[Edited to note the tax liens are from late 2014]
The Nevada assemblywoman who stood proudly by Cliven Bundy during the standoff at his Nevada ranch in 2014, visited Ammon Bundy at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge and ultimately helped negotiate an end to the Oregon standoff with the final four occupiers, has been in deep, deep trouble with the IRS for more than a decade:
The Internal Revenue Service lists 45 pending liens totaling more than $1 million against Fiore and her home health care companies for unpaid taxes dating back to 2003, according to records reviewed by the Review-Journal.
Fiore said the older liens have been resolved even though final steps are just now being taken by her firm to finally clear them off the books. She dismissed any criticism of those liens, saying they were recorded if payroll taxes were misapplied to the wrong quarter
The Las Vegas Review-Journal outlined her murky history of loaning her various campaigns money over the years:
She also on Tuesday defended loaning her 2014 re-election campaign money while still owing the IRS for liens on her home health care businesses. Fiore also made loans to her campaign in earlier races while a number of tax liens were listed as active. She said she needed the money to win this year’s race because she was the top Assembly Republican target with $1 million in outside money poured into the race against her.
The craziest part? Nevada Republicans made her the chair of the state’s Taxation Committee:
Fiore was named as majority leader by Assembly Speaker designate John Hambrick, R-Las Vegas. She was also named chairwoman of the Taxation Committee. In an abrupt about face, Hambrick last week replaced Fiore as tax chairwoman. He then changed his mind again the next day and reaffirmed both of her positions.
In September 2015, she abruptly closed her home health business and the state revoked her license after she refused to comply with state inspectors were unable to reach her for inspection. She, of course, blamed the big bad government and red tape for her business closure.
No word on whether her IRS debt has been fully satisfied since the Las Vegas Review-Journal article. She has since claimed she's in full compliance and blaming the tax debt, blaming the debt on her former bookkeeper, who also happens to be her ex-husband. At the time, she said she took steps to correct the problem:
As for the accountant, she identified him as her ex-husband but did not elaborate on how he contributed to her tax troubles. Asked about her own role in the problem, Fiore said she was too trusting of her employees.
But after it was brought to her attention that accounting and bookkeeping mistakes had been made, she said, she worked with the IRS to establish a payment plan. She said she also fired staff members, including her own children, and established checks and balances in her business.
You can see Michele Fiore (in the video below) addressing the media, talking about the power of the Second Amendment, at the Bundy Ranch standoff in 2014.
Bang Bang for Ted Cruz!
And Ted Cruz with the now indicted Blaine Cooper. Here they are posing for a photo after the Bundy ranch standoff in 2014.
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