The three Arizona Democratic Representatives representing swing districts cast votes with all of the Republicans to pass the "Stop Targeting of Political Beliefs by the IRS Act of 2014" this afternoon. The bill would place a one-year moratorium on the IRS' proposed rule changes regarding the amount of political activity certain non-profits may engage in.
The bill - which passed 243-176 - is likely to die in the Democratic-controlled Senate. However, it has been a politically-charged issue since it became public knowledge that the IRS had not granted tax-exempt status to many politically-active organizations who had filed for the status.
Arizona Reps. Kyrsten Sinema (D-CD9), Ann Kirkpatrick (D-CD1), and Ron Barber (D-CD2) were among the 14 Democrats to vote for the measure. No Republicans opposed it.
Rep. Trent Franks (R-CD8) was the only Arizona co-sponsor of the message. Three of the four Arizona GOP Representatives voted aye - Paul Gosar (R-CD4), along with Democrat Ed Pastor (D-CD7) did not vote.
Rep. Matt Salmon (R-CD5) tweeted afterwards: "I voted for H.R. 3865 to stop the IRS from targeting individuals and groups based on their political beliefs. #Azright #StopGovtAbuse"
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The only organizations that were "targeted" by the IRS were those who's primary purpose is political activity. The law regarding 501(C)4s actually prohibits political activity. So why the hell did the 3 Democrats vote for this political stunt?
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