the bird was between him and the camera man), the hunter instead stretches out his hand and snatches the bird right out of the air to the disbelief of many:

Watch it in real time below:

Since being posted on Monday, the video has over 500,000 views.

The man in the video is Pastor Matt Carter, and the whole thing happened while filming a promo for a new book by Carter and McCoy called “The Real Win.”

Of course with videos like this you always have to be skeptical, but considering the source it does seem to check out so far. And Carter is adamant there are no special effects and no bird training involved.

“It’s actually real. Freak thing … but I caught it,” Carter out in response to someone claiming it was fake.

#bbpBox_334039834991665152 a { text-decoration:none; color:#009999; }#bbpBox_334039834991665152 a:hover { text-decoration:underline; }@JoeBucsFan It's actually real. Freak thing...but I caught it.May 13, 2013 4:17pm via Mobile Web (M5)ReplyRetweetFavorite@_Matt_CarterMatt Carter

“We realized that we caught it on camera, and we thought it would be a unique way to get the word out about the book,” he told the New York Daily News.

Local news outlet KXAN-TV is reporting it is real, too.

You know what they say (now): A bird in the hand is apparently worth the walk in the bush.

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The Way This Tea Party Group Responded to the IRS’ Request for its Reading List Is Pretty Awesome

For anyone who doubts what Tea Party Patriots stand for take the case of 68-year-old Marion Bower of Ohio. Bower dealt with the frustration of a two year long process to get tax-exempt status for her group “American Patriots against Government Excess.”  She stated, “We thought it would be a simple process. It was not a simple process,” in an interview with ABC News.

When asked for books and other reading materials, she sent the IRS a copy of a Cleon Skousen book entitled “The Five Thousand Year Leap” and a copy of The Constitution. That a girl Marion!

For those who are unfamiliar with the Skousen book, it was promoted often by Glenn Beck and here is what Wikipedia says about the book:

The Five Thousand Year Leap: Twenty-Eight Great Ideas That Are Changing the World is a book that was published in 1981 by the anti-communist and conservative Mormon author Cleon Skousen. The book asserts that the United States prospered because it was established upon universal natural law principles passed down from Common Law and traditional Judeo-Christian morality, as many of the Founding Fathers  were guided by the Bible among others, and consequently that the U.S. Constitution incorporates enlightened ideas.[1][2]

In Ronald Mann’s introduction to the 10th-anniversary edition, he praises Skousen for grasping America’s choice of “Christ or chaos” and for acknowledging that America’s future depends on “accepting and demonstrating God’s government.”[3]

For anyone at the Cincinnati IRS office who may have been targeting Marion Bower or her “Patriot” group, hopefully they read the two pieces of material that she decided to send them and received a world class education on what being an American is really about.

With the IRS targeting organizations with the phrase “Tea Party” or the word “Patriot” in their group name in 2012, by their own admission, Bower’s group would have raised a red flag. Bower told ABC News, “They wanted copies of our blog. They said they had already taken copies of our website. They wanted a list of all of our officers, what we do at our meeting, how our board is made up…”

Kudos to a woman who was willing to fight through this garbage and come through on the other side. This won’t be the only story of IRS scrutiny of a Patriot Group that we hear but it will be tough to top.

They asked for reading material and she sent them The Constitution.

Hey IRS…Kiss my freedom-loving Patriot ass. That was from me, not Marion Bower. She found a way to say the same thing in a much more eloquent manner.

Check out the American Patriots against Government Excess website. The site has something like 2500 hits all-time. I would love to see about 5000 people go sign their guest book just to say…We support you fellow Patriots!

The post IRS Requested Reading Materials – Tea Party Organizer Sent The Constitution appeared first on Freedom Outpost.

I got an email from my Congressman, Representative John Carter (R-TX31) the other day touting the introduction of the Secure Firearms Act in the House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee. The act is co-sponsored by Democrat Henry Cuellar (D-TX28).

