A press release from Republican U.S. Senate candidate Doug Truax:

Truax personally drops off letter at Durbin’s Springfield office

SPRINGFIELD — U.S. Senate candidate Doug Truax (R-Downers Grove) personally delivered a letter to Dick Durbin’s Springfield office yesterday formally asking the 32-year career politician whether he only asked the IRS to target conservative groups.

Doug Truax at Dick Durbin’s Springfield door.

Durbin has acknowledged he sent an October 2010 letter to the IRS asking it to investigate the free expression rights of a politically conservative group under section 501(c)(4) of the tax code.

“Was Dick Durbin attempting to use the IRS as his personal secret police to intimidate the free expression rights of his political opponents, or did he evenly target other groups?” Truax said today. “Illinois citizens have a right to know whether their Senator represents all of Illinois or only one political party.”

The text of the letter is below.

The Honorable Richard J. Durbin
United States Senate
(Springfield office)
525 South 8th St.
Springfield, IL 62703

Dear Mr. Durbin:

Because the U.S. Congress you have been a member of the past 32 years has exempted itself from providing information to the public under the federal Freedom of Information Act, I am asking you to voluntarily give me a small bit of public information. I know that you believe in “transparency” because it is mentioned hundreds of times on your government website.

Numerous published news reports quote you as acknowledging you sent an October 2010 letter to the Internal Revenue Service asking it to investigate a politically conservative tax-exempt organization under section 501(c)(4) of the tax code.

Please detail any other letters you sent to the IRS during your current term in office asking for similar scrutiny on any other groups — liberal, conservative or otherwise — and specify the name of the group and the date the letter was sent. If no other such letters were sent, please note that.

Sincerely,
Doug Truax