The US Treasury Department is gearing up to launch a sweeping audit of left-wing nonprofits, according to the New York Post
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) are close to stripping multiple left-wing nonprofits, including George Soros’ Open Society Foundations (OSF), the Southern Poverty Law Center, and the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), of their tax-free status, the New York Post has reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened action against left-leaning charitable nonprofits and the OSF in particular, accusing them of fueling “violent protests” and damaging the country. The drive against the nonprofits picked up in the aftermath of the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk in September last year, when Trump designated the loosely organized Antifa movement, backed by left-wing nonprofits, as a “domestic terrorist organization.”
At the time, US media reported that the US Department of Justice was pushing prosecutors to go after the OSF. The DoJ reportedly offered a range of potential charges to look into, including material support for terrorism, racketeering, arson and wire fraud. The foundation condemned the reported plans as “politically motivated attacks on civil society.”
The renewed assault on the OSF and other nonprofits partially relies on a 2025 executive order signed by Trump that targeted nonprofits operating with a “substantial illegal purpose.” The Treasury is now preparing a major audit of the organizations suspected of abusing the US tax code, three sources told the Post.
The investigation also reportedly targets assorted anti-corporate and labor-aligned advocacy groups. Officials with the department were “like a dog with a bone” when it came to the probes, and many of the groups and their donors were already “on borrowed time,” one of the sources told the Post.
“There’s a lot of internal pressure to get it done, but some people are still moving too slowly at the IRS,” the source said. “That is expected to change very soon.”
The administration’s offensive against the nonprofits, however, could trigger a massive wave of lawsuits and potentially lose momentum before yielding any results, the sources warned. The reported concerns specifically apply to groups suspected of being linked to foreign terrorist organizations, namely CAIR.
Earlier this week, the Trump administration took action against three organizations based in Europe, including two pro-Palestinian groups, designating them as transnational terrorists. Palestine Action and Masar Badil, as well as Autistici/Inventati, which provides free digital tools to left-wing activists worldwide, are now subject to US State Department sanctions.
Trump’s campaign against the perceived “resurgence of far-left political terrorism” in the US and beyond has been repeatedly criticized by various parties. Those on the receiving end have accused Trump of unjustified political persecution, while independent experts have suggested that the US administration may have been disproportionately targeting left-wingers while ignoring right-wing extremism.
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