Gates Revises Tax Return Based On Blog Post

I think it fair to say the first and perhaps only place this was reported was in my blog post of Saturday.  I dug the recipient's links to Gates out via Google after seeing their names on Joe's documentation that made me aware of them and we were both pursuing the story together, and individually at that point. It appears to have gotten someone's attention. Via ProPublica. Many thanks to Joe Culligan at Web of Deception for his work that made it possible. Joe also contacted ProPublica directly at some point. And $6,000 to his fiancee? How convenient!

A charity headed by star Harvard University professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. is filing an amended 2007 report to the Internal Revenue Service because $11,000 it paid to foundation officers as compensation was mischaracterized as being for research grants.

Questions about Inkwell Foundation emerged over the weekend, part of a tsunami of attention Gates has received since July 16, when he was arrested at his home by a police officer responding to a report about a possible burglary in progress. The incident ignited a national debate over racial profiling, further magnified when President Obama jumped into it.

ProPublica inquired about Inkwell after receiving an e-mail from Joseph Culligan, a private investigator who makes public on his Web site documents about prominent people, from Ann Coulter to Sonia Sotomayor. The e-mail spotlighted a $10,000 grant made to Joanne Kendall, the foundation's treasurer, pointing out that she is also Gates' assistant at Harvard. Gates, a member of ProPublica's board of directors, said Monday that the award to Kendall was actually payment for doing administrative work for Inkwell and not, as Inkwell's IRS 990 form states, a research grant.

Gates volunteered that the foundation's second-largest grant, for $6,000, went to his fiancée, Angela DeLeon, who was also on Inkwell's board from 2005 to 2006. Gates said he recused himself from the vote on DeLeon's grant, which was for a project translating documents from Spanish and Dutch about the slave trade to Mexico.

Comments

[PA]

This fish stinks. I'd check his freezer too.

[Greg Q]

So, now that that's been updated, what percentage of their funds have been distributed as grants?

Good job, Dan. Thank you for helping to show corrupt Democrats that having the MSM on their side is no longer the protection for fraud that it once was.

[Troll Hunter]

Mmmm... Perhaps research into, ohhhh, creative book-keeping techniques? A sort of performance poetry exhibit, if you will?

Yeah. So, as PA asks, what's in the freezer?

[Dick Stanley]

Nice work. This makes even more amusing Gates' obfuscating "This is not about me" line. Maybe next time he'll be politely cooperative with the cops, as befits a "star Harvard professor."

[Baba Ganoush]

I am curious about the tax implications of Gates' arrangement with Harvard for the use of this university building as his personal residence. Does Harvard charge Gates rent to live there? If not, does Gates pay income tax on this housing benefit, or does he claim he lives there for the convenience of Harvard so as not to pay income tax? Does Harvard pay the city of Cambridge any property tax on the house that Gates lives in? Is the housing arrangement Gates has with Harvard accorded any other university faculty? To be clear, I'm not claiming there is anything improper in the arrangement. It's just that when tax issues come up, it's sometimes interesting to pull on any loose thread to see if the whole sweater comes apart.

[notracist]

Now, prosecutors should begin an independent investigation of the hiring practices Gates employs at his online magazine The Root.

Gates has systematically, for years, refused to hire Asians at his magazine - www.theroot.com. He also refuses to hire Hispanics and other races. This is in violation of the laws we have in this country regarding race discrimination in employment.

Racism is indecent; and Gates' practice of it at The Root easily demonstrated.

It must be stopped.

[JoeS]

"I'll talk to yo' Momma outside!!" Our high school doesn't let our students talk like this.

Poor Harvard, first Cornell "the Rapper" West, now, "Ghetto Ass" Gates. Black Studies is not one of the prime majors.

[ic]

It doesn't pay to cry the racism wolf.

[Sue]

Did Ms. Kendall report the "grant" as income?

[bad]

Excellent Question, Sue

[Casey]

{shakes head}

Um, JoeS, do you have any direct source for that quote? I'd love to see it. Conservative bloggers (and commenters) have been going nuts blasting this guy, with few, if any, actual facts. In fact (excuse the pun) Mr. Riehl's article is one of the very few citing verifiable data, although I find the many jumpings to conclusions disheartening.

