Al Sharpton: Race charlatan, financial charlatan
Every year for the past few years, I’ve noted the annual Al Sharpton Suck-Up — the annual grievance-mongering convention held by the race hustler’s non-profit “National Action Network.” It’s a purported grass-roots activist network that only seems to surface in the news once a year when Democrat leaders — and at least one RNC chairman — show up to the convention to pay homage and kiss Sharpton’s ring.
Biggest non-shocker of the year: The “National Action Network” is a fiscal mess, delinquent on taxes, and has run afoul of campaign finance laws. The NY Post reports:
An accounting firm hired by Al Sharpton’s National Action Network found the civil-rights group in such financial disarray that it flunked its record-keeping — and may not even survive, The Post has learned.
The scathing critique was spelled out in a hard-hitting internal audit of NAN’s books, a copy of which was obtained by The Post.
“The organization has suffered recurring decreases in net assets — and has been dependent upon advances from related parties and the nonpayment of payroll tax obligations — to maintain continuity,” the firm KBL concluded in an April 2 audit of NAN’s 2008 financial records, the most recent available.
The audit, which was submitted to NAN’s board of directors, warned, “These circumstances create substantial doubt about the organization’s ability to continue.”
KBL said it was “unable to form an opinion” on the accuracy of NAN’s financial figures “because of inadequacies in the organization’s accounting records.”
In 2008, federal prosecutors decided to drop a criminal probe into the finances of Sharpton and NAN. But Sharpton — who also has a lucrative syndicated radio show and a speech-making and consulting business — agreed to pay back more than $2 million in overdue personal and NAN taxes.
The audit said NAN still owed $1.348 million in delinquent city, state and federal taxes and penalties at the end of 2008. The IRS has filed dozens of liens against NAN over the past decade, including one as recently as April of this year.
Last year, the Federal Elections Commission slapped Sharpton with $285,000 fine, in part for illegally using NAN funds to cover the costs of his 2004 presidential campaign.
Thanks to Sharpton’s race shield, NAN has engaged in financial monkey business for years with impunity.
Yes, monkey business. Sue me.
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Heh. JWF on Sharpton’s money troubles: “This ought to qualify him as a financial adviser to his pal Obama.”
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This sort of a**-kissing reminds me of my highschool days when the less popular kids would try and win favour with the cool kids to get some sort of greater status and benefit. Actually, I see alot of the traditional highschool mentality in different sectors of society, from the public’s focus on hollywood to talk show conflicts to politics.
I guess most people never grow up and get over the influences that shape their formative years.
I’m breathlessly awaiting the Holder Justice Department to get to the bottom of these reckless, alleged charges.
Will Sharpton have to get a real job now? It seems that race baiting isn’t as profitable as it once was. Is this another part of the economy that was damaged by the Obama touch?
True. Look at how seriously people vet politicians and issues at the polls…its almost like they are voting for class president and not US President.
I think the one thing all schools should do is junk the concept of student body officers since the whole thing is rooted in puerile popularity contests to begin with-its not even valid civics.
They probably lament not having a prehensile tail to steal your wallet while they’re shaking hands.
Why is this guy not in jail?
I just grate my teeth whenever I see him on Fox. Why does Fox legitimize this lying piece of dirt. It just frosts me that they give him a platform.
I agree with Flyoverman, why does Fox waste air time on this creep? Well I am sure he gets paid to appear so it just adds to his coffers. Wonder if he also collects unemployment since he probably hasn’t worked a real job in his entire life.
Don’t expect too much from Fox. If you have to get news from TV, it’s the only one that isn’t shamelessly leftwing, but it’s still generally going to champion the elites’ view of things. For instance, they are generally islamophilic. That is much worse than legitimizing a ball of racist scum like Sharpton, as bad as that is.
Another financial black hole. (Sue Michelle, not me.)
‘National Action’?? You mean they named it??
TAWANA BRAWLEY. That’s it. Just sayin’ …
Why don’t they hire some of those former ACORN fundraisers? Those guys were always flush with cash. . . most if it taxpayer money.
The sooner this guy goes away, the better.
I think Obammy misspoke again, he (and other Dems) are really fainting goats.
Because the DOJ are too busy chasing those evil rich people that park their money overseas in order to alleviate the confiscatory tax policies of the US. The US is the only country in the western world where it is illegal to have an undisclosed bank account outside of the US. It is the only country that imprisons those who have been found to have such undisclosed accounts. Meanwhile, as long as you have political connections, you can owe the IRS huge sums in back taxes, pocket the reimbursement meant for tax payment as an IMF employee, own a villa in the Dominican Rep and not report the rental income, and still come out smelling of roses. For the rest of us, too bad.
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IRS fines, confiscations, and jail time for thee–but no problemo here for race hustlers like the (not) Reverends Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson.
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Some people are more “equal” than others. REMEMBER IN NOVEMBER.
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John Bibb
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Unless the evil rich people are dems, progressives or race baiting reverends.
Is it racist to expect all people to pay taxes? Or does income redistribution exempt minorities from their tax obligations?
