ACORN – 50 More Days Without Federal Funds

On Thursday, the United States House of Representatives passed a continuing resolution funding the Federal Government through December 18^th. The continuing resolution was passed as part of the behemoth Interior-Environment Appropriations conference report.

A continuing resolution is a stop-gap provision which allows the government to continue its operations until Congress can determine the next year’s appropriations. The actions taken today merely extended the expiration date of the resolution which went into effect on October 1^st.

By extending the existing continuing resolution Congress has continued to deprive ACORN and its affiliates of federal funds until December 18^th.

This is not a substitute for more definitive action. The Congress must act to pass Republican Leader Boehner’s Defund ACORN Act as stand-alone legislation. Boehner’s comprehensive legislation prevents the awarding of federal contracts, grants, cooperative agreements or any other form of agreement to this criminal organization.

ACORN ally Representative Jerrold Nadler has lead the charge against the Defund ACORN Act. He has claimed that it is an unconstitutional Bill of Attainder — an argument that has been thoroughly rebutted by former FEC Commissioner Hans von Spakovsky. Nadler had no such reservations when he co-sponsered legislation to punish AIG employees who had been awarded bonuses.

Congress moving to cut off funds to ACORN for the next 50 days is a merely a first step. An organization with ACORN’s history of voter registration fraud, tax evasion, and criminal activity should never again be eligible to receive any federal funds.

Stopping payment to this criminal enterprise is not enough. A thorough and complete investigation is necessary. Unfortunately the Obama Administration has failed to launch any meaningful investigation of ACORN.

Representative Lamar Smith has demanded that Attorney General Holder appoint a Special Counsel to investigate ACORN. Smith detailed ties between the Obama Administration and ACORN and explained that an objective investigation by the Administration is impossible. Attorney General Holder has not taken Smith’s advice.

The Department of Justice has chosen not to investigate ACORN’s criminal and fraudulent activity. The Inspector General of DOJ has chosen instead to investigate whether ACORN was awarded any grants by the agency.

The IRS and the Department of the Treasury have also resisted calls from Representative Issa and Senator Collins to launch an investigation. Treasury instead has instead decided to probe “the IRS’s oversight of tax-exempt Section 501(c)(3) organizations and Section 527 organizations.”

Curtailing government support of ACORN is important, but getting to the root of this criminal enterprise is necessary.