No know knows what happened in Professor Gates' living room except the few people there that day. Not one of the people here (and other blogs) are justified in speaking as if they have irrefutable knowledge of events, and I include myself; if I had to render judgment, at this time I would say "not proven" for either side.

What I do know (from growing up in southwest Ohio, and other experiences) is a respectable number of black men have been regularly pulled over by police for no other reason than the color of their skin. If I had to guess frequency, I would say less than 1% of all police encounters, but if you're a black man whose been in that situation, and your friend tells you what happened to him last week, you'll probably be able relate a dozen other examples from friends and relatives. It doesn't take many such events to convince someone to everyone (well black men) all the time.

Which brings us to Professor Gates. Considering that none of you honestly know what happened, why do you speak so certainly and viciously about the man? Are you incapable of believing that black men are subject to a measurably higher number of stops than white men? Do you criticize Gates because he's black? Or because he's liberal? Or because he works for an Ivory League university? I don't doubt for one minute that every one of you were outraged when liberal politicians, commenters, and (cough) "journalists" went bare-headed after Sarah Palin, and blasted her because she was a conservative, or a mother, or was pretty. Is it fair or appropriate that lambaste Professor Gates for similar reasons?

Very nearly every person in the right-side of the blogosphere has jumped to the conclusion that Gates is playing the race card, just because he's a liberal black man. Or do you mindlessly accept what Sgt. Crowley said, just "because?" Yes, I know about the classes he teaches, but that only indirectly relates to what allegedly happened.

I have to repeat: we can make no conclusions with the (sparse) evidence known except that we don't know. Perhaps it will turn out that the sergeant was lying, or that Gates was. Or both. Or maybe Gates did provide his ID, but provoked a negative response from the officer by his words, tone, or body language. And that reaction convinced the professor that the sergeant really was questioning him because he was black, and not because the officer was responding to a 911 call.

What people need to wrap their mind around is that -while it might not be as prevalent as someone like Professor Gates believes- black men are still far more likely to be stopped for little or no reason compared to the general population. Again, I would estimate the frequency to be very low, but it doesn't take many such experiences to leave a bad taste in the mouth of enough men that word gets around.

Maybe even Barry Obama has encountered such a situation himself. That would explain his emotional reaction, although it was pretty bone-headed of him to say "I don't have the facts, but..." We all need to get the facts before we need to shoot our mouths off.

[clarice]

Casey--It's time to stop indulging paranoids. It's been a long time since there was a lynching inn Cambridge and this was not the march on Selma and Gates wasn't Rosa Parks--he's a very well set, overly compensated and overrated grievance monger who is trapped in his own fantasy world in which a police crew checking on an apparent break in meet an uncooperative, raving nutcase.

[David R. Block]

And playing the nutcase is Gates himself. Bravo.

[skippy]

look at me, I'm being profiled.

[Bohemond]

Casey, the first words out of Gates' mouth were, "This is because I'm a black man in America." All else follows therefrom.

And we may not know what happened inside the house, but the photo taken outside the house pretty clearly shows an angry, yelling Gates amidst three stoic cops.

[RM3 Frisker FTN]

Casey - time for everyone to watch comedian Chris Rock explain how to avoid an adverse interaction with the police. Seems pretty straightforward regardless of one's ethnic background ... www.youtube.com/watch?v=uj0mtxXEGE8

[Dan Riehl]

As for the photo - surprised more hasn't been made of this. The cop on the Right is gesturing for Gates to calm down and the black cop looks disgusted - most likely with Gates.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/07/27/city-cambridge-announces-committee-lessons-gates-arrest/

[OneDay]

Just an observation on the subject of black men getting pulled over more frequently than white men. Black men are more frequently identified as suspects in crimes because in some areas of the country, black men commit crimes more frequently than men of other races. Should the police then pull over more men of other races to be 'fair'?

