Trump vows to end prohibition on church political activity

By Jeff Mason and Roberta Rampton

REUTERS

 

Guests listen as U.S. President Donald Trump delivers a speech during during the National Prayer Breakfast event in Washington, U.S., February 2, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump on Thursday vowed to free churches and other tax-exempt institutions of a 1954 U.S. law banning political activity, drawing fire from critics who accused him of rewarding his evangelical Christian supporters and turning houses of worship into political machines.

 

As Trump used a prayer breakfast to take aim at a long-standing statutory barrier between politics and religion called the Johnson Amendment, civil liberties and gay rights groups expressed concern that he might consider an executive order to allow government agencies and businesses to deny services to gay people in the name of religious freedom.

 

Trump did not reference such an order in his remarks. But he lambasted the Johnson Amendment, which prohibits tax-exempt organizations such as churches and other places of worship, charities and educational institutions from directly or indirectly participating in any political campaign in favor or against a political candidate.

 

"I will get rid of and totally destroy the Johnson Amendment and allow our representatives of faith to speak freely and without fear of retribution. I will do that, remember," Trump told U.S. politicians, religious leaders and guests including Jordan's King Abdullah at the annual National Prayer Breakfast.

 

White House spokesman Sean Spicer told reporters Trump wanted to find ways to make sure people were not penalized for following through on their religious beliefs.

 

A draft executive order on "religious freedom" circulating among advocacy groups would allow government officials to deny marriage licenses to gay couples and let businesses withhold services from gay people, activists said.

 

The White House said it was not working on such an order.

 

Trump previously spoke out against the Johnson amendment during the campaign and won the support of evangelical Christian leaders including Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr.

 

A change in the law would require action in the Republican-led U.S. Congress, and Republican lawmakers introduced legislation that would reverse the policy.

 

After Trump's remarks, Republican House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan told reporters he has "always supported" eliminating the Johnson Amendment.

 

Critics including the group Americans United for Separation of Church and State expressed alarm.

 

"President Donald Trump and his allies in the religious right seek to turn America's houses of worship into miniature political action committees," said the group's executive director, Barry Lynn.

 

"It would also lead some houses of worship to focus on supporting candidates in exchange for financial and other aid. That would be a disaster for both churches and politics in America," Lynn said.

 

Peter Montgomery of the liberal advocacy group People For the American Way said Trump wants to pay back religious conservatives who helped get him elected "by letting them turn their churches into political machines with tax-exempt charitable dollars."

 

Scrapping the Johnson Amendment has been a goal of Christian conservatives, who contend it violates free speech and religious freedom rights. The U.S. Constitution's First Amendment guarantees freedom of religion and bars the government from establishing an official religion.

 

"We are encouraged to see that President Trump understands the very real constitutional violation posed by the Johnson Amendment and that he is committed to restoring a pastor's right to speak freely from the pulpit without fearing government retribution," said Erik Stanley, senior counsel for the conservative Christian legal group Alliance Defending Freedom.

 

'PRAY FOR ARNOLD'

 

Trump used the opening moments of the usually solemn prayer breakfast to deride actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, his successor on a reality TV show, for his viewership ratings.

 

Trump said Schwarzenegger, the Republican former governor of California, had disastrous ratings on the NBC reality TV program "Celebrity Apprentice," which Trump previously starred in.

 

"They hired a big, big movie star, Arnold Schwarzenegger, to take my place. And we know how that turned out," Trump said. "It's been a total disaster. ... And I want to just pray for Arnold if we can, for those ratings, OK?"

 

Schwarzenegger, who endorsed Ohio Governor John Kasich over Trump for the Republican presidential nomination, shot back, alluding to the controversies of Trump's first two weeks in office.

 

"Hey Donald, I have a great idea," Schwarzenegger said in a video. "Why don't we switch jobs? You take over TV, because you're such an expert in ratings, and I take over your job. And then people can finally sleep comfortably again."

 

Spicer later called Trump's remarks "light-hearted" and part of an "absolutely beautiful" speech.

 

Trump a week ago put a 120-day halt on the U.S. refugee program, barred Syrian refugees indefinitely and imposed a 90-day suspension on people from seven predominantly Muslim countries: Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.

 

Trump defended his directive on Thursday as crucial to ensuring religious freedom and tolerance in America, and said he wanted to prevent a "beachhead of intolerance" from spreading in the United States. He also called terrorism a fundamental threat to religious freedom.

 

"The world is in trouble, but we're going to straighten it out. OK? That's what I do. I fix things," Trump said.

 

"When you hear about the tough phone calls I'm having, don't worry about it," Trump added, apparently referring to telephone conversations including one with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

 

"It's time we're going to be a little tough folks. We're taken advantage of by every nation in the world virtually. It's not going to happen anymore," Trump said.

 

(Reporting by Jeff Mason and Roberta Rampton; Writing by Will Dunham; Editing by Alistair Bell and Lisa Shumaker)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-02-03

The orange creep is paving the way for Trump church it seems; the legal way to evade paying any taxes.  How again does this help Americans and/or makes America great again? Disgusting....

 

Let us all pray for Arnold and his ratings......AAlllaaahhhhu Akbar

Alot of money and votes in playing to the  right wing christian nut cases.

Ah yes. Excellent idea to turn the US into a non secular state with a theocratic government. Just like they have in;

Afganistan

Iran

Yemen

Sudan

Saudi Arabia. 

At least Trump is really focussing on the most important issues first ?

