Romney Donor: I Was Audited Three Times [Video]


Idaho businessman Frank VanderSloot claims he was targeted by federal agencies for audits after giving a huge donation to the Romney for President campaign.

VanderSloot was one of eight wealthy businessmen who were specifically identified and criticized on an Obama campaign website, which he refers to as a Nixonian enemies list. “As soon as that happened, I knew a target had been nailed on my back,” VanderSloot said.

Eight weeks later, the audits started, two by the IRS and one by the Department of Labor. A swarm of media also came after him in a big way. “Twelve days later, a man working for a political opposition-research firm called an Idaho courthouse for Mr. VanderSloot’s divorce records. In June, the IRS informed Mr. VanderSloot and his wife of an audit of two years of their taxes. In July, the Department of Labor informed him of an audit of the guest workers on his Idaho cattle ranch. In September, the IRS informed him of a second audit, of one of his businesses. Mr. VanderSloot, who had never been audited before, was subject to three in the four months after Mr. Obama teed him up for such scrutiny.”

It turned out that VanderSloot passed the audits with flying colors, and the government owes him money: “The last of these audits was only concluded in recent weeks. Not one resulted in a fine or penalty. But Mr. VanderSloot has been waiting more than 20 months for a sizable refund and estimates his legal bills are $80,000. That figure doesn’t account for what the president’s vilification has done to his business and reputation.”

VanderSloot added that he hopes it’s just a coincidence that the federal government scrutiny followed his name showing up on the campaign website: “I don’t want [America] to become one of these third-world countries where you have to worry about your back all the time if you disagree with who’s in charge.” He also commented that he’s hopeful that the US won’t go down the path where so-called third-world tactics are used to intimidate people from supporting a political candidate of their choice.

Watch Frank VanderSloot’s recent interview on FNC embedded below.

Frank VanderSloot is the founder and chief executive officer of Melaleuca, Inc. He also founded Riverbend Ranch, a commercial cattle operation, and owns Riverbend Communications, a radio station group among other business interests.

The IRS is currently under investigation in Congress and by the FBI for unlawfully targeting Tea Party and other politically conservative groups for heavy scrutiny when they applied for tax-exempt 401(c) status.

[top image credit: Jeremy]

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