Johnson Joins More Than 140,000 Against IRS Regulation Stifling Free Speech

Washington, D.C. – On Thursday, Senator Johnson urged the IRS to abandon a cynical, unconstitutional attempt to limit free speech by joining 140,000 Americans in submitting a comment to the IRS on a rule that insults our founders and every American citizen.  You can read his full comments here.

“The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is today the most widely feared federal agency, and rightly so in light of last spring’s revelations about the politically motivated targeting of certain organizations. To all but the most partisan eye, the IRS was turned into a political weapon against the opponents of the current administration.

“This is simply wrong. It is un-American.

“The proposed rule furthers this weaponization of the agency. In order for the IRS to perform its mission of collecting what revenue is needed to fund the government’s constitutionally defined duties, it must be totally without partisanship. It must be completely separated from serving political goals. It must never be used by either party to target Americans in a way that limits their political participation.

“Yet this rule does so, starting with the fact that it applies only to social welfare groups while leaving unions unhindered. From the start it is a blatant attempt to harm this administration’s opponents while leaving unfettered those groups that favor the administration.

“This rule, designed to limit some Americans’ First Amendment rights, chills the freedom that is the foundation of all our other freedoms. It endangers Americans’ patriotic willingness to engage in their constitutional right to express their views without fear of retribution from any administration of any party. All Americans of goodwill, no matter their party, should view it with great suspicion.”

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