IRS Agrees to Target and Monitor Churches, Because Angry Atheists Demanded It?
The new IRS targeting program has been instituted at the behest of the angry atheist group Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF).
The IRS caved to the same FFRF that has tried, and notoriously failed, to strip “In God We Trust” from our
currency,
tear down World War II memorials, ban the
National Day of Prayer, attack the
Star of David in a Holocaust memorial, and even
deny that Moses is depicted in the Supreme Court.
FFRF filed a lawsuit against the IRS in 2012 demanding that the Obama Administration delve deep into preaching from the pulpit to ensure that pastors, priests, and parishioners don’t say anything within the four walls of a church that could be construed as political.
Instead of refusing to impose a draconian monitoring program into the free speech of churches, the IRS caved, settling the case and agreeing with the angry atheist group that churches should be targets of federal IRS monitoring. The worst part? The IRS is keeping the details of its settlement, agreeing to target churches, a secret.
As Fox News reported, this deal with the IRS not only violates the First Amendment but could lead to the IRS literally monitoring sermons on Sunday morning and challenging churches’ tax-exempt status if they take a religious position on issues such as abortion.
FFRF responded that these concerns are nothing more than the
“hysterical disinformation machine that is Fox News Network.”
Nothing could be further from the truth. This is a real and direct threat to the religious freedom and free speech of churches.
Churches have a constitutionally protected right to discuss issues of faith, even ones that might be considered political. They do not loose their right to free speech just because they are churches.