“The most common factor in the mass shootings over the past years is that people who should not have had access to firearms managed to acquire them anyway,” said Carter, a former Texas district judge. “We don’t attempt to address all the reasons for that in this bill, but specifically target better security of firearms by law-abiding citizens through incentives, not mandates.”

“While nationally there has been much discussion over how to prevent mass shootings, there is no debate over the need to promote responsible firearm ownership,” said Cuellar. “As a concealed handgun license holder and strong supporter of 2nd amendment rights, this is a common sense first step towards increasing access for Americans to purchase devices that will prevent the misuse of firearms. While this legislation is not meant to be a ‘fix-all’, this is a bipartisan idea that Congress should immediately act on. I’m proud to join my fellow Texan and friend, Chairman Carter on this important legislation.”

Mass shootings at Columbine High School, Virginia Tech, Tucson, Aurora, and Newtown all involved people who should not have had access to firearms. The most recent Newtown tragedy revealed the shooter’s mother passed the federal background check, legally acquired weapons, and bought a safe, but apparently left the safe unlocked and the weapons exposed to her mentally unstable son.

“As responsible gun owners, let’s make sure our weapons are more secure in the future,” says Carter. “We can use this legislation to kick off a nationwide push to put gun safes or security devices in every home with unattended firearms by the close of 2014, and then let’s push for everyone to use them,” Carter says. “That’s a specific goal that will reduce gun violence by a date certain, and a goal that Congress, the President, and the firearms community can unite behind.”

The Secure Firearms Act includes:
* Up to a $1,200 tax deduction to purchase a gun safe and/or security devices through December 31, 2014.
* A prohibition on the IRS use of tax deduction claims to produce any form of gun owner registration.

Now, this may sound good in theory, but if you ask me it’s a Trojan horse to gun registration. Just because there is a provision in the bill that prohibits the IRS from using tax forms of gun owners trying to claim the deduction to keep a list or register owners doesn’t mean it won’t happen in the future.

There is no such thing as an un-repealable or irreplaceable law. As such, any future congress can require that the IRS create such a registration. Additionally, most IRS information is considered public information. Organizations, government agencies, and others can file FOIA requests to find out who is claiming the deductions, thus informing them about who has guns in their homes.

The Secure Firearms Act is endorsed by the National Rifle Association, Gun Owners of American, and the National Shooting Sports Foundation.

“The NRA is the national leader in teaching firearms safety, and we support the Secure Firearms Act of 2013 which encourages the safe storage of firearms in the home,” said James Baker, director of NRA’s Institute for Legislative Action Federal Affair Division. “Rep. John Carter is a leader on this issue, and we look forward to working with Members of Congress to pass this sensible legislation and provide a much-deserved tax credit to responsible firearm owners.”

“This proposal encourages improved firearms storage security with no threat to the right to keep and bear arms,” said Gun Owners of America President Larry Pratt. “The bill provides a solid benefit to law-abiding gun owners nationwide, and will increase public safety in the process. We need more well-conceived bipartisan legislation like this in Congress.”

“Members of America’s firearms industry thank Rep. Carter for his leadership in offering a real, bi-partisan solution that will help to make our families safer by helping gun owners to responsibly and safely store their firearms when not in use so that they are inaccessible to unauthorized and at-risk individuals,” said Lawrence G. Keane, National Shooting Sports Foundation senior vice president and general counsel.

If you are a member of these organizations and feel the same way I do about this legislation, please contact your representative in each organization and make your concerns known. I would also recommend you contact your representatives in Congress and let him/her know your opinions.

The post Secure Firearms Act: A Trojan Horse Gun Registration Bill appeared first on Freedom Outpost.

This week the IRS has admitted committing acts of illegal regulatory manipulation for political purposes that no citizen or civic group should ever face. Congressional Democrats and the Obama administration are also up to their necks in it. But liberal or conservative, it’s enough to make every American’s blood boil. Here’s a quick re-cap:

The IRS has admitted they were delaying and/or blocking applications for non-profit tax exemption by giving conservative groups far more rigorous scrutiny than they required of liberal groups applying for 501c3 or 501c4 status. Any group with “Tea Party” or “Patriot” or many other common conservative terms in their group’s name was targeted for “special treatment”. Many questions the IRS demanded of targeted groups were clearly illegal to ask. Most of their questions would take significant time, money, and human resources for anyone to answer. And every answer could be sent back from the IRS marked “insufficient information”, again and again.

