The 16th Amendment to the Constitution was passed by the Congress in 1907 and ratified four years later in 1913. This amendment established the income tax, which then created the need for the Internal Revenue Service.
The mission of the IRS is simple. They must collect the taxes that are due and enforce the laws regarding income tax. The IRS doesn’t belong to any political party, least of all the party in power, and must be completely apolitical. The IRS is not, nor should it ever be, a tool in the hands of any president to be used against his “enemies.”
Unless you have been living in the wilderness, you are doubtless aware the IRS has some serious problems. In a nutshell, they have been accused of targeting conservative groups for particular scrutiny and even harassing some of them. When called before the Congress to account for their actions, they have failed to cooperate and instead have attempted to stonewall. The former head of the IRS, Lois Lerner, has even pleaded the Fifth Amendment to keep from answering questions of the American people. Now they are claiming their e-mails concerning this action have been lost due to computer crashes. This, they allege, happened to seven computers at once and it happened after the Congress asked for a copy of those e-mails.
I am offended on two fronts. First that they would lie to America, and secondly that they would think we would believe such nonsense. They are obviously covering up.
The next obvious thing is this is not going to work. Cover-ups always turn out to be worse than the original crime. Two separate federal judges have just ruled the IRS must answer the allegations of lying and of hiding the e-mails, under oath and under the penalty of perjury, and do so in writing within 30 days. There now is no place to hide.
Some have said the IRS will still weasel out of this, that they will find a way to duck this court order. I don’t agree and here’s why. For the IRS to get out of this they would have to get several employees, career civil-service employees, to lie and commit perjury in a federal court. Those employees would do so in the knowledge they could then be prosecuted and spend their retirement in federal prison. They might get one or maybe even two to do that but to get them all on board is a pipe dream. The truth will be known.
This is the reality. Income tax is the law of the land. Some will agree there are better ways to fund our government than the stifling effect of taxing income. Taxing income kills incentive. Different methods of government funding have been proposed but, unless and until those changes are enacted, we are left with income tax and the IRS.
It’s precisely for that reason this agency must absolutely be above reproach. There can be no question as to their integrity.
In our local towns the mayor doesn’t own the police department, and in our federal government the president doesn’t own the IRS. In fact no one, no political party, no elected official and no government employee owns the IRS. That agency is owned by us the American people and we demand they do their jobs with honesty, integrity and accuracy. No political party may use them as a tool for their benefit. They absolutely must be independent of any politics.
