Irs Scandal In The Usa Case Study
Professor Mark Scheinbaum
Advance English
17 June 2013
The IRS Scandal in the USA:
How could the government of the USA overlook the signs leading up to the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) Scandal? The IRS is an institution that should be non-partisan, however it has been proven through congressional hearings, admissions, and documentations of several kinds that something went very wrong and many specific groups applying for tax exemption status, with different ideologies than those of the current administration, have been unjustly targeted by the IRS.
1. “It turns out that more people in the White House were aware of the IRS’s misdeeds earlier than the administration had previously admitted. Jay Carney, the White House spokesman, …show more content…
had originally made it sound as if the occupants of the building knew nothing more than that the inspector-general who oversees the IRS was about to produce a report on some internal abuses. Now Mr. Carney admits that Mr. Obama’s chief of staff, Denis McDonough, not only knew about the nature of the scandal, but had discussed with Treasury staff when the report on it would be released.”
The repercussions of these unjust and unmerited actions go far beyond affecting religious, political, educational, and social affiliations and foundations. This scandal has widely affected the demeanor of the entire population, as well as the credibility and perception of this already feared institution.
The groups that have been targeted, have been groups applying for tax exemption status 501(c)(4) and are non-profit organizations.
Many of the applicants for this tax-exemption status are groups which have the following “conservative buzzwords” included or attached to their names; “tea party”, “9/12”, “conservative” and “patriot”. Due to these associations they are being discriminated towards and their constitutional rights are being violated just because of an assumed political position. Through the various congressional hearings and proof that has arisen, there is considerable proof that these groups have been intimidated and unjustly treated over many, many months and in some instances over many …show more content…
years.
Today, the IRS scandal not only encompasses the targeting of conservative groups, but also the waste and mismanagement of the American tax dollars by the arrogant and lavish spending for conferences, retreats and videos, all of which have created even more disdain for the IRS than normal. Their irresponsible and wasteful ways in a time of tremendous economic turmoil have proven to be unconscionable. All of this, creating a greater lack in trust and confidence, as well as more cynicism by the American people towards this institution. There is more fear, by the American population, of wider targeting. There is tremendous concern for what will become of the privacy for all of the information compiled by the IRS for each citizen. They seemed to have lost the trust of the majority due to their inefficiency and misappropriating their power. They are supposed to be a “non-partisan” institution, but are they?
The outrage of this scandal is not only expressed by conservatives, republicans, and independents but by democrats as well. This is apparent in the article written by Bob Ehrlilich for the Baltimore Sun as recently as Sunday, June 16, 2013.
2. “Indeed, it 's difficult to overstate all that is wrong about the targeting of American citizens for their political views. Herewith, five reasons why this one hits harder and digs deeper than the other Obama scandals of recent months.
•Nobody likes the IRS. These are the public servants who conduct the audits that (can) lead to penalties, fines, or worse. Their examiners demand the supportive documents we too often disregard. (Where did I put that shoebox full of receipts?) Many of us get uptight just receiving correspondence from the IRS in the morning mail. Rarely is such correspondence of a congratulatory tone.
•The IRS implements a tax code nobody really understands. It is a code that now extends to 73,954 pages of often-arcane language. Fewer than half the population prepares their own taxes; it is estimated the private sector spends $193 billion annually on tax preparation. That 's a huge amount of money going to compliance rather than productive, profitable pursuits.
•The IRS is the primary agency charged with implementing Obamacare. Yes, the already unpopular agency must now regulate the increasingly unpopular "Affordable Care Act." And the last thing the American public needs to be reminded about is that Obamacare requires hiring of thousands of IRS agents to ensure that every individual, business and nonprofit in America is Obamacare compliant. (Oh, one of the other things an already angry public does not want to see is a smug IRS commissioner telling Congress he made 157 trips to the White House and the only one he can remember is the Easter egg roll!)