The same IRS “special treatment” was used against pro-Israel groups and against Billy Graham’s organization to block or delay their applications, too. How mean-spirited can you get? While one report has shown that hundreds of non-profit applications were affected in total, it’s still far too early to know the full extent of this practice.

Even more despicable (yes, it’s possible), we’ve also learned the IRS has insisted that a pro-life group must talk about pro-choice options to receive 501c3 status. Unbelievable. Truly Machiavellian. “1984” has arrived in 2013.

Furthermore, we have learned that letters were written to the IRS from a group of Democrat Senators (Charles Schumer, Michael Bennet, Sheldon Whitehouse, Jeff Merkley, Tom Udall, Jeanne Shaheen and Al Franken) demanding that actions to “tighten the screws” be taken against conservative groups. At this moment there is no visible connection from the White House to the IRS or the Treasury Department on this matter. But given the tactics used by Democrats for many years for various kinds of political benefit, one can easily envision a Valerie Jarrett or a Jim Axelrod picking up the phone and making a few calls to well-placed “friends” at Treasury to discuss “a few ideas”. No, a direct link to the White House has not been proven, but this IRS fraud has been going on for too long, and was obviously too beneficial to the reelection of Democrats in 2012 for them not to be at least aware, if not involved.

Applications for 501c3 status that should have taken 3-10 months to complete have been taking 2-3 years for these “chosen few”, and some tax exemptions have never been granted.

It’s certainly despicable for the IRS to demand answers to inappropriate, convoluted and lengthy questions. But we have also learned that they passed some of these answers (containing private, organizational information) to a liberal journalism group, ProPublica. God only knows who they gave it to, or how it was abused.

Interestingly, a George Will article of this week reminds us of the striking parallels to Senate Watergate hearings which began exactly 40 years ago. For a lighter touch, Jon Stewart gives us his take on the IRS scandal, plus other Obama administration scandals also in the news (Benghazi, AP phone records).

The FBI has begun an investigation of this IRS thuggery, and Congress has already scheduled hearings. While these actions are both necessary and proper, they will not fix the underlying problem. This kind of abuse should have every American screaming bloody murder, and demanding serious and lasting reform.

So, how should we fix a mammoth, arrogant, out-of-control bureaucracy? No federal thugs responsible for taxation should ever be loosed on private citizens or groups to limit their free exercise of First Amendment rights. Simply telling the IRS “don’t do that” is patently insufficient. Laws already exist for exactly that purpose, and they were ignored. No, whatever we do must be permanent. Firings are necessary, but insufficient.

Actually, we already have an excellent solution available: It’s called the FairTax Act, H.R. 25. (Recommend you go to FairTax.org and sign up for their newsletters. That keeps your name active for use in convincing your congressional representatives that you are a real FairTax supporter.)

The FairTax guarantees that no out-of-control government ever again tries to use the IRS for attacking opposition political organizations (e.g. the Tea Party) at the behest of Congress or the White House. And FairTax also ensures that FedGov bureaucrats cannot be used for enforcing national policy mandates unrelated to basic tax collection (e.g. ObamaCare).

How can we be sure of this outcome? Smartly, the FairTax Act closes the IRS, and it transfers tax collection to the States. It’s a simple consumption tax, similar to the sales tax most states already levy. So, most states are in a good position to provide this service as contractors to the Feds. With a consumption tax there is no need for an income tax, and therefore no need for an IRS.

