Al Sharpton spent 2004 running for President in the Democratic primaries, but will spend 2008 running from the IRS. Subpoenas have been received by corporate donors to his organization, the National Action Network, which also faces a federal probe for its disclosure deficiencies. Sharpton owes at least six figures in personal back taxes alone, according to the New York Post (via Instapundit):
The probe into the Rev. Al Sharpton’s finances intensified this week, with the IRS sending out a flurry of subpoenas to his most generous corporate donors, The Post has learned.
Anheuser-Busch, the brewer of Budweiser and Michelob, confirmed yesterday that it received a federal subpoena in connection to its charitable giving to Sharpton’s National Action Network. …
As of 2006, the most recent year that financial documents for the group are publicly available, it owed $1.9 million in payroll taxes and penalties. … Personally, Sharpton owes $931,397 in federal taxes and $365,558 in New York City taxes, according to an IRS lien.
What a shock! Who would have guessed that a man who made his national reputation by falsely accusing someone of rape would have stiffed the IRS?
Sharpton insists that the probes are all politically motivated. However, the initial probe into NAN’s disclosure filings started with Andrew Cuomo’s office, whose party affiliation matches that of Sharpton — Democrat. Cuomo turned over the investigation to the feds during the past year, but initially Cuomo suspected NAN of breaking state laws regarding its finances.
Maybe Sharpton’s trying to help Al Franken by showing how much worse Democrats can get at paying the taxes they insist on increasing for everyone else. Franken’s failure in New York involved workers-comp coverage for his employees; for NAN, payroll taxes went unpaid. Both politicians talk about supporting the “working man”. These Democrats seem to have trouble matching their rhetoric to their actions.
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