McConnell to the IRS: Leave the First Amendment Alone
February 27, 2014
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell made the following remarks on the Senate floor regarding the Administration’s proposed IRS rule designed to stifle American free speech:
“Today’s an important day.
“It’s the last day of the so-called comment period when Americans can officially register their opinions on the IRS’ latest effort to suppress free speech.
“So far, nearly 100,000 comments have come through.
“Nearly every one I’ve seen is opposed.
“Just to put things in perspective, that’s basically the largest number of comments ever for a rule like this.
“Even the head of the IRS said he saw more comments on this proposal than ever before ‘on any regulation.’
“And that was about 70,000 comments ago.
“So people are making their voices heard. Loudly. And the message they’re broadcasting is pretty clear.
“Leave. The First Amendment. Alone.
“Get out of the censorship and harassment business.
“Stick to the job you’re actually supposed to be doing.
“And let’s be clear.
“The folks who are logging opinions like these run straight across the political spectrum.
“Labor unions are upset.
“Business organizations are upset.
“Civil liberties activists are upset.
“Taxpayer groups are upset.
“Grassroots groups right across the political map are upset at what they view as an assault on their First Amendment rights. All you have to do is read their own words.
“One group of primarily left-leaning First Amendment advocates said the new regulation would ‘impose serious burdens on free speech and hinder the democratic processes it serves.’
“An official with the ACLU described the IRS’ proposed regulation as creating ‘the worst of all worlds.’
“The proposal, he wrote, could ‘seriously chill legitimate issue advocacy from nonprofits on the right and left,’ and would ‘disproportionately affect small, poor nonprofits that cannot afford the legal counsel to guarantee compliance...’
“And here’s what one labor union had to say: ‘Given the history of misuse and abuse of the IRS’ immense powers in the not-so-distant past, it is disappointing and disturbing that this fundamental principle has been forgotten and that this… [regulation] is the IRS’ proposed response to its recent missteps.’
“So Left, Right, or Center — folks understand what a threat this rule poses to our most cherished of civil liberties.
“They also realize that a group the Administration favors today could easily become a group the IRS targets tomorrow.
“That’s why this fight is so important – why it’s so inappropriate to hand this kind of power to any Administration. I don’t care what party the president’s in. And that’s why I, along with several of my colleagues, recently sent a letter to the new Commissioner of the IRS explaining in some detail just why the agency’s proposal was such a bad idea.
“In that letter, we also reminded Commissioner Koskinen of something else too: the ball’s in his court on this one.
“He could stop this rule tomorrow. And given the comments he made about restoring integrity to the IRS when the Senate voted to confirm him, that’s just what we expect out of him. In fact, that’s the essentially mandate on which he was confirmed.
“So here’s the choice before him.
“He can either fulfill that mandate to the American people by restoring integrity to an agency they no longer trust. He can be a hero and say no to those who are pressuring him to crack down on the First Amendment rights of ordinary Americans – just like the IRS Commissioner who stood up to Nixon.
“Or, he can serve political masters over in the White House. He can implement regulations that will erode our most fundamental civil liberties – regulations that would almost certainly lead to the harassment of conservative groups today, and quite possibly to the harassment of Left-leaning groups in the future. In fact, a recent letter Representative Camp received from the Treasury Department appears to suggest that unions in particular may have a lot to fear from this proposal.
“So now is the time to act.
“America’s free speech advocates are standing up with one voice.
“Thousands upon thousands made their voices heard in the opinion process.
“Millions more, I suspect, are right there with them in spirit.
“Some who oppose this rule picked the President in the last election. Some voted for his opponent. Some may have even cast a ballot for another person entirely. But what unites us is our love of the liberties that have allowed Americans to disagree civilly for centuries. Commissioner Koskinen: Do the right thing. Stop this regulation.”