{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.cotton.senate.gov/news/press-releases/cotton-to-irs-investigate-palestinian-youth-movements-funding-and-ties-to-terrorism", "Cotton to IRS: Investigate Palestinian Youth Movement\u2019s Funding and Ties to Terrorism", "2025-08-22", "2025", "2025-08", "Republican", "Senate", "AR", "Tom Cotton", "C001095", "www.cotton.senate.gov", "cotton", "https://www.cotton.senate.gov/news/press-releases", "scraper", "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE\n\nContact: Caroline Tabler or Patrick McCann (202) 224-2353\n\nAugust 22, 2025\n\nCotton to IRS: Investigate Palestinian Youth Movement\u2019s Funding and Ties to Terrorism\n\nWashington, D.C. \u2014 Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) sent a letter to the Internal Revenue Services (IRS) Acting Commissioner Scott Bessent requesting an investigation into the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) funding sources for possible violations of the U.S. tax code. The PYM is an organization known for its virulently antisemitic stances, public statements in support of terrorist groups, and support for anti-Israel protests in America.\n\nIn part, Senator Cotton wrote:\n\n\u201cAn organization that supports terrorism, breaks U.S. law, and sows antisemitic discord should not receive any benefits from the American tax system. I ask you to immediately investigate both PYM and Honor the Earth and to take any actions necessary to remedy this situation.\u201d\n\nFull text of the letter may be found here and below.\n\nAugust 22, 2025\n\nThe Honorable Scott Bessent\n\nActing Commissioner\n\nInternal Revenue Service\n\n1111 Constitution Avenue, N.W.\n\nWashington, D.C. 20224\n\nDear Acting Commissioner Bessent,\n\nI write to express my concern about the actions of the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) and to ask you to investigate their funding sources for violations of U.S. tax code.The PYM is a youth activist organization known for its virulently antisemitic stances, public statements in support of terrorist groups, and activities and support for anti-Israel protests in America. While this behavior is despicable, it is the PYM\u2019s receipt of tax exempt donations that likely violates U.S. law.\n\nPYM receives funding from Honor the Earth, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. PYM\u2019s website states \u201cWe also accept checks payable to \u2018Honor the Earth\u2019\u201d and says U.S.-based donations are tax deductible. I believe PYM\u2019s activities, particularly its support for terrorist organizations such as Hamas, should prevent it from receiving tax exempt donations. PYM is clearly operating outside of the acceptable scope of activities in 26 U.S. Code \u00a7 501 for tax exemptions, as is Honor the Earth by sending funds to PYM.\n\nEvidence of PYM\u2019s public support for terrorism includes:\n\nThe Israeli government wrote in 2024 that PYM has \u201cclose ties with the Popular Front and its affiliates, as well as with the Students for Justice in Palestine organization linked to Hamas.\u201d The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine is a U.S. designated foreign terrorist organization.\n\nPYM organizes events with the U.S. designated terrorist entity Samidoun.\n\nAfter co-hosting a pro-Palestinian protest in New York City on October 8, 2023, PYM and other antisemitic groups issued a statement justifying Hamas\u2019s October 7 terrorist attacks: \u201cPalestinian resistance factions in Gaza initiated an unprecedented liberation struggle, the \u2018Al-Aqsa Flood,\u2019 in response to accelerating attacks on Palestinians in Jerusalem and the West Bank.\u201d\n\nPYM is a defendant in a lawsuit for its role in unlawfully blocking traffic intersections leading to Washington, D.C. during a pro-Palestinian protest in February 2024.\n\nAn organization that supports terrorism, breaks U.S. law, and sows antisemitic discord should not receive any benefits from the American tax system. I ask you to immediately investigate both PYM and Honor the Earth and to take any actions necessary to remedy this situation.\n\nThank you for addressing this important matter.\n\nSincerely,\n\nTom Cotton\n\nUnited States Senator\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T14:57:50Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.cotton.senate.gov/news/press-releases/cotton-to-irs-investigate-palestinian-youth-movements-funding-and-ties-to-terrorism"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.6494720000773668, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}