Bush Communicates to his Redneck Voter Base; Dog Whistle Style
The NAACP is facing an Internal Revenue Service
investigation because the chairman of the civil rights group criticized
President Bush, The Washington Post reported on Friday, citing
documents provided by the group. An IRS document dated Oct. 8 said the
group may have violated terms of its tax-exempt status, which restricts
political activity, because it "distributed statements in opposition of
George W. Bush for the presidency" during its convention in July,
according to the Post. "Specifically in a speech made by Chairman
Julian Bond, Mr. Bond condemned the administration policies of George
W. Bush on education, the economy and the war in Iraq," the newspaper
quoted an IRS document as saying. The newspaper said the agency asked
for the cost of the Philadelphia convention and "the names and
addresses of each board member and indicate how each voted." [more]
NAACP Calls Timing Of IRS Probe 'Suspicious' [more]
Julian Bond, 'condemned the administration policies of George W.
Bush' during a speech this summer." In that speech, Bond criticized the
president's "divisive" policies on education, civil rights and the Iraq
war, and chided him for becoming "the first sitting president since
Warren G. Harding not to address the NAACP." Frances Hill, an authority
on non-profit groups at the University of Miami Law School, called it
"amazing" that the IRS would audit a group based on a public speech.
"Usually you would look for some activity other than disagreeing with
policies," she said. [more]
