Trump Admin Signals Clarity on Church Speech

By Charlie McCarthy | Friday, 03 April 2026 12:23 PM EDT

The Trump administration announced Friday that it will "provide additional clarity and guidance" to religious organizations after a federal judge's decision this week to dismiss a case seeking to overturn the 70-year-old ban on political activity by houses of worship.

The Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service issued a statement saying the move is aimed at reinforcing First Amendment protections while helping churches better understand how existing law applies to their communications.

"Religious liberty is foundational to our Constitution," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said, adding that the administration is committed to ensuring Americans can "practice one's faith openly and in community" while laws are applied fairly.

The new guidance will focus on clarifying how the Johnson Amendment, the 1954 law that restricts tax-exempt organizations from endorsing political candidates, applies in real-world settings, particularly within religious services.

According to Treasury, internal communications between houses of worship and their congregations, when delivered through customary religious channels and tied to matters of faith, may not constitute prohibited political activity under current interpretations of the law.

A closer look at the Johnson Amendment

Heather Greene — March 12, 2017 




WASHINGTON – On Feb. 2, President Donald Trump returned for a brief moment to a recurring issue facing his administration: the Johnson Amendment. At the National Prayer Breakfast, he told the attendees,“Among those freedoms is the right to worship according to our own beliefs. That is why 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.”




[Public domain.]Repealing the Johnson Amendment has been one of the main focuses of Trump’s campaign, and it continues to find its way into current political discourse with regard to religious freedom. Trump began speaking out against the tax code early in his bid for the presidency. Then, during his acceptance speech at the 2016 Republican National Convention, he said:




At this moment, I would like to thank the evangelical and religious community in general who have been so good to me and so supportive.You have much to contribute to our politics, yet our laws prevent you from speaking your minds from your own pulpits. An amendment, pushed by Lyndon Johnson many years ago, threatens religious institutions with a loss of their tax-exempt status if they openly advocate their political views. I am going to work very hard to repeal that language and protect free speech for all Americans.

What is this Johnson Amendment, and what is its relationship to religious freedom? How does it affect the greater Pagan, Heathen, and polytheist communities in the U.S.?
History of the Johnson Amendment

The now-famous tax code change was implemented in 1954, after being passed by a Republican congress and signed into law by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. It’s name is taken from Lyndon B. Johnson who, at the time, was a senator from Texas. As the story goes, in 1954, Johnson was running for reelection against 30-year-old Dudley Dougherty. While Johnson had only won the previous election in 1948 by 87 votes, he was reportedly expected to easily to beat Dougherty in the primary race.

However, during the campaign process, Johnson vocally opposed the ongoing McCarthy trials and its related fear-mongering. Contrary to that, Dougherty was running on platform that supported the trials and the government’s aggressive attempts to stop the spread of communism in the U.S.

During the campaign, several large nonprofit organizations stepped in to back Dougherty, including Fact Forum and the Committee for Constitutional Government. These wealthy secular groups avidly supported the government’s anti-communist efforts and, as result, they publicly engaged in electioneering on behalf of Dougherty.

501c3 Facts

Most churches in America have organized as "501c3 tax-exempt religious organizations." This is a fairly recent trend that has only been going on for about fifty years. Churches were only added to section 501c3 of the tax code in 1954. We can thank Sen. Lyndon B. Johnson for that. Johnson was no ally of the church. As part of his political agenda, Johnson had it in mind to silence the church and eliminate the significant influence the church had always had on shaping "public policy."

Although Johnson proffered this as a "favor" to churches, the favor also came with strings attached (more like shackles). One need not look far to see the devastating effects 501c3 acceptance has had to the church, and the consequent restrictions placed upon any 501c3 church. 501c3 churches are prohibited from addressing, in any tangible way, the vital issues of the day.

For a 501c3 church to openly speak out, or organize in opposition to, anything that the government declares "legal," even if it is immoral (e.g. abortion, homosexuality, etc.), that church will jeopardize its tax exempt status. The 501c3 has had a "chilling effect" upon the free speech rights of the church. LBJ was a shrewd and cunning politician who seemed to well-appreciate how easily many of the clergy would sell out.