The FairTax applies a 23% (inclusive) tax to all retail sales of new goods and services. No, it’s not a VAT, which applies a tax on goods at each stage of multi-level manufacture, and requires a huge bureaucracy for administration. Tax collection under the FairTax only occurs at point of sale to the consumer. This ensures that all illegal aliens, hookers, Mafiosi, drug-runners, and all other cash-economy people will pay federal taxes while leading their daily lives. If you buy a hot dog or a Cadillac Escalade you’ll pay FairTax on the purchase. If you’re a Japanese tourist in Orlando, and you buy Mickey Mouse ears for your kids, you’ll also pay FairTax. This mechanism creates “skin in the game” for every American resident, legal or illegal.

FairTax will motivate the return of $12-$13 trillion currently offshore back to the US for investment, and will eliminate K Street lobbyist influences on taxation. That in itself is reason enough to expect support from 99% of all Americans. And FairTax ensures everyone gets a full paycheck- withholding is eliminated. If nothing else, trading 74,000 pages of existing tax code for 130 pages of FairTax code will save our economy hundreds of billions of dollars in annual compliance costs. All of us can surely put that time and money to better use.

How do we get the FairTax? It’s like any other bill- WE THE PEOPLE must demand it. We must elect Senators and Congressmen who support it, and push on the Congress until it’s passed. At this moment, our greatest roadblock is Barack Obama. He’s a Marxist, and Marxists always want a highly-progressive income tax structure, not a single-rate consumption tax like the FairTax. Obama’s constant “tax the rich” mantra is proof enough of his interests. So, we’ll need a Tea Party Republican in the White House in 2017 to make this happen.

Is all this becoming clear? Think of it this way: The very folks that the IRS targets for “special treatment” are the same Tea Party folks who support a tax plan to eliminate the IRS! Is it any wonder, then, that socialist Democrats would encourage the IRS to attack Tea Party (and similar) groups?

And just think- if we get a Congress and a President who will enact the FairTax, we should also demand that they kill, cut, privatize, or reform other FedGov legislation and departments: EPA, Dept of Energy, Dept of Education, Dept of Commerce, Dept of Interior, ObamaCare, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, TSA, GSA, USPS, USDA, FEMA, BIA, Amtrak, Fannie, Freddie, HUD, VA, Dodd-Frank, Sarbanes-Oxley, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Endangered Species Act, the Clean Water Act, the list goes on and on, around the curvature of the earth. Bottom line: If it’s not covered by Article 1 Section 8 of the US Constitution, whack it.

We need to demand support from every incumbent Congressman and Senator- NOW. Then, before the election of 2014 we need to confirm that same support before we vote to sustain any incumbent. The same is true for the election of 2016- support the incumbents who support the FairTax, or support a candidate who does. By 2017 we must get a controlling Republican majority in both houses of Congress, and a Republican in the White House.

But if we elect too many Democrats and RINOs, we’re probably stuck with the status quo for decades. And that includes being stuck with an IRS that has outlived its welcome.

The post IRS- Shut ‘Em Down, Start Over appeared first on Freedom Outpost.

Attorney General Eric Holder, the nation’s top law enforcement official, is sworn in on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, May 15, 2013, prior to testifying before the House Judiciary Committee Justice Department oversight hearing. (Photo: AP)

Attorney General Eric Holder appeared for the sixth time before the House Judiciary Committee Wednesday, asked to speak about the IRS’ admission that it has been targeting conservative organizations and the Department of Justice secretly seizing two months of phone records from the Associated Press.

Unfortunately, though, Holder divulged almost nothing.

The attorney general’s opening statement consisted of an overview of the Department of Justice’s “achievements” and “priorities,” before saying they could be “threatened” by budget cuts related to sequestration.

But in response to repeated questions by Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va) about the DOJ seizing phone records from the Associated Press, Holder said: “I was not the person involved in that decision…I am not familiar why the subpoena was constructed in the way it was because I was not involved in the case…” etc.

He also often noted that there is an ongoing investigation that prevents him from commenting.

Lawmakers then attempted to determine ​who authorized ​the subpoena if not Holder, and the attorney general said he would “assume” that the deputy attorney general did after he recused himself from the case, and received confirmation during the hearing that Deputy Attorney General James Cole indeed did authorize the subpoenas.

