From the July 2003 Idaho Observer:

Feds demand income tax compliance; cannot answer income tax questions

“Anyone who questions the validity of the tax laws has to be dealt with swiftly and harshly,” said Senator Charles Grassley (R-Iowa)

by The Idaho Observer

The debate over the legality of the income tax, which has been raging for decades, is quickly coming to a head. Tax honesty advocates such as Irwin Schiff and We the People Congress Chairman Bob Schulz have been systematically pecking away at unraveling the income tax mystery and are maneuvering the federal government into lawfully indefensible corners.

So many well-founded arguments favor the position that wages are not “income” in the constitutional sense that the government is having a hard time pretending that the IRS has the lawful authority to collect taxes on peoples' wages.

So, rather than pretend IRS collections and asset seizures are lawful, the federal courts simply uphold the federal government's authority to collect federal taxes on wages without requiring that it prove their authority through due process of law.

Emboldened by this unchecked power, the tax collectors are using any means necessary to force tax compliance. Their methods are not unlike those used by organized criminals who demand “protection money” from people.

Whether demanded by hoodlums or the federal government, the end result is the same: Refuse to pay and your life is subject to being ruined and; those who collect the money prosper at the expense of those who pay it and; those who pay receive no benefit other than to be left alone -- until next time.

Over the years, several bills have been introduced into Congress to abolish the Federal Reserve Banking system and decommission the IRS. The bills generally die in committee because those debating them fear the repercussions of an IRS investigation. In April, 1998, Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) proposed “the Liberty Amendment” -- an amendment to the Constitution that would repeal unconstitutional acts such as the 16th Amendment -- the income tax amendment.

If Sen. Grassley were to have his way, Rep. Paul would be harshly and swiftly dealt with for questioning the validity of the income tax.

Senator Tom Harkin, too, has stated his belief that the income tax is not properly a tax that can be collected by the federal government. According to Sen. Harkin, “taxation and commerce were and are under the control of the states and outside the control of the federal government. Thus,” he continued, “the IR Code is not under control of Congress' general powers, but rather its authority lies under local law, which is state law under the Erie RR doctrine.”

Perhaps Sen. Grassley would want Sen. Harkin expelled from the Senate for going beyond questioning the validity of the income tax laws and into the arena of explaining why the income tax laws are not valid.