In Columbia, Conservatives Protests IRS Tactics

A group of 25-30 activists protested outside the IRS office in Columbia on Tuesday, taking part of a nationwide effort organized by Tea Party Patriots.

The effort comes in the wake of revelations that the IRS put conservative groups seeking 501(c)4 status for their organizations.

Rep. Mick Mulvaney (R-5) told Patch that of the three scandals in Washington, DC at the moment—IRS, Dept. of Justice Hacking of Reporters and Benghazi—the one involving the tax agency was the worst.

“This wasn’t a case of willful negligence. This was malicious intent,” Mulvaney said.

Sue Burbaugh, one of the protesters in Columbia, said she was not surprised by news of the IRS’ tactics.

Burbaugh recounted a phone call she received last week where an unidentified caller attempted to extract personal data from her. Burbaugh eventually hung up on her.

“We resent intrusion into our privacy,” she said.

At least two conservative groups say they were targeted by the IRS because of their political leanings. One of them, the Laurens County Tea Party, still hasn’t received approval from the agency after more than two years of waiting.

Allen Olson, who founded the Columbia Tea Party, also attended the rally. He said he did not have any difficulty getting his organization registered.

“We were fortunate. We did it before the real scrutinizing began,” Olson said. Olson also said he had no problem registering another group, Midlands Small Business United. He said he thinks that group wasn’t delayed because the name does not reveal any political ideology.

Olson did not know of any groups that were denied the exemption.

According to the IRS website, 501(c)4 groups are classified as “Social Welfare Organizations” and says:

“The promotion of social welfare does not include direct or indirect participation or intervention in political campaigns on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate for public office. However, a section 501(c)(4) social welfare organization may engage in some political activities, so long as that is not its primary activity.”

Recent media reports seem to suggest there was no specific effort to target conservative groups nor was there malicious intent by the IRS.

But the IRS troubles haven’t been helped by statements from Lois Lerner, Director of the Exempt Organizations Division, which have contradicted each other.

Lerner was expected to exercise her Fifth Amendment rights when she testifies before Congress on Wednesday