Something on the mind of every conservative in America is the question of why the Internal Revenue Service thinks it needs a military arsenal and millions of rounds of ammunition, and in the wake of a shocking armed raid the IRS just perpetrated in Montana, members of Congress are also asking those questions.
On Wednesday, the IRS, along with the ATF and others, suited up nearly two dozen heavily-armed agents dressed in bulletproof vests and tactical gear to raid Highwood Creek Outfitters in Great Falls, Montana, just as the owner pulled into the parking lot open for business for the day.
“At 7:30, I came in and they pulled in behind me with 20 heavily armed agents,” gun store owner Tom Van Hoose told KRTV after the raid concluded.
The owner had no explanation for the raid other than his inventory.
“I can only assume that it’s because of the style of weapons that we have and the press that’s so against them,” he told the media.
Van Hoose does a brisk business in AR-15 and AK-47 semi-automatic rifles, KRTV added.
“The current administration seems to be hell-bent on getting those guns out of the hands of average Americans,” the gun shop owner added.
Van Hoose added that he only made a $16 sale all day that day.
In the wake of the raid by heavily-armed IRS agents, Montana Rep. Matt Rosendale was “incredibly disturbed” that Joe Biden’s IRS was used in such a manner.
“I’m incredibly disturbed by initial reports that the IRS and ATF closed Highwood Creek Outfitters without any warning today,” Rosendale said in a prepared statement. “This is yet another example of the Biden Administration weaponizing federal agencies to target and harass hardworking Americans. We cannot allow Biden to continue expanding these agencies to infringe on our liberties.”
Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida has also sought answers from the IRS, specifically on why the agency needs literally millions of rounds of ammo, military-styled weapons, body armor, and even tactical vehicles in its arsenal.
Rosendale added that the raid in Montana is not the only such incident and that the ATF perpetrated a similar raid on a gun store in Georgia. Several members of Congress wanted answers over that incident, WAGA-TV reported on March 27.
The Montana congressman added that the records that the IRS confiscated should have nothing to do with their job of collecting taxes. As it happens, the IRS absconded with all the store’s background check forms. While these forms contain sensitive information on gun buyers, one thing they don’t contain is financial information, The Blaze noted.
“There is no circumstance in which 4473’s [background check documents] would be necessary for an investigation spearheaded by the IRS,” Rosendale said in a letter he sent to ATF Director Steven Dettelbach and IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel.
False answers on such paperwork are supposed to be a criminal act, of course, but how the IRS has figured into that chain of information is a mystery.
The congressman went on to demand that the IRS “cease conducting these Soviet-style intimidation raids.”
“Given the positions of the Biden Administration, this raid appears to be an attempt to intimidate firearms dealers and owners,” Rosendale said in the letter, adding, “This pattern [of intimidation and harassment] appears to be orchestrated directly from the White House.”
“The weaponization of our government must be STOPPED, which is why I sent a letter to ATF Director Dettelbach and IRS Commissioner Werfel demanding answers about this outrageous attack, and have used every tool available to me to remove funding for the 87,000 additional IRS agents!” Rosendale added in a Facebook post.
Neither the ATF nor the IRS would tell either Van Hoose or the press why they conducted these military-style raids on the gun shop.
The only thing the gun shop owner knows is that his business had been “reported,” but he doesn’t know why or by whom.
The feds also do not involve local law enforcement in many of these raids. Cascade County Sheriff Jesse Slaughter told reporter Tim McGonigal that there are no laws or agency procedures where local sheriffs or police are informed about such raids. But while Slaughter’s office was not informed, the Great Falls Police Dept. was given notice of the raid.
Make no mistake, America. This is exactly why Biden and the Democrats wanted 87,000 new IRS agents. They wanted them so that they can send militarized shock troops to intimidate small business owners and average everyday Americans. Not to go after actual crooks or “the rich.” YOU are their target.
via madpatriotnews