•Reports of lavish spending at IRS retreats. In the midst of all the bad press, now comes evidence of scandalous amounts of money ($50 million) spent on high-priced hotels, conferences, and homemade entertainment videos that confirm the worst fears of all those taxpayers suspicious about how their hard-earned tax dollars are (mis-) spent in Washington, D.C. (Note to present and future Cabinet secretaries of both parties: Fox News always seems to find the goofiest comedic videos made for agency retreats. And they always seem to come to light when the agency is in hot water for other alleged sins.)
•IRS targeting of conservative-oriented groups. And the granddaddy of them all: irrefutable evidence the Obama IRS targeted conservative groups for special investigation smack dab in the middle of a tense presidential campaign. And at a time the president and his surrogates were running around the country complaining about the rise of the tea party and other similarly situated organizations.”
All of these wrongful, immoral, and possibly illegal acts have affected the morality and credibility of the Obama administration, as well as other programs and entities across the American government.
One such program which has created and caused a lot of debate and “chaos” is Obamacare. There has always been a lot of concern and doubt as to how and if this massive program and undertaking was going to work and how it would be run and supervised. The American population learned that the IRS would be the agency responsible and directly in charge of running and overseeing Obamacare. Even before this IRS scandal came about, having the IRS directly linked to and in charge of Obamacare was not a popular choice at all. Most were very skeptical and fearful of this entire program and how it would work, especially with the IRS at the helm. Now, with what is being uncovered, exposed, and the way in which the IRS recently behaved, the Obamacare program is certainly going to be further scrutinized and met with more resistance. It is sure to become further tainted and more unpopular than ever, not only by its original skeptics, but by new ones as well. The direct consequences of the actions and decisions taken and demonstrated by the IRS, we now know since at least 2010, are sure to become a huge, negative scar that Obamacare will have to bare. Will Obamacare survive intact? Will the IRS still be left at its helm? These are questions still left unanswered and we have yet to see what
the outcome will be.
There has to be consequences to the wrongful, willful, and illegal actions of both those who execute such deeds, as well as those who order them.
3. "We are working to get to the bottom of what happened at the IRS, hold the responsible parties accountable, make sure it cannot happen again, and restore public trust and confidence in the IRS and its ability to administer the tax code fairly and efficiently," said White House spokeswoman Amy Brundage.
"The bottom line here is that the IRS can barely manage what it already has to do, and that 's a generous characterization given the targeting of conservative groups," said Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, the top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, which oversees the IRS.
"Adding Obamacare under the IRS, that can only be described as a looming disaster," Hatch said. "And now the Democrats are saying we need to give the IRS more money. I 'm not sure I 'm willing to do that."
In my opinion the way to fix and prevent a situation as detrimental as this one has proven to be, is complicated. Definitely a change in the tax laws, and structure of the current tax system has to be made. The current tax code and laws should be eliminated and a flat tax should be implemented instead. Politicians from all parties have long talked about simplifying the tax code. Perhaps the easiest solution as stated and presented by many economists, entrepreneurs, and politicians is to implement a flat tax across the board. Equally as important, is the removal and “cleaning house” of everyone associated with these scandals in the administration. Only then, can the confidence in the IRS and the Obama administration possibly be re-established. Hopefully it is not too late for that.
Internet Articles Cited:
1. The IRS scandal
Who will tame the taxman? The IRS has behaved badly, but the real villain is Congress May 25th 2013 | WASHINGTON, DC |From the print edition Read more: http://www.economist.com/news/united-states/21578387-irs-has-behaved-badly-real-villain-congress-who-will-tame-taxman
2. Why the IRS scandal is worse than the others
Bob Ehrlich says the targeting of conservative groups epitomizes what is wrong with an arrogant, overreaching government
8:00 a.m. EDT, June 16, 2013
Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.
