Rep. Franks Statement on Recent ACORN Developments

For Immediate Release	Contact: Bethany Haley or Ben Carnes 202-225-4576

Franks Statement on Recent ACORN Developments

Calls on Democrats to Pass Defund ACORN Act and End Federal Funding of ACORN Once and For All

September 24, 2009 – Congressman Trent Franks (AZ-02) today issued the following statement in response to an announcement this week that the IRS has decided to end its affiliation with the corrupt "Association of Community Organizers for Reform Now," or ACORN, following a recent House vote on an amendment stripping federal funding from ACORN.

"Last week, the House of Representatives took a laudable step in voting to cut off all federal funding from the notoriously corrupt organization ACORN. However, a vote in the House is not sufficient, and I urge my colleagues in the Senate and President Obama to maintain the pressure on ACORN by supporting the Defund ACORN Act.

"As of this week, the IRS has joined the Census Bureau in a decision to end its partnership with ACORN. I applaud the decisions on the part of these federal agencies, and I urge the President, whose ties to ACORN run deep and who has been disturbingly ambiguous on the issue, to do the right thing by putting every effort into ensuring no federal agency continues to have dealings with such a shamefully dishonest group.

"It is astonishing that, despite ACORN's incredible rap sheet, nearly 80 Representatives STILL voted against removing the organization's access to federal funding. It seems ACORN's years of illegal partisan campaign activity are paying off amongst the liberal Democrats in Congress who still refuse to sever ties to ACORN. I hope the President and every one of my colleagues in Congress will redouble their efforts to ensure our government no longer misuses the tax dollars with which we have been entrusted by funding such corrupt organizations, and the first step in rectifying the situation is ensuring passage and enactment of the Defund ACORN Act."