James O'Keefe Requests Nonprofit Status For Project Veritas

As his role in the recent NPR controversy continues to develop, conservative filmmaker and self-proclaimed muckraker journalist James O'Keefe is seeking nonprofit status for his Project Veritas organization. However, O'Keefe's past may play a detrimental role in his attempt for tax-exemption.

Currently, the Project Veritas website features a section where viewers can donate, however it states that donations are not tax-deductible due to its pending nonprofit status.

Marc Owens, a Washington tax lawyer who has monitored tax-exempt groups with the IRS, told the Chronicle of Philanthropy that its application for 501(c)3 status may not be accepted due to O'Keefe's criminal record and his public statement that he'd "do it again." Owens said:

"If he is proposing to do something that is, in fact, illegal, can the IRS believe, with any degree of credibility, what he is saying? Is he going to continue to enter government offices illegally? He pled guilty to it once and said he would do it again. It's reasonable to conclude that the organization may be engaged in criminal activity in the future."

O'Keefe's most recent project involved a video that featured Project Veritas members posing as representatives of a fake Muslim Brotherhood organization offering NPR executives donation funds. The video recorded Ronald Schiller, NPR's senior vice president of development, making questionable remarks about political and religious groups.

Although NPR refused to take the donation offered, the subsequent media attention surrounding the video has put NPR funding in further jeopardy. Both Schiller and NPR CEO Vivian Schiller (no relation) have since resigned.

Comments

[TimBowen1960]

01:58 AM on 03/25/2011

All these articles need to mention that OKeefe edits and doctors these videos, that the people being recorded aren't saying what OKeef's fake videos claim they're saying. Even this article says OKeefs video recorded "Ronald Schiller, NPR's senior vice president of development, making questionable remarks about political and religious groups" and it came out that that wasn't what he said, the video was just cut and edited to make it look that way. What a piece of slime.

[Caroleeena]

10:36 PM on 03/24/2011

I'd pony up some bucks for some acne medication, a bar of soad and a good bottle of shampoo. Maybe if he could get a date he wouldn't have to pull all these stunts for attention. (Of course, he'd still be saddled with that slimy personality. Short of a Lee Atwater-like conversion, ain't nuthin' we can do about that.)

[JedG]

10:57 AM on 03/24/2011

Where do these people get these names?

Veritas - should be at best Demi-veritas

Fair and balanced - The FOX NEWS ship is on a infinite starboard tack and that makes it balanced.

If you haven't listen to O'Keefe try and ploy logic games. Can someone tell me what a "logical non seguitur" is? It appears to be one of O'Keefe's terms of logic.

Typical of the Republican/conservative approach to the truth, time and context, are not critical in the presentation of the truth.

This is, at least, the third time that O'Keefe and DEMI-VERITAS have produced "truths" without regard for space, time or context.

What scares me most is that so many people just believe this stuff.

[GypsyRobin]

10:07 PM on 03/23/2011

LOL .... "filmmaker"???? Did I read correctly? "Filmmaker"?

Sorry, don't see no Stanley Kubrick, no Hitchcock, no Cecile B. DeMille, no Coppola, no Speilberg, no Martin Scorsese nor any Lucas "filmmaker" person in the face in the picture that accompanies this article.

"Filmmaker" just doesn't flush with that association.
Try "Con-man" it fits the punk like a layer of skin.

Snake skin to be exact.

[greylox]

07:07 PM on 03/23/2011

**This is so wrong on so many levels that I don't even know where to begin.

[morgansher]

04:44 PM on 03/23/2011

O'Keefe? Truth? I'm laughing. When ya gotta stoop to lying, misleading, and cheating to promote a hatchet job there can be NO DAMN TRUTH!

[hempster]

04:07 PM on 03/22/2011

James O'keefe - veritas. Don't think so.

[hempster]

03:59 PM on 03/22/2011

James O'keefe let it be know by all men that you are awarded "Non prophet" status for the rest of your sophomoric existence.

[michelesda]

03:07 PM on 03/22/2011

I wonder if this guy might get farther if he wasn't so squirrely looking.

[patman77]

06:21 PM on 03/21/2011

why can't I find him on the sx offense list ? did he not try to sx assault or entice a femal ereporter underfalse pretense on a boat loaded with laced wine,sx toys and porn layin about.? what comm do's he live in so I can check ?

[snippylee]

11:21 AM on 03/21/2011

Lying seems to come so naturally to him.

[WeCanDoMore]

07:45 PM on 03/20/2011

This guy has taken the worst of GOP tactics to heart, and continues to act upon them. He is a criminal and I don't know why he is not already locked up, if not for corruption in our justice and legislative systems.

Churches who politicize from the pulpit should lose their tax exempt status, and guys like him should never get such status.

[patman77]

06:45 PM on 03/20/2011

what decent bulldog, rfk type take on geo wallace bigot lawfirm will take on this case in support of acorn,npr and sue these neoconmen all the way back to the money men koch,cheniburton, etc. Gimme theyre name. I will sent have of my pay for 1 week to that cause.

[patman77]

06:39 PM on 03/20/2011

news flash breitbarticus o'thief was found silenced by a karmic acorn in his jiblit.

[jpap100]

12:04 PM on 03/19/2011

The fact that the tapes were edited to misreprsent the actual circumstances should be a more substantial reason to deny any basis for non-profit certification.

[MsGray]

02:17 PM on 03/22/2011

I know you didn't read that in one of those Jew owned newspapers.