Read more: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bs-ed-ehrlich-irs-20130616,0,6184547.column
3. IRS scandals threaten funding for President Obama 's health care law
Published June 15, 2013
Associated Press
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/06/15/irs-scandals-threaten-funding-for-president-obama-health-care-law/
Advance English
17 June 2013
The IRS Scandal in the USA:
How could the government of the USA overlook the signs leading up to the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) Scandal? The IRS is an institution that should be non-partisan, however it has been proven through congressional hearings, admissions, and documentations of several kinds that something went very wrong and many specific groups applying for tax exemption status, with different ideologies than those of the current administration, have been unjustly targeted by the IRS.
1. “It turns out that more people in the White House were aware of the IRS’s misdeeds earlier than the administration had previously admitted. Jay Carney, the White House spokesman, …show more content…
had originally made it sound as if the occupants of the building knew nothing more than that the inspector-general who oversees the IRS was about to produce a report on some internal abuses. Now Mr. Carney admits that Mr. Obama’s chief of staff, Denis McDonough, not only knew about the nature of the scandal, but had discussed with Treasury staff when the report on it would be released.”
The repercussions of these unjust and unmerited actions go far beyond affecting religious, political, educational, and social affiliations and foundations. This scandal has widely affected the demeanor of the entire population, as well as the credibility and perception of this already feared institution.
The groups that have been targeted, have been groups applying for tax exemption status 501(c)(4) and are non-profit organizations.
Many of the applicants for this tax-exemption status are groups which have the following “conservative buzzwords” included or attached to their names; “tea party”, “9/12”, “conservative” and “patriot”. Due to these associations they are being discriminated towards and their constitutional rights are being violated just because of an assumed political position. Through the various congressional hearings and proof that has arisen, there is considerable proof that these groups have been intimidated and unjustly treated over many, many months and in some instances over many …show more content…
years.
Today, the IRS scandal not only encompasses the targeting of conservative groups, but also the waste and mismanagement of the American tax dollars by the arrogant and lavish spending for conferences, retreats and videos, all of which have created even more disdain for the IRS than normal. Their irresponsible and wasteful ways in a time of tremendous economic turmoil have proven to be unconscionable. All of this, creating a greater lack in trust and confidence, as well as more cynicism by the American people towards this institution. There is more fear, by the American population, of wider targeting. There is tremendous concern for what will become of the privacy for all of the information compiled by the IRS for each citizen. They seemed to have lost the trust of the majority due to their inefficiency and misappropriating their power. They are supposed to be a “non-partisan” institution, but are they?
The outrage of this scandal is not only expressed by conservatives, republicans, and independents but by democrats as well. This is apparent in the article written by Bob Ehrlilich for the Baltimore Sun as recently as Sunday, June 16, 2013.
2. “Indeed, it 's difficult to overstate all that is wrong about the targeting of American citizens for their political views. Herewith, five reasons why this one hits harder and digs deeper than the other Obama scandals of recent months.
•Nobody likes the IRS. These are the public servants who conduct the audits that (can) lead to penalties, fines, or worse. Their examiners demand the supportive documents we too often disregard. (Where did I put that shoebox full of receipts?) Many of us get uptight just receiving correspondence from the IRS in the morning mail. Rarely is such correspondence of a congratulatory tone.
•The IRS implements a tax code nobody really understands. It is a code that now extends to 73,954 pages of often-arcane language. Fewer than half the population prepares their own taxes; it is estimated the private sector spends $193 billion annually on tax preparation. That 's a huge amount of money going to compliance rather than productive, profitable pursuits.
•The IRS is the primary agency charged with implementing Obamacare. Yes, the already unpopular agency must now regulate the increasingly unpopular "Affordable Care Act." And the last thing the American public needs to be reminded about is that Obamacare requires hiring of thousands of IRS agents to ensure that every individual, business and nonprofit in America is Obamacare compliant. (Oh, one of the other things an already angry public does not want to see is a smug IRS commissioner telling Congress he made 157 trips to the White House and the only one he can remember is the Easter egg roll!)
