WASHINGTON (JTA) — A decades-old ban on houses of worship directly involving themselves in elections has survived a repeal bid by House Republican leaders. In a move that no doubt will be welcomed by a broad spectrum of Jewish groups, the Senate parliamentarian ruled Thursday that the repeal effort did not belong in the tax…
The old joke about “two Jews, three opinions,” is usually true when it comes to Jewish advocacy groups. President Donald Trump’s announcement that the United States would recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital city inspired jubilation in groups on the Jewish right and dire warnings from the left. But the Trump tax reform proposal, which passed…
The Republican tax bill that recently passed the House of Representatives contains an obscure provision that many right-wing Christian activists have been advocating for — a repeal of the Johnson Amendment, a 1954 law that prohibits churches and synagogues from engaging in political activity. Currently, pastors who endorse candidates from the pulpit could risk having…
(JTA) — Dozens of Jewish nonprofits and religious institutions are urging Congress to oppose efforts to weaken or repeal a law that prohibits tax-exempt nonprofits from supporting or opposing candidates for public office. A letter signed by 55 Jewish groups was sent Wednesday to the chairman and ranking member of the U.S. House of Representatives…
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. religious entities would be allowed to engage in political activity without the risk of losing their tax-exempt status under a Republican proposal to overhaul the tax code unveiled on Thursday, a move that could give influential community leaders more latitude to try to influence voters. The plan would eliminate a provision…
President Donald Trump found a friendly audience at the conservative Faith and Freedom Coalition conference, as the nation’s attention was focused on Capitol Hill where fired FBI director James Comey described his interactions with Trump and his dismissal. The audience, comprised mostly of evangelicals, received Trump warmly, cheered his applause lines about Obamacare and provided…
(JTA) That small little law known as the Johnson Amendment, which prohibits electioneering by houses of worship and other charities and which President Trump has vowed to repeal, is exceptionally important to preserve. Even if it is not widely enforced, the permission it grants to the Internal Revenue Service to pursue violators is critical to…
Did President Trump’s Executive Order on religious freedom signed Thursday please anyone? Liberals fret that it went too far, while some conservatives feel that the it fell short of Trump’s campaign pledge to “totally destroy” the Johnson Amendment which prohibits clergy from pulpit politicking. Why the sudden softening in Trump’s approach? Robert P. George, a…
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