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Epoch Times
01-05-2025
- Business
- Epoch Times
A Tax Man With Convictions and Courage
Commentary Have you ever heard of someone so principled that he quit his job rather than do something he knew to be wrong? I admire people of such integrity. We need more of them. Let me tell you about one whose story is especially relevant on April 15, the date the federal government demands we meet our income tax obligations. This man was head of the IRS. His name was T. Coleman Andrews. Born in Virginia in 1899, Andrews possessed a head for numbers. He loved accounting, an affection which I personally could never understand. Accounting baffled and frustrated me during my undergraduate days; I scraped by with a 'C.' I agree with whoever described an accountant as 'someone who solves a problem you did not know you had in a way you don't understand.' Andrews was not only good at it, but he also founded several successful accounting firms and worked in high accounting positions for the Commonwealth of Virginia, the U.S. State Department, and the General Accounting Office in Washington. In 1953, President Dwight Eisenhower appointed him Commissioner of the Bureau of Internal Revenue. In an interview while still new in the job, Andrews said that he would insist that every employee engage taxpayers with 'a sincere desire to be helpful,' but he promised to come down hard on anybody caught cheating on his taxes. Related Stories 4/17/2025 3/23/2025 Andrews moved to simplify complex tax forms. He changed the Bureau's name to what we know today—the Internal Revenue Service. He adopted numerous measures to improve efficiency, but when Congress overhauled tax law in 1955, he realized how 'unreformable' the system was. Isaac William Martin, in his 2013 book titled 'Rich People's Movements,' quotes Andrews as lamenting that the congressmen who wrote the bill 'do not themselves know what they mean.' Barely two years into his tenure on the inside, Andrews abruptly resigned. His views on the agency and the income tax had evolved. Andrews was one of those rare public servants who 'grew in office.' He could no longer hold a position that put him at odds with his conscience. He came to see the IRS and the tax code as oppressive, incomprehensible, and corrupt. Shortly after his departure from the IRS, he issued a statement explaining his position: 'Congress went beyond merely enacting an income tax law and repealed Article IV of the Bill of Rights, by empowering the tax collector to do the very things from which that article says we were to be secure. It opened up our homes, our papers and our effects to the prying eyes of government agents and set the stage for searches of our books and vaults and for inquiries into our private affairs whenever the tax men might decide, even though there might not be any justification beyond mere cynical suspicion. 'The income tax is bad because it has robbed you and me of the guarantee of privacy and the respect for our property that were given to us in Article IV of the Bill of Rights. This invasion is absolute and complete as far as the amount of tax that can be assessed is concerned. Please remember that under the Sixteenth Amendment, Congress can take 100 percent of our income anytime it wants to. As a matter of fact, right now it is imposing a tax as high as 91 percent. This is downright confiscation and cannot be defended on any other grounds. 'The income tax is bad because it was conceived in class hatred, is an instrument of vengeance and plays right into the hands of the communists. It employs the vicious communist principle of taking from each according to his accumulation of the fruits of his labor and giving to others according to their needs, regardless of whether those needs are the result of indolence or lack of pride, self-respect, personal dignity or other attributes of men. 'The income tax is fulfilling the Marxist prophecy that the surest way to destroy a capitalist society is by steeply graduated taxes on income and heavy levies upon the estates of people when they die. 'As matters now stand, if our children make the most of their capabilities and training, they will have to give most of it to the tax collector and so become slaves of the government. People cannot pull themselves up by the bootstraps anymore because the tax collector gets the boots and the straps as well.' Clearly, this was a guy who didn't allow power or a paycheck to turn either his brain or his spine into jelly. Agree with him or not, you must admit there's some impressive personal character there. Andrews continued to speak out against the income tax and the ever-bigger government it was financing. In 1956, he even ran for President of the United States on a third-party ticket—a campaign that, controversially, was built around a states' rights platform. While some saw it as a principled stance for limited government, others rightly noted its alignment with political figures and movements that defended segregation. He died in 1983 at the age of 84. The school in my native state of Pennsylvania where I struggled in that accounting class more than a half-century ago is Grove City College. In researching this article, I was proud to learn that in 1963, GCC bestowed an honorary doctorate upon T. Coleman Andrews. What Andrews had to say may not be much consolation to you this tax season. Perhaps it will be of at least small comfort, however, to know that we once had an IRS Commissioner who saw the harm of the whole business and possessed the courage of his convictions to wash his hands of it. Additional Reading: ' ' ' ' ' ' From the Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Fairfax County calls for increase to unemployment benefits for fired federal workers
FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. () — There's a push in Northern Virginia to increase how much money recently fired federal workers get paid while on unemployment. It comes at the same time as we could see a hike in unemployment benefits for all Virginians. The Fairfax County supervisors who sent a letter to Gov. Glenn Youngkin and democratic leaders said Virginia's unemployment payouts are behind D.C. and Maryland's, and with many federal workers now applying for those benefits, they say now is the time to take action. 'The repercussions of these job losses are far-reaching,' said Fairfax County Board Chair Jeff McKay. Democrats bringing fired federal workers to Trump speech McKay and his colleague James Walkinshaw led several of their board colleagues in proposing, and sending, a letter. In it, they describe the help the workers are getting through unemployment claims as 'meager.' 'What Virginia offers today doesn't allow families to pay their mortgage, doesn't allow families to pay their groceries, doesn't help those small businesses who rely on those federal employees and contractors as customers to stay open,' Walkinshaw said. In Virginia, unemployment benefits are capped at $378/week. In Maryland, it's $430/week. In D.C., it's $444/week. Walkinshaw said what makes federal workers' claims unique is that they are reimbursed by the federal government, making now a good time to increase the amount. Cherry blossoms near peak bloom at the Tidal Basin 'It costs the Commonwealth of Virginia nothing to increase the maximum unemployment benefits for these federal employees,' he said. The letter outlined potential improvements. 'Improvements could include dedicating a portion of the Commonwealth's surplus to provide an additional $600 per month to those affected by these federal cuts, mirroring the supplemental benefits extended during the COVID-19 pandemic,' it reads. 'This benefit should extend to all Virginia residents impacted by federal cuts, including part-time, self-employed, and gig workers, and those whose place of employment is outside of Virginia.' The Virginia General Assembly recently approved a measure that would have increased everyone's unemployment benefits by $100/week. The governor sent the bill back, amending it to a proposed $52/week increase. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Transgender sex offender claims ban from women's bathrooms violates 'civil rights'
A transgender registered sex offender in Virginia facing charges for allegedly exposing himself in a women's locker room told police officers that barring him from public facilities would violate "civil rights." Video obtained by ABC7 News staff showed 58-year-old Richard Cox being confronted by the police on Nov. 16 outside the Oakmont Rec Center in Fairfax County. This was one day after Fairfax County began a process to bar Cox from all county rec centers upon discovering his rap sheet. In the police body cam footage that was released on Feb. 16, Cox claimed that utilizing his name on the sex offender registry was a "criminal misuse" of the law on par with banning Black people from public facilities. "They don't agree with you exercising your civil rights, so they try and make a criminal action out of it…Just to give an example, back when they didn't want Black people in certain places, if they called the police and said, 'hey we have asked this person to leave,' you guys realize that was because he was Black," Cox told police in the footage. Massachusetts Town Votes To Become A Transgender 'Sanctuary City' After Wild City Council Meeting Although ABC7 News reported that most court documents list Cox as a male, Cox insisted that he identified as a transgender female and should be allowed in women's restrooms. Read On The Fox News App "My understanding of the sex offender registry, because I understand that they're concerned about my history and that's the reason they're banning me, and my understanding of the sex offender registry is it is a tool to be used to prevent any sort of future criminal offenses," Cox argued. "Now, my civil rights as a transgender person allows me to use a public facility including the restrooms or changing rooms that identify with my gender, and you can see on my ID that I'm recognized by the Commonwealth of Virginia as female." "So exercising my civil rights is not a criminal offense," Cox continued. "So them pulling up my information on the sex offender registry and using it to stop me from exercising my civil rights as a transgender person is a criminal misuse of the sex offender registry. They can use that registry to try and stop someone from committing a criminal offense, which I was not doing." "I was only exercising my civil rights, which they are completely and entirely opposed to. And they criminally use the sex offender registry against me. That should be for a judge to decide." Despite police officers confronting Cox, no criminal charges were filed for the incident. The video came months after Virginia mother Jen McDougal and her 9-year-old daughter reported seeing Cox naked in the middle of the locker room in Arlington, Virginia back in September. McDougal described the incident as an "awkward and scary" moment on "Fox & Friends." Independent Voters Agree With Trump On Transgender Policies, Focus Group Shows McDougal said at the time that staff told her there was nothing that could be done because of Cox's status as a "transgender" individual. Cox currently faces more than 20 charges in Arlington after police discovered multiple instances of Cox allegedly exposing himself to women and children in another fitness center and high school. A preliminary hearing is set for March. Fox News Digital reached out to Fairfax County for article source: Transgender sex offender claims ban from women's bathrooms violates 'civil rights'