Sharpton and financial shenanigans go hand in hand. The only reason he runs for the donk presidential nomination is so he could trot around the country and stay in first-class hotels while others footed the bills.
Couldn’t agree more. Anyone who treats Sharpton as any kind of authority on anything, or as possessing any kind of moral or ethical legitimacy, only damages his own credibility.
Contrary to what most people have been hoo-dooed into believing, you DO NOT commonly face any jail time for not paying taxes.
ONE BIIIIIGGGG exception is payroll tax. You WILL go to jail for that, and that is one problem cited by authorities with Sharpton’s outfit.
Right. You go to jail for lying on your tax return, or you go to jail for hiding money when you declare bankruptcy so the IRS won’t know you have it (unlike bankruptcy court, the IRS doesn’t have to leave you enough money so you won’t starve), and you go to jail for taking money for your work ‘under the table’ so the IRS cannot seize it.
So, in summary, you can pay, go to jail or starve. If you cannot pay, going to jail is probably the preferred course of action between your remaining alternatives.
The reason we don’t see a lot of this kind of impoverishment is because the IRS generally chooses to show mercy. But they are not required by law to do so.
If they want you to suck their cock, better get down on your knees.
This is the ‘freedom’ the American voters of the ‘progressive’ era gave us with the 16th Amendment to our Constitution, the stupidest thing the American voter has ever done, closely rivaled only by the incredible idiocy of electing Obama President.
Roland, they are not that mythical power you seem to think.
They don’t have perfect information, and they are beat every day by lawyers who are not afraid of them.
BTW, people with ordinary tax arrearages DO have them discharged in bankruptcy under the right circumstances (or negotiate a fractional settlement).
People should not irrationally fear the IRS, though they can be petty tyrants, and DO work hard at promoting fear.
Rags, I have to disagree. The DOJ do jail tax evaders and there is not necessarily the choice between paying OR going to jail. They can and do both jail AND fine miscreants. I have it on good authority.
BTW, it’s not necessarily the IRS who are to be feared. Rags has it right about the mythical powers of the IRS, but it is actually the DOJ, tax division, who are to be feared.
But, as Roland noted, EVASION is a very different thing than just owing them money. It is a form of fraud.
I know well that certain tax CRIMES are met with jail time, but you see the difference, right?
And, of course, the DOJ is the prosecuting authority, as you note. Most of their lawyers are pros, and MUCH easier to work with than IRS low GS ratings.
You are thinking like a lawyer who thinks past merciful behavior is necessarily predictive of the future and whose job it is to calm the lay person and negotiate the best deal you can.
People should always try to avoid becoming irrational, and one should always try to meet fear, irrational or not, with courage.
I have a good story to share with you one day that refutes that the DOJ is easier to work with than the IRS, my experience proved just the opposite. The story would illustrate clearly that politics are often a motivating factor of whom the DOJ prosecutes. As for the distinction between evasion and owing, I see that point, but Rangel and Geithner would fit quite nicely in the evasion category.
No. The criminal code is what it is, and beating the Feds in court has nothing to do with them being “merciful”.
I totally agree. Here we DO enter the realm of tyranny (one standard for people…another for the new barons).
Sharpton, Rangel, Waters, Geithner, Dodd, Frank…all of them should be in prison, not the halls of power.
Roland;
The Bankruptcy Code explicitly allows the discharge of IRS taxes in arrears under the circumstances it recites.
No negotiation needed.
So we have to always have a lawyer on hand so when things come apart our circumstances will turn out to be the right circumstances.
And we’d better hope our lawyer knows what he’s doing.
Rags, this looks much different to a lay person than it does to a lawyer.
OH, I KNOW…!!!
Why do you think I became a lawyer in mid-life, Roland?
Point taken.
I almost took that road myself 20 years ago.
Never too late…!!!
It’s a dirty job, but…
NAN is probably short for NANNY. Sharpton thinks he’s made himself too big to fail. But, if the Nanny State refuses to bail out a black man of his stature, he’ll still profit by making himself out to be a victim of racism.
Shoot, Soros has enough to bail out Rev. Al in his couch cushions…!!!!
Al will never face the music over this.
Sharpton just isn’t as clever in his shakedownery as Uncle Jesse is.
Not only is Sharpie a second-rate race hustler, turns out his internal controller is second-rate, too.
Maybe the Rainbow
ConnectionCoalition can PUSH a fewextorted shakedown finesdonated dollars his way to keep hisshakedowneryimportant work going forward.Amazing how one of the biggest race baiters, and race instigators of my generation can still show his face on TV, and established shows like
O’Reilly. I remember the days of the Tawana Brawley hoax, while I was living in NY, and feeling the 3 foot thick racial tensions that were stoked by this liar. The place was ready to explode into a race riot for months, and this guy presided over it. I remember his verbal assault on hard working Koreans simply because they had the audacity to have black people as their main customer base. It is a sad sign of the times that we live in that this clown is so prominent.
Uh…because he is enabled by a whole lot of politicians too gutless to do anything about him.
How many other non-profits out there (other than rabid lefty ones) can not pay their taxes for years, yet still keep their non-profit status?