Rep. Frank Wolf Asks IRS to Investigate Whether CAIR Has Illegally Solicited, Received Foreign Funds

Last week, The Blaze reported on the loss of the Council for Islamic-American Relations' (CAIR) tax-exempt status. Now, Republican Rep. Frank Wolf is calling on the IRS to investigate the group. According to a press release issued by the congressman's office:

In response to recent information released by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that the Council on American-Islamic Relations’ tax-exempt status has been terminated for repeated failure to file required tax forms, Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA) today asked the IRS to also investigate whether CAIR has illegally received or solicited funds from foreign governments or agents.

Wolf penned a letter to IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman, thanking the agency for revoking CAIR's status. The congressman reiterated the fact that CAIR's failure to file annual disclosure Form 990 for three consecutive years is problematic.  He wrote:

Compliance with this law is the only assurance the public has that an organization claiming tax-exempt status is not abusing this privilege. Given CAIR's status as an unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation terror financing case, this failure to comply with federal disclosure laws is all the more troubling.

In light of CAIR's flaunting of tax rules regarding Form 990, I also wanted to share the enclosed copy of a recently disclosed letter from CAIR executive director Nihad Awad to Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, in which he appears to solicit money for a CAIR project. Specifically, Awad detailed an effort to set up the "Muslim Peace Foundation," discusses the need to raise $15 million and thanks Gaddafi for his "generous support."

The USA Today reports on the controversy surrounding CAIR's exemption issue:

CAIR spokesman Ibrahim Hooper said his group filed accurate, on-time returns but lost its tax-exempt status over an incorrect filing from several years ago.

But employees couldn't produce CAIR's latest Form 990 this week, and critics suggest the charity avoided filing to hide financial dealings from the public.

The Blaze spoke with Hooper last week as well and he reiterated the same sentiment -- that the group had followed protocol, but that there was, indeed, an incorrect filing a few years back. But, based on IRS accounts that the group has not filed the proper forms for numerous years now, questions linger.

There is no word yet on an IRS response to Rep. Wolf's request.