Axios
12-02-2025
- General
- Axios
The Commonwealth of Virginia is selling a Snoop Dogg snow globe
The Commonwealth of Virginia has a Snoop Dogg snow globe for sale on the government surplus auction site. Why it matters: It's only $2, as of this writing. Also, at some point, the state owned a Snoop Dog snow globe. State of play: An Axios Richmond reader alerted us yesterday to the Snoop Dogg snow globe listing on an online auction site that helps governments get rid of any surplus inventory. The site is often a treasure trove of mundane or bizarre listings that are somehow in the possession of local governments. Sometime one might see a full-sized school bus for sale on behalf of Chesterfield, other times it might be a massive diorama of a beaver den, which Henrico County inexplicably wanted to unload in 2022. This time, however, it's a Snoop Dogg snow globe, from the Snoop on The Stoop holiday line, according to our research. It's one of nearly 1,000 items recently listed for sale by the state, along with a wooden rolling pin, a suede handbag, a magnetic cat toy and aprox. 900 loose screwdrivers. Pick up for all the items is in Henrico. The state did not respond to a request for comment by press time.
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Where do Virginia Governor Candidates Stand on Menhaden Study Bill?
ROANOKE, Va. (WFXR) — House Bill 2713 (HB2713) would require the Commonwealth of Virginia to conduct a study of the status of Atlantic menhaden in Virginia's portion of the Chesapeake Bay. It is a hot button issue that has been debated among conservation and outdoors groups, and the reduction fishing industry for years. So, where do Virginia's leading candidates for governor stand on the issue? Republican Winsome Earle-Sears has not responded to requests by WFXR for her position on the menhaden study bill. Democrat Abigail Spanberger has not committed supporting this bill in particular, but she says she is in favor of the idea of finding out more about menhaden numbers and how various environmental and industrial factors play into their status. 'More information is always powerful and helpful in making decision,' said Spanberger. 'When it comes to digging into an issue and fully understanding, perhaps, the impacts, as an issue of principle I'm generally supportive of those efforts.' Governor Glenn Youngkin has also not taken a position on the bill, though his office did issue the following statement: 'Since day one, the administration and the Virginia Marine Resources Commission have been engaged with all stakeholders from Virginia's commercial and recreational fishing sectors about these issues and the importance of commonsense solutions for protecting and cleaning up the Bay. Last year, VMRC adopted a Memorandum of Understanding with the menhaden industry to minimize and mitigate fish spills through strict fishing restrictions during peak public use times, geographical restrictions on harvest, and clear protocols for spill response. Cooperative approaches like this are important steps towards promoting transparency and accountability within the industry while safeguarding our marine environment for all of Virginia's users and economic activities that rely on the Bay. The Administration and VMRC will continue to work with all users of the Bay to ensure accountability and stewardship of Virginia's natural resources. The Governor will carefully review all legislation that is sent to him during the 2025 General Assembly.' Conservation and sportfishing groups have been critical of the industrial menhaden reduction fishery on the bay, and say local numbers have declined, leading to a decline in various fish and wildlife. Virginia is the only state on the Atlantic coast that allows industrial reduction fishing on estuaries like the Chesapeake Bay. There is only one company practicing industrial reduction fishing for menhaden in Virginia, Reedville-based Omega Protein. Omega says menhaden stocks are solid and sustainable. They point to coast-wide studies to back that position. However, there has been no recent localized research done to establish the population in Virginia's portion of the Chesapeake. Delegate Paul Milde (R-Stafford) is the patron of HB2713. 'There are no modern-day studies of menhaden populations in the bay,' said Del. Milde. 'It makes sense that we need to find out where we really are with the menhaden, and if there are any connections between rockfish populations, osprey populations, and the menhaden catch.' The bill is before the Virginia House Rules-Studies Subcommittee. That is the same subcommittee that last year killed the latest effort to pass a study bill. The proposal was tabled by a subcommittee voice vote without explanation or debate. WFXR News has reached out to members of that subcommittee to find out their positions on the current bill, but so far has received no responses. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