•Reports of lavish spending at IRS retreats. In the midst of all the bad press, now comes evidence of scandalous amounts of money ($50 million) spent on high-priced hotels, conferences, and homemade entertainment videos that confirm the worst fears of all those taxpayers suspicious about how their hard-earned tax dollars are (mis-) spent in Washington, D.C. (Note to present and future Cabinet secretaries of both parties: Fox News always seems to find the goofiest comedic videos made for agency retreats. And they always seem to come to light when the agency is in hot water for other alleged sins.)
•IRS targeting of conservative-oriented groups. And the granddaddy of them all: irrefutable evidence the Obama IRS targeted conservative groups for special investigation smack dab in the middle of a tense presidential campaign. And at a time the president and his surrogates were running around the country complaining about the rise of the tea party and other similarly situated organizations.”
All of these wrongful, immoral, and possibly illegal acts have affected the morality and credibility of the Obama administration, as well as other programs and entities across the American government.
One such program which has created and caused a lot of debate and “chaos” is Obamacare. There has always been a lot of concern and doubt as to how and if this massive program and undertaking was going to work and how it would be run and supervised. The American population learned that the IRS would be the agency responsible and directly in charge of running and overseeing Obamacare. Even before this IRS scandal came about, having the IRS directly linked to and in charge of Obamacare was not a popular choice at all. Most were very skeptical and fearful of this entire program and how it would work, especially with the IRS at the helm. Now, with what is being uncovered, exposed, and the way in which the IRS recently behaved, the Obamacare program is certainly going to be further scrutinized and met with more resistance. It is sure to become further tainted and more unpopular than ever, not only by its original skeptics, but by new ones as well. The direct consequences of the actions and decisions taken and demonstrated by the IRS, we now know since at least 2010, are sure to become a huge, negative scar that Obamacare will have to bare. Will Obamacare survive intact? Will the IRS still be left at its helm? These are questions still left unanswered and we have yet to see what
the outcome will be.
There has to be consequences to the wrongful, willful, and illegal actions of both those who execute such deeds, as well as those who order them.
3. "We are working to get to the bottom of what happened at the IRS, hold the responsible parties accountable, make sure it cannot happen again, and restore public trust and confidence in the IRS and its ability to administer the tax code fairly and efficiently," said White House spokeswoman Amy Brundage.
"The bottom line here is that the IRS can barely manage what it already has to do, and that 's a generous characterization given the targeting of conservative groups," said Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, the top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, which oversees the IRS.
"Adding Obamacare under the IRS, that can only be described as a looming disaster," Hatch said. "And now the Democrats are saying we need to give the IRS more money. I 'm not sure I 'm willing to do that."
In my opinion the way to fix and prevent a situation as detrimental as this one has proven to be, is complicated. Definitely a change in the tax laws, and structure of the current tax system has to be made. The current tax code and laws should be eliminated and a flat tax should be implemented instead. Politicians from all parties have long talked about simplifying the tax code. Perhaps the easiest solution as stated and presented by many economists, entrepreneurs, and politicians is to implement a flat tax across the board. Equally as important, is the removal and “cleaning house” of everyone associated with these scandals in the administration. Only then, can the confidence in the IRS and the Obama administration possibly be re-established. Hopefully it is not too late for that.
Internet Articles Cited:
1. The IRS scandal
Who will tame the taxman? The IRS has behaved badly, but the real villain is Congress May 25th 2013 | WASHINGTON, DC |From the print edition Read more: http://www.economist.com/news/united-states/21578387-irs-has-behaved-badly-real-villain-congress-who-will-tame-taxman
2. Why the IRS scandal is worse than the others
Bob Ehrlich says the targeting of conservative groups epitomizes what is wrong with an arrogant, overreaching government
8:00 a.m. EDT, June 16, 2013
Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.
Read more: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bs-ed-ehrlich-irs-20130616,0,6184547.column
3. IRS scandals threaten funding for President Obama 's health care law
Published June 15, 2013
Associated Press
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/06/15/irs-scandals-threaten-funding-for-president-obama-health-care-law/