Yes he will truly fix things. Fix the USA for a downside of historic proportions. Decline of the American empire, Trump style.

Aren't church groups already very active in the political space in the US. must be very borderline so far as the IRS is concerned. Be interesting to see if the Trump Administration will include Islamic religious organisations or exempt them from the OP proposal - moving into very challenging social harmony territory.

53 minutes ago, Grouse said:

At least Trump is really focussing on the most important issues first ?

 

Exactly, from day 1, Trump is working at his reelection.... Trump First

And it only gets worse....just read that Jerry Falwell Jr. will lead Trumps' education task force!?!? Lets force some "alternative science" upon every young mind in the US! That for sure will make America Akbar again......

There goes the separation between the State and the wackos 

all is lost

53 minutes ago, DriveByTrucker said:

And it only gets worse....just read that Jerry Falwell Jr. will lead Trumps' education task force!?!? Lets force some "alternative science" upon every young mind in the US! That for sure will make America Akbar again......

Goodbye Darwin, Hello Noah's Ark

 

This just gets worse and worse....

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_Falwell_Jr.

3 hours ago, Rob13 said:

Alot of money and votes in playing to the  right wing christian nut cases.

 

Yes, Mrs. Merkel does.

" long-standing statutory barrier between politics and religion " He should have taken that Afghan father's copy of Constitution. It is covered there.

 Churches and clergymen have no ban on making political statements or causes, so that is BS.

All they would have to do is give up their tax exempt status. That's it.

Taxpayers already making up for lost revenue churches pull in, and if Trump's wish comes true, it will be like subsidizing the Republican party far right.

Trump is taking the first steps to creating a civil war based on religion.  It is tantamount to "arming the people" and this is as divisive as it gets.  He is hell bent on destroying all the good things that the USA is known for. 

4 hours ago, simple1 said:

Aren't church groups already very active in the political space in the US. must be very borderline so far as the IRS is concerned. Be interesting to see if the Trump Administration will include Islamic religious organisations or exempt them from the OP proposal - moving into very challenging social harmony territory.

Exempt because.....ummmmm....to be announced

Well, not one response from a Trumpster.  In less than 2 weeks, he has begun dismantling the Constitution.  I hope Australia, Canada, and Europe open their arms to the fleeing Americans.

The mind boggles at what he's going to try and do next...can it get worse? eesshh

I think most of the Trumpsters are starting to realise the reality of Donald Trump as POTUS.  Still some die hard fans will continue to make excuses for him but even they have little conviction left.  We all want the best for the USA

20 minutes ago, nuakmuaynina said:

The mind boggles at what he's going to try and do next...can it get worse? eesshh

It can and it will. The question really is if the USA will be salvageable after trump / Bannon is done with it. 

1 hour ago, dunroaming said:

Trump is taking the first steps to creating a civil war based on religion.  It is tantamount to "arming the people" and this is as divisive as it gets.  He is hell bent on destroying all the good things that the USA is known for. 

Yep.

Against the Muslim Taliban, sure.

But trump represents going towards an American CHRISTIAN taliban ... and don't forget that trump's "assassination insurance" Pence is even more extreme than trump on these measures. Of course this God bothering stuff has nothing to do with trump's core religious values, he obviously doesn't have any ... it's POLITICS. The radical right wing Christian fundies helped elect him and he is president for his friends, and he's an enemy of all other Americans. 

I don't think trump will make the four years though ...  his health is obviously already failing and he's performing so horribly that impeachment is always a possibility (yes, there are grounds already on financial corruption). 

Edited February 3, 20179 yr by Jingthing

8 hours ago, webfact said:

As Trump used a prayer breakfast

Did the walls tremble?? Church and state although not illegal should be they make a poor fit. 

11 hours ago, simple1 said:

Aren't church groups already very active in the political space in the US. must be very borderline so far as the IRS is concerned. Be interesting to see if the Trump Administration will include Islamic religious organisations or exempt them from the OP proposal - moving into very challenging social harmony territory.

Pastors can't be politically opinionated in their sermons, when their congregation is sitting in rapt attention waiting for instructions on how to go to heaven. But with rolling back this law, pastors can guide their flock how to vote. Brilliant move for Trump, as long as he remains anti abortion and is seen at church a few times a year. It's his only chance to get enough votes for re-election. Well. that and a war would help, too.

Edited February 3, 20179 yr by cncltd1973

Definitely trying to secure the Bible belt vote. It is utterly amazing what is going on.  I thought the 'ramming through' of the Patriot act by Bush was bad enough but this guy is destroying the constitution. How much damage will he be allowed to do before he is removed?

Americans that support democratic values don't want ANY kind of theocracy!

trump / Pence is moving us towards a Christian one.

 

Quote

 

Destroying the Johnson Amendment Moves America Closer to Theocracy

Nothing threatens Jews more than theocracy. When powerful regimes have tried to impose their beliefs on religious minorities, we’ve ended up expelled (The Spanish Inquisition), dead (The Crusades) or coerced into conversion (The Almohad Caliphate in Morocco).

 

 

http://forward.com/opinion/362171/destroying-the-johnson-amendment-moves-america-closer-to-theocracy/?attribution=home-top-story-2-headline

Gee I'm looking forward to seeing my first baby dino !

Fine, just as long as they give up their tax exempt status...at least until the Supreme Court rules that "churches are people too (two?)" in what will probably be the "Thomas Road Baptist Church v. Federal Election Commission" case.

Who let this bizarre situation ever get to this point ?

 

Easy to laugh at the poor  cops left to try and sort it all out !