A Cautionary Tale
Journalist Matt Taibbi used to be a favorite of those on the political left, at least when he was a contributing editor to Rolling Stone. Not so much lately, though. Taibbi…whose father Mike was a longtime NBC correspondent…was one of the journalists selected by Elon Musk to have access to documents from Twitter; the “Twitter files” as they were known. He published articles on what he found…and that did not sit well with many on the left.
Taibbi was set to testify before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Government Weaponization. That very day, Internal Revenue Service agents went to his house, to engage what is called a “face-to-face taxpayer contact”…it’s a favorite agency pressure tactic…I once had an agent show up at my law office, after the agent went to my client’s house and place of business.
Keep in mind that the investigation of Taibbi apparently started on Christmas Eve 2022, which was a Saturday. The investigation was over his 2018 tax return.
If you think it’s odd that an investigation of a three-year-old tax return started not just on a weekend, but a holiday weekend…well, you’re not alone.
Add that to the fact that a month later, agents showed up at his house as he was testifying before a Congressional committee…and let’s just say most folks might feel a little intimidated, understandably so.
But here’s the best part: Taibbi testified, with no ill effects from the IRS intervention. And after they reviewed things…not only did he not owe the government money, but he apparently failed to claim certain things he was entitled to, so the IRS had to issue him what is called a “substantial” outstanding refund.
I make no judgment and draw no conclusions. You can connect the dots for yourself.