Did the church ever need to seek permission from the government to be exempt from taxes? Were churches prior to 1954 taxable? No, churches have never been taxable. To be taxable a church would first need to be under the jurisdiction, and therefore under the taxing authority, of the government. The First Amendment clearly places the church outside the jurisdiction of the civil government: "Congress shall make NO LAW respecting an establishment of religion, nor prohibiting the free exercise thereof."

Religion cannot be free if you have to pay the government, through taxation, to exercise it. Since churches aren't taxable in the first place, why do so many of them go to the IRS and seek permission to be tax-exempt? It occurs out of:

• Ignorance ("We didn't know any better")
• Bandwagon logic ("Everyone else is doing it")
• Professional advice (many attorneys and CPAs recommend it)

Does the law require, or even encourage, a church to organize as a 501c3? To answer that question let's turn to what the IRS itself has to say.

Churches Need Not Apply

In order to be considered for tax-exempt status by the IRS an organization must fill out and submit IRS Form 1023 and 1024. However, note what the IRS says regarding churches and church ministries, in Publication 557:Some organizations are not required to file Form 1023. These include: Churches, interchurch organizations of local units of a church, conventions or associations of churches, or integrated auxiliaries of a church, such as a men’s or women’s organization, religious school, mission society, or youth group. These organizations are exempt automatically if they meet the requirements of section 501(c)(3).

Churches Are “Automatically Tax-Exempt”

According to IRS Code § 508(c)(1)(A):Special rules with respect to section 501(c)(3) organizations. (a) New organizations must notify secretary that they are applying for recognition of section 501(c)(3) status. (c) Exceptions. (1) Mandatory exceptions. Subsections (a) and (b) shall not apply to— (A) churches, their integrated auxiliaries, and conventions or associations of churches.

This is referred to as the "mandatory exception" rule. Thus, we see from the IRS’ own publications, and the tax code, that it is completely unnecessary for any church to apply for tax-exempt status. In the IRS’ own words a church “is automatically tax-exempt.”

Churches Are “Automatically Tax-Deductible”

And what about tax-deductibility? Doesn’t a church still need to become a 501c3 so that contributions to it can be taken as a tax deduction? The answer is no! According to IRS Publication 526:Organizations That Qualify To Receive Deductible Contributions You can deduct your contributions only if you make them to a qualified organization. To become a qualified organization, most organizations other than churches and governments, as described below, must apply to the IRS.

In the IRS’ own words a church “is automatically tax-deductible.”

Churches Have a Mandatory Exception To Filing Tax Returns

Not only is it completely unnecessary for any church to seek 501c3 status, to do so becomes a grant of jurisdiction to the IRS by any church that obtains that State favor. In the words of Steve Nestor, IRS Sr. Revenue Officer (ret.):"I am not the only IRS employee who’s wondered why churches go to the government and seek permission to be exempted from a tax they didn’t owe to begin with, and to seek a tax deductible status that they’ve always had anyway. Many of us have marveled at how church leaders want to be regulated and controlled by an agency of government that most Americans have prayed would just get out of their lives. Churches are in an amazingly unique position, but they don’t seem to know or appreciate the implications of what it would mean to be free of government control."

from the Forward of In Caesar's Grip, by Peter Kershaw

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IRS subjects tea party groups to new round of scrutiny, publicizes tax return data

The IRS admitted in 2013 that it singled tea party groups out for intrusive scrutiny, including crossing lines by asking questions about the groups’ associations, meetings and even members’ reading habits. (Associated Press) more >


By Stephen Dinan - The Washington Times - Tuesday, October 4, 2016


The IRS‘ battle against holdout tea party groups is heating up again, after the tax agency promised it would begin processing their long-delayed applications, but sent a new round of prodding questions demanding still more information.

More jarringly, the IRS then publicly released one of the sets of questions it sent to the Texas Patriots Tea Party — a move the group’s lawyer says puts secret taxpayer return information, supposed to be protected, out in the public.

Tax experts say the IRS may be on safe legal ground, since the filing was made as part of a court case, and that’s one of the few narrow exceptions to strict IRS privacy laws.


PHOTOS: See Obama's biggest White House fails

Still, the move to release the information has inflamed an already tense class action legal battle between the IRS and tea party groups who feel the agency is still targeting them more than three years after it promised to cease.

