The IRS goes after the United Church of Christ over Obama

[kwassa]

and it wouldn't be because it is a liberal denomination, would it?

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120407186207094995.html

IRS Probes Church Over Obama Speech
By SUZANNE SATALINE
February 27, 2008; Page A10

The Internal Revenue Service is investigating the United Church of Christ, saying the denomination may have threatened its tax-free status by allowing Sen. Barack Obama to speak before thousands of members at a church conference in June.

A lawyer for the church denied that the denomination, or Sen. Obama, who is a UCC member, engaged in any political activity when he and others spoke before an audience of 10,000 at the church's 50th anniversary celebration in Hartford, Conn.

A spokesman for the Obama campaign, Tommy Vietor, said the candidate "spoke to his church's convention about his personal spiritual journey....This was not a campaign event."

It is considered unusual for the federal agency to investigate an entire denomination. The agency has previously investigated individual churches and ministers who have made comments about politicians from the pulpit. In rare cases, churches have been fined or have lost their tax-free status.

An IRS spokeswoman wouldn't comment on the inquiry, which the church disclosed by releasing a letter from the agency.

The 1.2 million-member religious body, which was formed with the merger of several Protestant groups, is considered a social-activist denomination.

Federal tax law prohibits nonprofits from engaging in political campaigns.

Write to Suzanne Sataline at [e-mail]

[Fresh_Start]

1. Good! All Churches should stay FAR FAR away from politics

I don't care who the Church is supporting.
If Churches want to have political rights, they should not be tax exempt.

[Parche]

2. I Dont Like Any Churches

But this is ridiculous

They need to tax Pat Robertson, Kenneth Copeland etc......first
those fukwads are getting rich off of brainwashed people....:grr: :grr: :grr:

:hi:

[SidDithers]

3. K&R...tax 'em all...nt

Sid

[Wickerman]

4. wow, so political contestants have never spoken before Church bodies b4?

Who knew?

[kwassa]

8. yeah, like are they going after all the churches all the candidates spoke in?

This wasn't even a campaign speech.

[yellowcanine]

5. Huckleberry has preached at churches while a candidate.

I demand equal scrutiny of those churches by the IRS.

[kwassa]

10. Here is the scrutiny on Huckabee

http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-me-drake14feb14,1,1061290.story

At issue is whether Buena Park clergyman Wiley Drake violated the separation of church and state.
By Dave McKibben, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

February 14, 2008

An attorney for clergyman Wiley S. Drake confirmed Wednesday that the Internal Revenue Service was investigating the pastor's endorsement of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee's presidential bid, written on church letterhead and announced during a church-affiliated Internet radio show.

"Pastors and churches have 1st Amendment rights just like everybody else," said Erik Stanley, an attorney for the Alliance Defense Fund. "Wiley Drake has the same right to make a personal endorsement as anybody."

The inquiry into the Buena Park pastor's actions comes six months after Americans United for Separation of Church and State urged the IRS to investigate the nonprofit status of Drake's church because of the endorsement. Stanley said the IRS sent Drake a letter of inquiry Feb. 5.

As tax-exempt organizations, churches are barred from campaigning for candidates. IRS officials declined to comment on the matter, citing privacy regulations.

[izzie]

6. well as a member of that church I will vote out the coffee and

cakes after the voting in town. Will that be good enough? Not that I go any more. The church I moved to was so for Bush I could not take it and I just stopped going. It is a member of the UCC. They can be an odd group and most are the old Congressional Church. Some will not even join the group. After living in Alaska I wonder they do not look at all churches. People are going to bring up Bush and all that as it is a place people meet. After having teen age kids I wonder how any one does any thing some one older tells them to do, like vote for some one.

[truedelphi]

7. Every RW Christian fundamentalist has a

Huge rant about our need to collectively hate the Muslims as the Muslims want us all dead, and that only Bush can instigate the necessary measures against the Muslim
menace. They also mention how much they arppreciate their ministers for helping them come to these conclusions.

So maybe all churches should be investigated

[Warpy]

9. When are they going to go after that obvious FAKE CHURCH

in Topeka, Westboro Baptist Church? It's an obvious scam. Its only members are the extended Phelps family. It's a TAX DODGE.

But NO, the bastards are busy going after a church where one of its members spoke just because he's a Democrat and running for office.

This is disgusting.

[knitter4democracy]

11. What about all those megachurches?

I'd love a good look at their books.