The Internal Revenue Service selected Breitbart News in a recent audit that the conservative network claims was politically motivated.
“The Obama administration’s timing on this is exquisite, but try as they might through various methods to silence us, we will only get more emboldened,” Stephen K. Bannon, executive chairman of Breitbart News Network, said in a written statement, Fox News reported.
A copy of the IRS notice to Breitbart News, obtained by Fox, asked about the California-based network’s financial information for calendar year 2012.
In this case, it remains unclear whether the apparent audit of Breitbart News is anything out of the ordinary, Fox reported, pointing out that the IRS conducts tens of thousands of audits every year.
An IRS spokesman declined to comment Tuesday on the suggestion that the audit was politically motivated, Fox reported.
Breitbart President and CEO Larry Solov said, “We stand ready to cooperate with the Internal Revenue Service on its audit of our company, but this will not deter us in the least from continuing our aggressive coverage of this president or his administration.”
The audit comes as the IRS faces sustained complaints that it selected conservative groups applying for tax-exempt status for intensive scrutiny based on their names or political themes — specifically the tea party, a movement Breitbart News has continually supported.
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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