The Intercept - WTF are these Democrats thinking?!

On Tuesday night, the House of Representatives voted 256-145 for a terrifying bill that would hand Donald Trump a powerful new weapon to attack political dissidents and nonprofit news outlets like The Intercept.

Though Republicans were able to carry a majority in the House, they couldn’t secure the two-thirds majority they needed to pass the bill under special fast-track procedural rules. But the most dangerous provision in the legislation will be back — and it might pass, not least because 52 House Democrats voted for it.

The measure would grant the Treasury secretary unilateral authority to revoke the tax-exempt status of any nonprofit deemed to be “terrorist supporting.”

They wouldn’t have to provide evidence or even an explanation. They could simply issue a notice, and the organization would be effectively shut down. And believe it or not, dozens of Democrats still wanted to give Trump this power.

Our reporters are sounding the alarm about this draconian measure, and your donations are an absolutely vital source of funding for this reporting.

As Congress races to hand Trump new authoritarian powers, will you stand with The Intercept and donate $5 to our nonprofit newsroom?

The debate around this bill focused primarily on the risk to pro-Palestine organizations, and pro-Israel groups lobbied in support of the legislation.

But this provision could be used against any organization that the Trump administration wishes to suppress — including nonprofit investigative journalism outfits like The Intercept. Targeted organizations would have the right to appeal the “terrorist supporting” designation within 90 days, after which they would be stripped of their nonprofit status.

“That would essentially kill any nonprofit’s ability to function. They couldn’t get banks to service them, they won’t be able to get donations, and there’d be a black mark on the organization, even if it cleared its name,” said Ryan Costello, National Iranian American Council Action policy director.

Suffice it to say, it is already very illegal to provide material support for terrorism. The effect and intent of this provision is to chill speech and silence dissent. And Republicans hid it in a larger bill that makes it difficult for Democrats to say no, so their determination to get it through is no idle threat.

The Trump administration and other pro-Israel politicians would love nothing more than to muzzle The Intercept, but we know readers like you won’t let that happen.

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