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Paul Ryan puts Dem rep in his place after blaming Tea Party for IRS targeting

June 05, 2013
Wilson

Writer

After the emotional testimony from a Tea Party leader during Tuesday's House Ways and Means Committee hearing on the IRS' targeting of conservative groups, Democrat Rep. McDermott tried to point the finger right back at the TEA Party. The accusations were so outrageous it prompted Glenn to urge America to "fumigate" Congress of the infestation happening. Paul Ryan was not having any of that and gave a pretty solid response to the Democrat representative.

Becky Gerritson, Wetumpka TEA Party leader, delivered a powerful account of her experience of political intimidation via the IRS yesterday.

“I’m not here as a serf or a vassal. I’m not begging my lords for mercy. I’m a born-free American woman, wife, mother, and citizen. And I’m telling my government that you’ve forgotten your place.”

“It’s not your responsibility to look out for my well being and to monitor my speech. It’s not your right to assert an agenda. The post that you occupy exists to preserve American liberty. You’ve sworn to perform that duty and you have faltered.”

After her moving statement, Gerritson was met by Democrat Representative Jim McDermott point the finger right back at her.

Sounds like McDermott's blaming conservatives for the IRS scandal…right?

"I would not have been able to stay silent," Glenn responded after hearing the statements.

Well, Glenn wasn't there to speak up, but Paul Ryan was.

"I'm going to fever cite from my original question in response to what I just heard," Ryan started.

Paul Ryan, who had a question of his own decided to forgo his planned remarks to respond to what he just heard come out of McDermott's mouth. McDermott repeatedly tried to stop and interrupt Paul Ryan's response.

"We had a former IRS commissioner Shtollman, who knew about the political targeting long before Congress implied the organizations were responsible for the targeting because they chose to apply for tax extent status.  So you are to play, I guess to the met an here.  Do you think that you were targeted based upon your political beliefs, your religious beliefs, or just because you chose to apply?" Ryan asked.

"Our beliefs, our views," the TEA Party leader responded.

"It's pretty amazing, because they are the only ones, the only ones who were targeted were Tea Party and like-minded, like 912 groups," Pat noted. "Like 4606 them were looked into, but they were not targeted. The only ones they specifically looked for, so that they could give extra scrutiny to were conservative groups. That's what this is about.  It's not that nobody else was looked into."

"America, hear me, hear me clearly," Glenn started, "You are on the right side if you believe the IRS is out of control.  If you would actually stand for this, if this were being done to the left, you would be sadly

mistaken.  You would be wrong.  This cannot happen to any American, and you have the golden opportunity.  I have never thought in my life we could abolish the I was.  I never thought you could overturn that. You have the opportunity right now.  You have the opportunity to abolish the IRS."

Glenn reminded listeners that silence is also sending a message. If Americans don't speak up they are giving the government and the IRS more power, simply through silence. Despite being given an extra week, the IRS hasn't even so much as responded to Congress yet — something Glenn believes the public should be outraged by.

"Why have we not bolted those doors yet?" Glenn asked. "Why have we not seized their assets?  Why have we not frozen their payrolls?  Why have we not done that?  Congress should be demanding. Congress holds the purse strings.  Congress should shut down the IRS, until they comply, because I have news for you.  They do it you.  They do it to me.  They do it to every single business without a warrant, they padlock your doors, throw you in jail, affine you until you just beg for mercy.  Well, what's good enough for the goose certainly is good enough for the gander.  Why is Congress -- ask yourself, why is Congress pussy footing around with the IRS?  They have the power to shut them down.  You comply or you go to jail.  You are in contempt of Congress.  Shut them down.  Enough with the speeches.  Shut them down, Congress, and don't you ever forget.  You do have the power.  You do. I don't know how much longer you have the power, but you do have the power right now, and if people would get together and they would march peacefully, they would stand and they would make the case right now, abolish the IRS.  You have a chance."

Remembering Charlie Kirk: A tribute through song

MELISSA MAJCHRZAK / Contributor | Getty Images

On September 17th, Glenn commemorated his late friend Charlie Kirk by hosting The Charlie Kirk Show Podcast, where he celebrated and remembered the life of a remarkable young man.

During the broadcast, Glenn shared an emotional new song performed by his daughter, Cheyenne, who was standing only feet away from Charlie when he was assassinated. The song, titled "We Are One," has been dedicated to Charlie Kirk as a tribute and was written and co-performed by David Osmond, son of Alan Osmond, founding member of The Osmonds.

Glenn first asked David Osmond to write "We Are One" in 2018, as he predicted that dark days were on the horizon, but he never imagined that it would be sung by his daughter in honor of Charlie Kirk. The Lord works in mysterious ways; could there have been a more fitting song to honor such a brave man?

"We Are One" is available for download or listening on Spotify HERE


Has free speech been twisted into a defense of violence?

CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / Contributor | Getty Images

Celebrating murder is not speech. It is a revelation of the heart. America must distinguish between debate and the glorification of evil.

Over the weekend, the world mourned the murder of Charlie Kirk. In London, crowds filled the streets, chanting “Charlie! Charlie! Charlie!” and holding up pictures of the fallen conservative giant. Protests in his honor spread as far away as South Korea. This wasn’t just admiration for one man; it was a global acknowledgment that courage and conviction — the kind embodied by Kirk during his lifetime — still matter. But it was also a warning. This is a test for our society, our morality, and our willingness to defend truth.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni recently delivered a speech that struck at the heart of this crisis. She praised Kirk as a man who welcomed debate, who smiled while defending his ideas, and who faced opposition with respect. That courage is frightening to those who have no arguments. When reason fails, the weapons left are insults, criminalization, and sometimes violence. We see it again today, in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s assassination.

