[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 5]
[House]
[Page 7040]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          FREEDOM UNDER SIEGE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
California (Mr. McClintock) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Madam Speaker, just a week after the President 
extolled the benign virtues of Big Government and told university 
students to ignore those who warn of its dangers, Americans woke up to 
headlines that this government has been targeting groups and 
individuals that it doesn't like for intimidation and harassment.
  I appreciate the President's sudden interest in getting to the bottom 
of this. But I must remind the House that more than a year ago, I and 
other Members rose on this floor to warn of these tactics directed at 
Tea Party groups by the IRS. At the time, the administration responded 
by saying that this was just a natural backlog. Well, we now know that 
was a deliberate and premeditated lie.
  It now appears that nearly 500 conservative groups were subjected to 
invasive review and intimidation. The IRS demanded the names of every 
participant at every meeting these groups held over a period of years, 
transcripts of every speech given at those meetings, what positions 
they had taken on issues, the names of their volunteers and donors and, 
in some cases, their family members and associates, and copies of 
privileged communications they had with elected officials. In some 
cases, the person filing the request was then subjected to a personal 
income tax audit.
  There is no way to estimate the number of additional groups that were 
discouraged from organizing because of these tactics. Meanwhile, it 
appears that leftist groups had their applications routinely approved. 
The impact this had on the 2012 election is incalculable.
  We are also learning that these tactics extended well beyond a few 
low-level rogue employees in Cincinnati. Lois Lerner, the official in 
charge of tax exempt organizations for the IRS, was awarded more than 
$42,000 in bonuses while she was directing what the President now calls 
outrageous behavior. Highly intrusive and unwarranted demands for 
information also originated from the Washington, D.C., office and at 
least two satellite IRS offices in California.
  Dr. Anne Hendershott, a Catholic sociologist, professor, and writer, 
came under a personal income tax audit after she exposed a George Soros 
front group masquerading as a grassroots Catholic organization. She 
said the questions put to her during a grueling audit were largely 
political. And this occurred from the New Haven, Connecticut, office.
  It appears that evangelical groups were also targeted, as were Jewish 
groups supporting Israel.
  Nor was this misconduct limited to groups applying under section 501.
  There is now reason to believe that IRS officials leaked confidential 
tax information to top officials in the Obama campaign and to liberal 
groups such as ProPublica and The Huffington Post, which may then have 
illegally published that information.
  During the campaign, Austan Goolsbee and Harry Reid referenced 
confidential tax information involving Charles and David Koch and Mitt 
Romney, only to back off when they were pressed for their sources.
  Nor does this conduct appear to be limited to the IRS.
  Shortly after businessman Frank Vandersloot was attacked by the Obama 
campaign for his support of Mitt Romney, he came under audits by both 
the IRS and the Labor Department.
  The Competitive Enterprise Institute has just released a damning 
survey of fee waivers granted by the Environmental Protection Agency 
under the Freedom of Information Act. Left-leaning groups had their 
fees waived 92 percent of the time. Conservative groups just the 
opposite--about 7 percent of the time.
  And this week, it also became clear that the FBI is using general 
warrants, banned by the Fourth Amendment, to rifle through the phone 
records of AP reporters with a clear intention to intimidate 
whistleblowers and to obstruct the operation of a free press.
  We are seeing a pattern of conduct throughout this administration 
that is absolutely toxic to a free society: government using its powers 
to intimidate private citizens who are simply trying to take part in 
the public policy debate.
  Madam Speaker, this cries out for a full investigation by the 
Congress, and I utterly reject the notion that the ritual naming and 
firing of a few hapless scapegoats is sufficient. Every government 
employee who abused their power needs to be identified, exposed, 
disgraced, dismissed, and debarred from ever again holding a position 
of authority or trust within this government.
  When the Constitution was read by the New York Convention, Alexander 
Hamilton said:

       Here, sir, the people govern; here they act by their 
     immediate representatives.

  Madam Speaker, the most cherished liberties of the American people 
are under attack, and we, their immediate representatives, have a 
solemn obligation to act in the defense of their freedom, their 
country, and their Constitution.

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