Watch video of the scene via Mediaite:

Representative Spencer Bachus (R-AL) was one of the lawmakers to glean some new information from the attorney general.

While we know Holder has recused himself from the case, Bachus’ questions reveal that apparently Holder doesn’t know when exactly he did so.

“On what date did you recuse yourself?” Bachus asked.

“I’m not sure, I think it was towards the beginning of the matter,” Holder responded.

“Isn’t that sort of an unacceptable procedure?  The statue says that the attorney general shall approve the subpoena.  There was no memorandum, no email — when you recused yourself, was it in writing, was it orally?  Did you tell someone, did you alert the White House?” Bachus probed.

“I would’ve told the deputy attorney general,” Holder replied, though he said there would be no record of it in writing.

Holder said the FBI’s criminal investigation of the IRS could feasibly include civil rights violations, false statements, and potential violations of the Hatch Act, though he couldn’t say by or for whom.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) was particularly disturbed by Holder’s actions, saying “the actions of the department have, in fact, impaired the First Amendment.”

To this, as with the rest, Holder provided a limited explanation.

Video via Mediaite:

Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) was one of several lawmakers to suggest Holder and other administration officials travel to the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and reflect on the phrase “the buck stops here.”

Rep. Randy Forbes (R-VA) held up a picture of Tyrone Woods, one of the four Americans killed in Benghazi, then a photo of Brian Terry, a U.S. border patrol agent killed with an illegal gun tied to Operation Fast and Furious, asking whether there was anything the government could have done to prevent the loss of life.

When Holder prevaricated, Forbes grew agitated and said the only way we can prevent equal corruption in our health care system is for our personal health information never to be sent to the IRS in the first place. Because once the government inevitably overreaches, there is a clear precedent that no one will be held accountable.

–

Related:

• Holder ‘Not Sure’ How Often Media Phone Records Are Obtained But ‘Takes Them Very Seriously’
• Joe Scarborough Blows Up at David Axelrod Over DOJ/AP Records: ‘Save That for Somebody Else That’s Going to Buy Into That’
• Beck Ties Together Benghazi, IRS, & AP Scandals: ‘Fundamental Transformation’

Follow Erica Ritz on Twitter

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Joe Scarborough Blows Up at David Axelrod Over DOJ/AP Records: ‘Save That for Somebody Else That’s Going to Buy Into That’

Obama Dodges Big Question on IRS Scandal

Beck Ties Together Benghazi, IRS, & AP Scandals: ‘Fundamental Transformation’

The Way This Tea Party Group Responded to the IRS’ Request for its Reading List Is Pretty Awesome

Can anyone remember as far back as September 11, 2012? That was such a “long time ago” White House Press Secretary Jay Carney stated. Yet, it was a day when terrorists attacked Americans in Benghazi. It was a day when 4 Americans died. Some died while trying to defend against the attack. Notice I said an attack, not a protest, and that is very important to note since when you engage in a protest you don’t take up arms and fight! An attack is just that, a predetermined plan of engagement upon a known place or person and Representative Keith Ellison (D-MN) stated that it was a terrorist attack within 48 hours, while the Obama administration pushed the tall tale of it being a protest about a YouTube video.

This story of a spontaneous protest due to the video falls apart as soon as the words from second in command in Tripoli, Mr. Gregory Hicks called and informed Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that the consulate in Benghazi was under attack. This was after Mr. Hicks got a very nervous call from Ambassador Chris Stephens informing him that he was under attack. This testimony by Mr. Hicks was under oath before the House Committee. It was very clear that the words stated were, “under attack.” He never once said that Benghazi was under “protest”! We now must wonder why no action was taken at 4PM on that fateful day. Why was the FEST team not moved out? The FEST teams are the people that have the main duty of extracting people under attack by enemies no matter who they may be. They consist of the best of the best at what they do and they train just for attacks like that in Benghazi.

I had written two articles prior to the new revelations on the recent hearings on Benghazi. The first one was way back on October 15, 2012. That article was Titled, “Benghazi – Obama’s 9/11.”

