Anti-tax Group Makes 'Final Warning' to Federal Government
Michael L. Betsch, CNSNews.com
Saturday, Nov. 16, 2002
WASHINGTON – A cross-country anti-tax rally
culminated in the nation's capital Thursday, with several hundred protesters
warning all branches of the federal government to "obey the Constitution,
or else."
The conservatives and Libertarians
attending the rally said their protest should serve as a wake-up call to
lawmakers, but the Anti-Defamation League regards the protest as an "extremist"
threat.
"The tax protest movement is a right-wing
extremist movement," said Mark Pitcavage, director of "fact finding" for
ADL. "You're not talking about tax reformers here. You're talking about people
who have incredible conspiracy theories about the government."
ADL considers those who organized
and attended the anti-tax rally to be such a serious threat that it included
the group on its monthly calendar of "extremist events." Pitcavage said that
the event's organizer, a group called "We The People Congress," advocated
an agenda that is "so far out of the mainstream" that the group has disenfranchised
itself from the rest of American society.
"These are people who do not think
simply that taxes are too high or want tax reform," Pitcavage said. "They
have convinced themselves they do not have to pay taxes and that there's
a major government conspiracy designed to cover up that fact."
Pitcavage warned that the anti-tax movement was not confined to protest rallies.
"It's also a movement that has been
linked strongly to violence, to attacks on IRS agents, to blowing up IRS
offices, as well as many other crimes," he said. "There's a great deal of
criminal activity associated with the movement."
If I Could Turn Back Time
A spokesman for We The People Congress
dismissed ADL's accusations as "an incredible propaganda campaign." Mike
Bodine said the sole purpose of the anti-tax rally, called Freedom Drive
2002, was to restore the Constitution to what it was in 1776.
"Frankly, I don't understand how trying
to uphold and defend the Constitution of this nation can be construed to
be an extremist event by anybody," Bodine said. "Unfortunately, we do question
government."
According to Bodine, his group has
issued four "petitions for redress of grievances" to the federal government.
Those petitions challenge the constitutional legitimacy and legality of the
federal income tax, the Federal Reserve, the War Powers clause and the USA
Patriot Act.
The first petition states
that there is no legal authority for the federal government to enforce the
federal income tax on average Americans. He said research conducted by We
The People Congress included the sworn testimony of IRS agents and CPAs who
support the group's claim.
The second petition
accuses the federal government of auctioning off the U.S. Treasury to the
highest-bidding corporations, financiers and campaign contributors.
We The People Congress
has also demanded that Congress and the president adhere to the Constitution's
War Powers clause in the imminent war against Iraq. The Constitution mandates
that Congress must pass a formal declaration of war before the U.S. can commit
troops to battle, Bodine said. A resolution, such as that recently passed
by Congress, is not enough, the group insists.
"The reason that they don't make a
formal declaration of war anymore, and that we haven't since World War II,
is that it's very, very politically difficult to do," Bodine said. "But that's
exactly why the Founding Fathers put it in there. It was supposed to be difficult
to do."
Bodine said his group's
final petition condemned Congress for passing the USA Patriot Act, which
he said contains language that clearly violates the Constitution. According
to Bodine, the law makes it legal for law enforcement officials to disregard
the "search and seizure" clause contained in the Fourth Amendment.
Million Gun March to 'Dislodge' the Government
"We're trying to give the government
a warning, kind of like a final warning," said Rick Stanley, a Denver businessman
and member of the Libertarian Party, who recently tried to unseat Sen. Wayne
Allard, R-Colo.
In March, Stanley released a comprehensive
list of demands, including repeal of "all unconstitutional laws" at all levels
of government. "In other words, they've been given the petition for redress
of grievances many times, and the bottom line is we want them to obey the
Constitution ... or else," he said.
Asked what "or else" means, Stanley
was evasive, but he hinted at armed rebellion, mentioning a "Million Gun
March" he is planning for July 4, 2003.
"We're coming to make sure that they comply with the Constitution and with our petition demands.
"To me, it [the Million Gun March]
will be the thing that dislodges the government that has overthrown America
from its perch. And what's going to happen is 'We, the people' will be running
the government from that day forward."
Stanley and Bob Schulz, the latter
the chairman of We The People Congress, are urging anti-tax activists to
stop paying their income taxes, which both men say they already have done.
Stanley said his message to the federal
government was clear: "We're cutting off your funding. We're cutting off
your money supply."
But Stanley does not believe the vast
majority of Americans will join his income-tax rebellion against the federal
government. He expressed the need for something "bigger," that "something"
being the "million gun" event.
"On that day, we'll be coming armed,"
Stanley warned. "And then we're going to have rallies at every state capital
in all 50 states at the same time," he said.
Asked by CNSNews.com how he intended
to deal with the District of Columbia's gun laws (the D.C. code says, "Carrying
a handgun in the District is prohibited"), Stanley showed no concern.
"What about D.C.'s gun laws?" Stanley
asked. "They're null and void. Anything that violates the U.S. Constitution
- and the Supreme Court has said it probably a thousand times - it's null
and void, as if it never existed," he said.
According to Stanley's Web site, the
million gun march will be held only if at least 1 million people sign a petition
guaranteeing their presence at the march.
Copyright CNSNews.com
Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:
Browne/Libertarian Party
Guns/Gun Control
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