However, that begs the question why Gates should believe that he is being profiled after being told that by the police were called, not on their own initiative, for something that Gates would ordinarily have very much like them called for. The police report was quite clear on that issue, and also on the color blind nature of the call.

Of course, there is also the question of why charges against Gates were dropped when it is clear, again from the police report, that the charges were more than adequately supported in front of a large number of police witnesses. I strongly suspect that the charges would not have been dropped for someone without the political connections in this case. Would you expect such an outcome if you were loudly denigrating a police officer in public, in front of witnesses, after being clearly warned to cease and desist, repeatedly?

It is also clear that the officer led Gates to the porch for the purpose of putting him in a position where he had to either shut up, or he would be subject to a very clean arrest. Gates was stupid enough to go with him, and not realize what was happening and shut up.

The politically connected grievance monger meets the very thoroughly correct entrapping cop. The fun part is that it was liberal versus liberal. What a comedy!

[Swen Swenson]

So.. Will Gates be the next Ward Churchill? Another petty academic fraud who could have gone along for years under the radar if he'd just kept his mouth shut?

[Richard Aubrey]

One.
There are other suggestions that in this case, the person in the house is supposed to be taken outside because there may be others in the home, such as the burglars.
That's police protocol.
And did he say "I'm a hostage."? If he did, that's one thing the cops fear, that another person has the first person (Gates in this case) under some kind of threat. Although by the time Gates said it, it was probably obvious to everybody that it was the usual bee essing that such complainers do, and not reflective of any criminal situation.

[thetroll01]

Casey,
I've heard of very long-winded speeches trying to nibble around the edges without really speaking the obvious, but your long-winded ramble rivals anything Obama has ever said absolutely nothing about.

The good Prof. is nothing more that a race-baiting poverty pimp, used to throwing his weight around, throwing down on someone who he believes is beneath him.

[OneDay]

Mr. Aubrey,

You make a valid point. It is possible that my interpretation of moving outside as entrapment rather than eliminating the possibility of third party influence is an over reaction to my own experiences with the police. However, given the immediate results of the invitation to step outside as explained in the police report, I suspect not.

[Mercian]

LOL, I put a link to your Inkwell article on ABC.com last evening.

[smitty]

So, does paying up the taxes mean that he's not under consideration for a Racism Czar position in the Obama Administration?

[Mercian]

BTW gooluck trying to get MA AG Marta Coakley to pursue it

[Dan Riehl]

I still want toknow how one rationalizes paying a fiancee at UC Davis 6k for translating docs when I believe her specialty is nutrition. And surely he could have found some needing student of color in the East to do it for less. Also, haven't we been reading he is married to a white women? I don't care about that, except that I guess it's "was". Unless he's a bigamist and a possible crook.

[Patrick Carroll]

Could it possibly be the case that none of the prominent men (or wymyn) of the left actually pay their taxes?

Until the rotting corpse of the tax return bobs up onto the surface of the blog ocean, that is?

("Blog Ocean." Heh. Reminds me of Dethklok's "Blood Ocean." Heh.)

[Mercian]

From Inkwells' website
"IF is our charitable corporate foundation 501(c)3 tax-exempt non-profit organization focused on the enrichment of the lives of our community inner-city youth."

So is Gates' fiancee a (inner-city) youth? since she certainly was enriched

[btenney]

Gates and Obama are both Affirmative action lightweights, marginally qualified to bus tables.

[mark l.]

i give gates credit in admitting he was the beneficiary of affirmative action, and with it, more crediblity than the messiah.

[Matt Osborne]

It seems like only yesterday the press went through Joe the Plumber's background and got a shit-storm of outrage from the right.

[Barbara]

Joe the Plumber was a private citizen who simply asked a question.
State of Ohio employees used state databases to pry into his life.
try again Matt.

[Baba Ganoush]

"It seems like only yesterday the press went through Joe the Plumber's background and got a shit-storm of outrage from the right."

What goes around, comes around. Deal with it.

[Dan Riehl]

"Joe the Plumber's background"

Nice try. This is a public, non-profit charity required by law to place its financials in public view for inspection. That disclaimer is right on the official tax form. Not. Even. Close.

