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Amazon isn't necessarily in the wrong here. This is mostly a move by the states to grab more tax revenue. Traditionally, a brick and mortar store is not required to charge sales tax if they do not have a physical presence in the state. IE, if Amazon's offices are located in state A, and I'm in state B, then Amazon is not required to charge sales tax on behalf of state B when I place an order.
What a couple of states are trying to do, however, is say that if an affiliate is located in their state, and you click on a link at that affiliate's website that takes you to Amazon, then Amazon has to pay them sales tax. They're saying that a web link from an affiliate in that state is the same as Amazon having a physical presence in the state, which is pretty far fetched.
Amazon pulling the affiliates is a little extreme, but what they're trying to do is force those companies to complain to their local state representatives to stop the proposed law from going through.
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