-Caveat Lector- September 28, 1999 THE POWER TO DESTROY Journalists press case against IRS Klayman, Farah charge government hiding documents, lying By Stephan Archer © 1999 WorldNetDaily.com Lawyers representing the Western Journalism Center plan to file motion to have the Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Justice held in criminal contempt for failing to produce documents connected to an audit of the group and requested under the Freedom of Information Act. "Based on a pattern of misconduct in this lawsuit, we are convinced that the IRS continues to hide documents," said Judicial Watch's Larry Klayman. Klayman is referring to the $10 million action he filed against the Internal Revenue Service on behalf of the Western Journalism Center, founded by Joseph Farah, editor of WorldNetDaily.com. Farah and Klayman initiated the suit after a suspicious 1996 audit nearly forced the center to close its doors. Before filing the new motion, however, the two will wait for a judge to rule on an IRS motion for summary judgment in the case. Originally, Farah was led to believe the audit was politically motivated when one of the IRS' "Information Document Requests" served on the center demanded substantial amounts of seemingly irrelevant information -- particularly regarding the center's investigative work into the suspicious death of White House Deputy Counsel Vincent Foster. Specifically, the IRS asked for copies of all documents related to the selection of reporters and topics for investigation. In these documents, the IRS asked Western Journalism Center the following questions about the investigation into the death of White House Deputy Counsel Vincent Foster: Who was on the review committee? What review process is used for peer review? Were any other projects considered? What about any opposing viewpoints? Then, when Thomas Cederquist, the IRS agent conducting the audit, admitted it was a "political" audit and that any "decision (had) to be made at the national level," Farah became even more convinced that WJC was the target of a politically motivated and therefore unlawful audit. However, hard proof of the audit's political roots didn't surface until Freedom of Information Act documents received by the center from the Treasury Department this past July traced the audit trail directly back to the Clinton White House. Beverly Hills resident Paul Venze had written a letter to the White House questioning the legitimacy of the center's non-profit status, since it was leading an investigation into the circumstances of Foster's death. Upon receiving the letter, the White House faxed it to the IRS. This sequence is detailed in the Treasury Department report the WJC received, although belatedly, in response to its FOIA request. Farah and Klayman want to know why the IRS took two years to hand over information about the Venze letter and the White House's involvement, since it should have been provided immediately after the FOIA request was filed and certainly during the discovery process in the $10 million lawsuit. Suspicions of IRS delay and obfuscation also stem from the fact that in October 1997, soon after the FOIA request was filed, the IRS turned over 114 pages of material to Farah, claiming those were all the documents it had on the case. The IRS immediately filed a petition for summary judgment from District Court Judge Coleen Colar-Koteley, which would have closed the case for good. However, WJC soon discovered that at least another 658 pages of documents concerning the audit, including Venze's letter, were being maintained by the IRS. "This kind of behavior unfortunately has become normal throughout government -- hiding documents, destroying them, lying, cover up. It's always been the case, but it's gotten much worse during the Clinton administration," Klayman said. Now that the additional 658 pages have been turned over to WJC, the IRS has once again filed for summary judgment. However, the center is asking the court that the IRS' motion for summary judgment be denied, and that discovery procedures into the long delay of produced audit materials proceed, because Klayman and Farah still believe the IRS is holding back documents. "Where are the documents showing how Bill Clinton informed the Internal Revenue Service?" asked Klayman during an interview with WorldNetDaily. Indeed, the journalists' opposition to the IRS motion for summary judgment states, "Now that the IRS' erroneous claim in its first motion for summary judgment -- that all responsive documents were produced to WJC (Western Journalism Center) in October 1997 -- has been thoroughly discredited by WJC, and in light of the highly political circumstances surrounding the White House's initiation of the WJC audit, (and) the IRS' failure to provide documents concerning the audit to WJC in a timely manner, ... WJC is entitled to discovery into the scope and conduct of the IRS' search, the existence of documents generated during the course of the audit, the whereabouts of those documents, and the reasons why all responsive documents were not produced to WJC in October 1997, among other related matters." ================================================================= Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh, YHVH, TZEVAOT FROM THE DESK OF: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> *Mike Spitzer* <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> ~~~~~~~~ <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> The Best Way To Destroy Enemies Is To Change Them To Friends Shalom, A Salaam Aleikum, and to all, A Good Day. ================================================================= DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! 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