Charlie Kirk’s life was a challenge. His death is a call.

Some professors and public intellectuals have written things that should chill every American soul. They argue that shooting a right-wing figure is somehow less serious than murdering others. They suggest it could be mitigated because of political disagreement. These aren’t careless words — they are a rationalization for murder.

Some will argue that holding such figures accountable is “cancel culture.” They will say that we are silencing debate. They are wrong. Accountability is not cancel culture. A critical difference lies between debating ideas and celebrating death. Debate challenges minds. Celebrating murder abandons humanity. Charlie Kirk’s death draws that line sharply.

History offers us lessons. In France, mobs cheered executions as the guillotine claimed the heads of their enemies — and their own heads soon rolled. Cicero begged his countrymen to reason, yet the mob chose blood over law, and liberty was lost. Charlie Kirk’s assassination reminds us that violence ensues when virtue is abandoned.

We must also distinguish between debates over policy and attacks on life itself. A teacher who argues that children should not undergo gender-transition procedures before adulthood participates in a policy debate. A person who says Charlie Kirk’s death is a victory rejoices in violence. That person has no place shaping minds or guiding children.

PATRICK T. FALLON / Contributor | Getty Images

For liberty and virtue

Liberty without virtue is national suicide. The Constitution protects speech — even dangerous ideas — but it cannot shield those who glorify murder. Society has the right to demand virtue from its leaders, educators, and public figures. Charlie Kirk’s life was a challenge. His death is a call. It is a call to defend our children, our communities, and the principles that make America free.

Cancel culture silences debate. But accountability preserves it. A society that distinguishes between debating ideas and celebrating death still has a moral compass. It still has hope. It still has us.

Are Gen Z's socialist sympathies a threat to America's future?

NurPhoto / Contributor | Getty Images

In a republic forged on the anvil of liberty and self-reliance, where generations have fought to preserve free markets against the siren song of tyranny, Gen Z's alarming embrace of socialism amid housing crises and economic despair has sparked urgent alarm. But in a recent poll, Glenn asked the tough questions: Where do Gen Z's socialist sympathies come from—and what does it mean for America's future? Glenn asked, and you answered—hundreds weighed in on this volatile mix of youthful frustration and ideological peril.

The results paint a stark picture of distrust in the system. A whopping 79% of you affirm that Gen Z's socialist sympathies stem from real economic gripes, like sky-high housing costs and a rigged game tilted toward the elite and corporations—defying the argument that it's just youthful naivety. Even more telling, 97% believe this trend arises from a glaring educational void on socialism's bloody historical track record, where failed regimes have crushed freedoms under the boot of big government. And 97% see these poll findings as a harbinger of deepening generational rifts, potentially fueling political chaos and authoritarian overreach if left unchecked.

Your verdict underscores a moral imperative: America's soul hangs on reclaiming timeless values like self-reliance and liberty. This feedback amplifies your concerns, sending a clear message to the powers that be.

Want to make your voice heard? Check out more polls HERE.

Without civic action, America faces collapse

JEFF KOWALSKY / Contributor | Getty Images

Every vote, jury duty, and act of engagement is civics in action, not theory. The republic survives only when citizens embrace responsibility.

I slept through high school civics class. I memorized the three branches of government, promptly forgot them, and never thought of that word again. Civics seemed abstract, disconnected from real life. And yet, it is critical to maintaining our republic.

Civics is not a class. It is a responsibility. A set of habits, disciplines, and values that make a country possible. Without it, no country survives.

We assume America will survive automatically, but every generation must learn to carry the weight of freedom.

Civics happens every time you speak freely, worship openly, question your government, serve on a jury, or cast a ballot. It’s not a theory or just another entry in a textbook. It’s action — the acts we perform every day to be a positive force in society.

Many of us recoil at “civic responsibility.” “I pay my taxes. I follow the law. I do my civic duty.” That’s not civics. That’s a scam, in my opinion.

Taking up the torch

The founders knew a republic could never run on autopilot. And yet, that’s exactly what we do now. We assume it will work, then complain when it doesn’t. Meanwhile, the people steering the country are driving it straight into a mountain — and they know it.

Our founders gave us tools: separation of powers, checks and balances, federalism, elections. But they also warned us: It won’t work unless we are educated, engaged, and moral.

Are we educated, engaged, and moral? Most Americans cannot even define a republic, never mind “keep one,” as Benjamin Franklin urged us to do after the Constitutional Convention.

We fought and died for the republic. Gaining it was the easy part. Keeping it is hard. And keeping it is done through civics.

Start small and local

In our homes, civics means teaching our children the Constitution, our history, and that liberty is not license — it is the space to do what is right. In our communities, civics means volunteering, showing up, knowing your sheriff, attending school board meetings, and understanding the laws you live under. When necessary, it means challenging them.

How involved are you in your local community? Most people would admit: not really.

Civics is learned in practice. And it starts small. Be honest in your business dealings. Speak respectfully in disagreement. Vote in every election, not just the presidential ones. Model citizenship for your children. Liberty is passed down by teaching and example.

Samuel Corum / Stringer | Getty Images

We assume America will survive automatically, but every generation must learn to carry the weight of freedom.

Start with yourself. Study the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and state laws. Study, act, serve, question, and teach. Only then can we hope to save the republic. The next election will not fix us. The nation will rise or fall based on how each of us lives civics every day.

Civics isn’t a class. It’s the way we protect freedom, empower our communities, and pass down liberty to the next generation.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.