And technically, Gates hasn't truuly met that standard once. No one I have seen has invaded Gates' privacy at all. This is no different than going over the tax docks of the Red Cross, or any number of many oher charitable organizations.

[Jamie W.]

Casey:

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2009/0723092gates2.html

Note the line midway or so down that second page: "ya, I'll speak with your mamma outside."

It's remarkable to me how many "informed" persons have apparently not even read this widely-available police report. Like the reporters who are listening to the 911 tapes now and saying, "But, but the lady who called never identified anyone as black!" Uh, on the first page of the report Crowley states that Ms. Whalen -- who will assuredly never call 911 on behalf of a stranger again -- called him over and informed him that it was two black men that had been seen -- my guess is after checking with the old lady who actually witnessed the break-in.

I look forward to Smoking Gun digging out even more Gates documents. Meanwhile, I'll betcha that Crowley's record is clean as a whistle.

[fernstalbert]

I'm beginning to think there must be very exculsive courses (at ivy league universities) on how to avoid taxes, obfuscate tax returns and the use of plausible denial as majors in the higher institutions of learning. Do professors sit around the faculty lounge bragging to each other on their ingenious manipulation of the tax system? These profs make tort lawyers look good.

[WestWright]

And to think that Harvard's financial situation has been hammered by the Depression, their incompetence with the endowment and yet they finance this fraud race baiter, his fraud non-profit and a complete Department of the SOS.

[K]

Isn't this the same sort of thing that Republicans were upset about in the Joe the Plumber case? Someone is put into the public spotlight due to some incident and then investigated, tried and convicted in the blogosphere?

Expect it to come back at conservatives double folks. Anyone who organizes a Tea Party can expect to have his/her taxes et al reviewed.

Is this the way we should be running the country?

[Dan Riehl]

BS K. As I said, these are private instituional records for all to see. These are not his private tax returns. Must you people be so stupid?

[Buckeye Tom]

"No know knows what happened in Professor Gates' living room except the few people there that day. Not one of the people here (and other blogs) are justified in speaking as if they have irrefutable knowledge of events, and I include myself; if I had to render judgment, at this time I would say "not proven" for either side.

What I do know (from growing up in southwest Ohio, and other experiences) is a respectable number of black men have been regularly pulled over by police for no other reason than the color of their skin. If I had to guess frequency, I would say less than 1% of all police encounters, but if you're a black man whose been in that situation, and your friend tells you what happened to him last week, you'll probably be able relate a dozen other examples from friends and relatives."

Casey,

Were you in the car with the "respectable number of black men pulled over by the police for no other reason than the color of their skin"? If you weren't personally there, how can you make the judgement they were pulled over simply because of the color of their skin. You are making your judgements soley based on what your friends are telling you. Those police officers have a side of the story, you are not privy to.

Also, if you allow that only 1% of police encounters are the "minorities pulled over simply because of their skin color" sort, how is it, that so many of your friends and relatives have racial profiling stories to share?

[Mary]

"119 "A Gatesgate At Henry Gates' "Bogus" Charity?" Saturday, July 25, 2009 at 07:24 AM "Gates Revises Tax Return Based On Blog Post" Monday, July 27, 2009 at 08:20 PM Going Concern: July 28, 2009 @ 1:22 PM Thanks AHFF for pointing that out. Dan Riehl scooped them all and yet, no one seems to be giving him any credit, which is so classless." http://minx.cc/?post=290211

[North Dallas Thirty]

"Expect it to come back at conservatives double folks. Anyone who organizes a Tea Party can expect to have his/her taxes et al reviewed."

So Barack Obama says that anyone who protests against his actions should have their taxes reviewed.

Meanwhile, Barack Obama fully supports and endorses known and proven tax cheat Charlie Rangel.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203946904574300013592601036.html

The racist Obama is saying that black people like himself don't have to pay their taxes while using the IRS to retaliate against anyone who protests his policies. That shows the disgusting depths to which liberals and the Obama Party have gone.

[Barbara]

K,
oh boy you think that kind of pansyass threat is going to work?
chitown thuggery only works on dims.
Welcome to America son.