Trump vows to destroy the law limiting churches' political activity

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

I wonder if Trump realizes that ditching the Johnson amendment would also allow Muslim mosques and leaders to engage in political activities?

Oh, pfft. When he says, 'Religious leaders must be allowed to engage in partisan political activity', he means 'Christian' leaders. Preferably white ones. With gambling issues and an addiction to golf.

Boru

[Rhondazvous]

Trump vows to destroy the Johnson Amendment

President Trump on Thursday vowed to "destroy" the Johnson Amendment, which prevents religious groups and churches from engaging in political activities.

"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," the president said Thursday at the National Prayer Breakfast.

"I will do that, remember."

The president added that freedom of a religion is a "sacred right," but that it is also "under threat."

"And the world is under serious, serious threat, in so many different ways and I've never seen it so much and so openly," he said.
"The world is in trouble, we're going to straighten is out."

The Johnson Amendment prohibits churches and other tax-exempt organizations from endorsing political candidates. Repealing the amendment would allow religious organizations to engage in partisan political activities without losing their tax exemption status.

Repealing the law has long been a top cause of religious conservatives, who strongly backed Trump's White House bid.

During the presidential campaign, Trump also vowed to repeal the Johnson Amendment. 

“The first thing we have to do is give our churches their voice back,” Trump said during a campaign event in September. 
 
“The Johnson Amendment has blocked our pastors from speaking their minds from their own pulpit. If they want to talk about Christianity, if they want to preach or talk about politics, they’re unable to do so, they take a tremendous risk that they’ll lose their of their tax-exempt status.”

Pro-Trump and anti-Trump members have been clashing on my topics lately, but I'm assuming that all atheist/non-religious members, regardless of political beliefs, would disagree with this move by the POTUS.

That's slick. so he's trying to paint separation of church and state as a violation of free speech. Two things could happen:

1. We could end up like Russia. There are so many different religions in America. They'll all want the same political powers.

or
2. The church pushes so far right that Americans get tired of them and we'll be like the Uk with a religious government and a secular citizenry.

I think it will be the second. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction is as true in the social realm as it is in the physical realm. The church, drunk on power, won't be able to help pushing the pendulum so far right that it will swing back with a mighty backlash.

[Amarok]

Oh yeah because we have not fighting the religious right on everything under the sun .They have been no where near political enough and so need to be louder . Because the poor pastors have been rounded up and forced into work camps . And stacks of bibles are being burnt in the streets . Wasn't Christian holocaust suppose to occur once gays could marry .

[Rhondazvous]

The American revolution was fought over taxation without representation. what kind of outrage and revolution will be spawned by representation without taxation?

[Thumpalumpacus]

Next he'll proclaim watersports as the nations official past time.

Like that would be a bad thing . . . .

And adding a sacrament involving urine to the Christian mantra would be so apropos . . .

According to the Prophet Mapplethorpe ...

---

I will be free to start my First Church of Atheism, and skip out on taxes.

[Rhondazvous]

Ah well, the country's been an effective theocracy for decades now. May as well start making it official.

No! We have had laws to protect us against this kind of oppression. Now those laws are being taken away. Will we meet the prospect of having no recourse to law with the same apathy we had when we thought the laws were safe?

[Rhondazvous]

Does he even have the power to get rid of an amendment that was ratified by the states? Even if he filled the entire Supreme Court with his cronies, can the SC declare an amendment to the constitution unconstitutional?

Or is his threat just another smokescreen to make the right wingers think he gives a shit?

[Exian]

Yeah I don't foresee churches complaining about this. And I don't see them worrying about corruption when I think of all the mega churches and TV evangelists and the entirety of the fucking catholic church. There's that one fear mongering creep... uhhhh Jim Baker?..something like that, who sells giant buckets of doomsday food on his religious TV show.

Here's how the cycle is going to work: It's not just going to be church leaders promoting a candidate out of the kindness of their heart or their beliefs. Churches fall under the same category as non-profit organizations, and any donations to those organizations are tax right-offs. So there's going to be all sorts of back room meetings. Politicians will be effectively buying a shit ton of pre-packaged voters for exactly zero dollars, while the churches get even more rich.

Now maybe it won't be all that different, since we all know which way church goers are likely to swing regardless. Preaching to the choir, as it were. But this will definitely cinch it.

[Rhondazvous]

It won't be so much about Christians controlling politics as it will be politics controlling Christians. They're already convinced god is a conservative republican.

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

It won't be so much about Christians controlling politics as it will be politics controlling Christians. They're already convinced god is a conservative republican.

To be fair, I'm pretty convinced of that as well...

Boru