No one has ever been told just where and what President Obama was doing after he got the one and only call about Benghazi. After all, it was campaign time and he had to get his sleep so that he could catch a flight out of DC in order to hit the campaign trail.

Yes, I was making fun of Jay Carney’s words in the beginning of the article about Benghazi being a long time ago. After all that was never supposed to have survived in the media since Obama won re-election. Now this goes back to yet another article I wrote called, LIAR, LIAR!

Now let’s get back to Benghazi for a moment. I did some research and found a brief statement by none other than a member of the House of Representatives, one Keith Ellison, in a statement he made on September 13, 2012.

Mr. Ellison knew of the attack upon Benghazi. Look very carefully. We did not say “protest,” but we used Mr. Stevens’ word, “attack.” Here is what the Representative from the Socialist Democratic Party, the Progressive Caucus, and open Islamist from the State of Minnesota stated on record:

“Mr. Speaker, my name is Keith Ellison. I’m the cochair of the Progressive Caucus….”

“It’s important to note that Chris Stevens loved Libya, loved Libyans; and it’s not any accident that Libyans took to the streets not to attack America, but really Libyans came to the street holding up placards apologizing for the act of these terrorists who killed Americans and Libyans when they assaulted the consulate in Benghazi,” Ellison continued. “Many of them held up placards extolling the great virtues of Chris Stevens.”

Here we should note that Mr. Ellison did not call the action a “protest.” No sir, he called it an attack, but not by Libyans! Mr. Ellison seems to maybe have known something that few others, even those at the White House claim they did not know. He claimed that it was an attack upon Benghazi, even if he did go totally around making it a straight out statement, he did say that “Libyans took to the streets, not to attack.” What did he know on September 13, 2012 that the White House seems to still not know?

Mr. Ellison went on to discuss what the progressives called a “Deal for All,” but he went on for an entire paragraph explaining that the Libyans were not responsible for the actions in Benghazi. However, what sparked a very large question in my mind as I read on was the following statement:

“This horrible incident that occurred in Benghazi was not done by the Libyan people. It was done by terrorists who have nothing but contempt for the democracy in Libya, which is unfolding; and that is why they would take their action against the consulate as they did do. But it’s important to note that there were about seven Libyans who died.”

Here it is very clear that Mr. Ellison, who is not a big name in the political arena, seems to have called the action an act of “terrorism” by stating it was “terrorists” that did this. Mr. Ellison stated it was because of, “…contempt for the democracy in Libya.” This must make a reasonable person wonder just what did he know that no one else seemed not to know since he used the word “terrorists” while everyone else used the video? Does this bring into question what he knew and just how did he know it was a terrorist act? Did he get briefed on this on September 12, 2012 by Barack Obama? That couldn’t be. President Obama was out in Nevada campaigning while the men who died the night before were being flown back to the United States.

One also must ask the question, why would Obama come out after this man says “terrorists” and lay claim to this being due to a video? This just does not add up right, a small time member of the House of Representatives knows more than the President of the United States some 3 full days before Obama went to the United Nations and stated this was due to some video. What just does not look right here? Why did Obama make 12 changes in the talking points? Why did he not call it a terrorist attack? Why did Obama produce such a huge lie to the United Nations and the United States? Yes, we are right back to “LIAR,LIAR, is that what you say Obama?”

If I had not written an article bringing these questions to bear way back on October 15, 2012, we may well not have even heard about the questions from back then except through our history books. Sorry, that’s just a pun upon Jay Carney and his way back machine that seems to make going back a few months seem like a few years.

We should now consider all the ramifications that can be brought to bear upon this Barack Obama and those under his authority who allowed these 4 brave men to die without any help or even an attempt to get to them until after they were dead! Yes, that prior article will raise its head once again and call Barack Obama pure and simple, “liar, liar”!

The post Muslim Congressman Knew Benghazi Was A Terrorist Attack & Said So Within 48 Hours appeared first on Freedom Outpost.