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US revokes white nationalist group’s tax-exempt status

FILE - In this Dec. 6, 2016, file photo, Richard Spencer, who leads a movement that mixes racism, white nationalism and populism, speaks at the Texas A&M University campus in College Station, Texas. The Internal Revenue Service has revoked the tax-exempt status of the National Policy Institute, a group run by Spencer, for its failure to file tax returns for three consecutive years. Spencer told The Los Angeles Times it was an error and that he plans to appeal. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)
FILE - In this Dec. 6, 2016, file photo, Richard Spencer, who leads a movement that mixes racism, white nationalism and populism, speaks at the Texas A&M University campus in College Station, Texas. The Internal Revenue Service has revoked the tax-exempt status of the National Policy Institute, a group run by Spencer, for its failure to file tax returns for three consecutive years. Spencer told The Los Angeles Times it was an error and that he plans to appeal. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)

By Associated Press 3 min read

The U.S. government has revoked the tax-exempt status of a group run by prominent white nationalist Richard Spencer for its failure to file tax returns.

Internal Revenue Service records show Spencer’s National Policy Institute automatically lost its tax-exempt status as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit after failing to file tax returns for three consecutive years.

Spencer didn’t immediately respond to messages seeking comment Tuesday. But he told The Los Angeles Times, which first reported the story, that he would appeal the revocation. He blamed it on an IRS error that led him to believe his group was not required to file tax returns.

“It’s a bit embarrassing, but it’s not good. We’ll figure it out,” Spencer told the newspaper.

Spencer popularized the term “alt-right” and is a leading figure in a fringe movement that has been described as a mix of racism, white nationalism and populism. Spencer, an outspoken supporter of President Donald Trump, hosted a postelection conference in Washington that ended with audience members mimicking Nazi salutes after Spencer shouted, “Hail Trump, hail our people, hail victory!”