Despite the millions of taxpayers dollars the Obama Administration spent on the unprecedented expansion along with the militarization of the IRS, it certainly appears that the Republicans are bringing their gravy train to an end.
As reported by Pete Kasperowicz of the conservative-leaning Washington Examiner, the proposed budget has finally brought the amount of money slated for the IRS down to the pre-Obama days:
Republicans announced Monday that the fiscal year 2017 spending bill they hope to pass this week would freeze total IRS spending at $11.2 billion, which would hold that agency’s funding to below its 2008 level.
Republicans have either cut funding or held funding level for the IRS over the last several years, after the IRS targeting scandal erupted under President Obama. The IRS admitted it had been slow-walking applications from right-leaning groups that were seeking tax-exempt status.
A summary of the bill provided by the House Appropriations Committee said the frozen spending level will still provide “sufficient resources to perform its core duties.”
Adding to the less-than-stellar opinion most people have of the federal government’s tax collectors, a bad situation was made worse when it was made public that they were purposefully targeting conservative groups for over-the-top scrutiny and audits.
Lois Lerner, the woman who oversees tax-exempt groups, finally apologized in 2013, as noted by the left-leaning Washington Post;
The Internal Revenue Service on Friday apologized for targeting groups with “tea party” or “patriot” in their names, confirming long-standing accusations by some conservatives that their applications for tax-exempt status were being improperly delayed and scrutinized.
During that period, about 75 groups were selected for extra inquiry — including burdensome questionnaires and, in some cases, improper requests for the names of their donors — simply because of the words in their names, she said in a conference call with reporters.
More than a few eyebrows were raised in 2016 when the Wall Street Journal asked rhetorically;
Why Does the IRS Need Guns?
Special agents at the IRS equipped with AR-15 military-style rifles? Health and Human Services “Special Office of Inspector General Agents” being trained by the Army’s Special Forces contractors? The Department of Veterans Affairs arming 3,700 employees?
Adding with further specificity was a 2016 report entitled the Militarization of America commissioned by the citizens advocacy group “Open the Books,” just one of the few but disconcerting totals coming to light are raising eyebrows. Federal agencies have, for example, spent $8.2 million on buckshot; $1.6 million on unmanned aircraft; and a curious $4 million on grenades and grenade launchers.
Specifically, the Internal Revenue Service alone has purchases of guns, ammunition and other military-style equipment from 2006-2014 that’s been tallied up at a whopping $10,711,792.17. The good folks at the IRS have been dropping a veritable treasure trove of taxpayer dollars on three different models of .40 caliber Glock pistols, two different models of Remington shotguns, and finally, both a Heckler & Koch and Smith & Wesson versions of the Armalite AR-15 semi-automatic 5.56mm NATO round carbine.
Making the whole affair even more worrisome for the citizens who are concerned with an out of control central government was some head-counting by The Washington Free Beacon last year, “There are now more non-military government employees than there are U.S. Marines.”
Also cited by the WFB, “there are now over 200,000 non-military federal officers with arrest and firearm authority, surpassing the 182,100 personnel who are actively serving in the U.S. Marines Corps.”
Speak Out & The #Gestapo Will Get U! @BreitbartNews says #IRS targeted company 4 audit! http://t.co/BHNMETxtSO #tcot pic.twitter.com/VoTGyX7Zxr
— Amy Mek (@AmyMek) September 10, 2014