“The IRS has taken the unprecedented step of publicly filing actual return information,” said Edward Greim, who is handling the case on behalf of more than 400 groups targeted by the IRS.

He said the questions asked by the IRS show the agency has not ceased the intrusive questioning that landed it in trouble in the first place back in 2013.

Mr. Greim said releasing the letter is proof that the IRS can’t be trusted to fairly handle the cases.

“The IRS‘ conscious decision to attach this Section 6103-protected request to a public filing makes it even harder to believe that the IRS can treat TPTP and similar groups fairly and neutrally. This is, and will continue to be, a core focus of our litigation in the coming weeks,” he said.

Both the IRS and officials at the Justice Department, which is acting as the tax agency’s lawyer, declined to comment, citing the ongoing legal battle.

But the tax agency said in court papers that Mr. Greim has been misleading the court, and said the documents were designed to prove that the IRS has been dealing fairly with the TPTP. The IRS said the information it requested focuses on the tea party group’s activities and whether they would be illegal for a tax-exempt group to engage in.

“It is more of the same: spurious attacks on the IRS and mischaracterizations of the facts,” the Justice Department said in its briefs.

The IRS admitted in 2013 that it singled tea party groups out for intrusive scrutiny, including crossing lines by asking questions about the groups’ associations, meetings and even members’ reading habits. Some groups received multiple letters, each time further delaying their applications.

After being dinged by its inspector general, the agency promised it would stop asking inappropriate questions, and insisted it canceled the use of secret targeting lists to single out groups.

But a federal appeals court this summer ruled that as long as some groups are still stuck in the backlog, the IRS is still conducting illegal targeting.

The tax agency, which had been blocking processing, claiming it couldn’t do anything while the court cases were proceeding, quickly kicked into gear and announced they would process the three remaining cases.

In a letter last week to the TPTP, the IRS fired off a new set of questions — the fourth inquiry the group has received since it applied for nonprofit status in 2012. In the new questions, IRS agent Jerry Fierro said he looked over the group’s website and spotted potential trouble spots, including “rallies, parades, educational workshops, speaking events, voter registration drives, fund raisers and straw polls.”

The IRS says those activities could squelch a group’s application.

Mr. Greim, the lawyer for the TPTP, said in making its letter public, the IRS was showing how aggressive its tactics are toward tea party groups. He said the agency, which has held up the TPTP’s application for 41 months, only gave the organization 30 days to respond, and said if the questions aren’t all answered, it could derail the application again.

“The IRS‘ conscious decision to attach this Section 6103-protected request to a public filing makes it even harder to believe that the IRS can treat TPTP and similar groups fairly and neutrally,” Mr. Greim said.

Section 6013 of the tax code prohibits sharing of information from taxpayers’ returns.

Tax experts said the IRS letter is likely considered protected information, but they said the IRS is probably on safe legal ground because the law allows for information to be filed if the taxpayer is a party in a lawsuit and the filing directly relates to an issue in the case.

In addition to the TPTP, two other tea party groups that were targeted by the IRS are still awaiting approval. Unite in Action, a Michigan-based group, applied in 2010, and the Albuquerque Tea Party applied nearly seven years ago, in December 2009.

Jay Sekulow, chief counsel at the American Center for Law and Justice, which represents the other two groups, said they have not received a new set of questions similar to the list sent to the TPTP. But he said he’s been prodding theIRS for a final decision.

“We again demanded that they review their applications and process them in a fair and expeditious manner,” he said in a statement.

Source

IRS gains power to revoke tax scofflaws' passports

Russ Wiles, The Arizona Republic

11:03 a.m. EST December 22, 2015



(Photo: Getty Images/iStockphoto)

It might be wise to pay your overdue income taxes before packing for that European river cruise.

A new enforcement provision passed by Congress and signed into law earlier this month allows the government to revoke the passports of seriously delinquent tax scofflaws — people who owe more than $50,000 to Uncle Sam.

"You could be on your honeymoon and they could revoke your passport," said Tom Wheelwright, a certified public accountant and chief executive officer at ProVision Wealth Strategists in Tempe, Ariz.

Some details still need to be worked out, but the new passport rule indicates the government wants to get serious about collecting unpaid tax debts. The IRS reported 12.4 million delinquent accounts owing nearly $131 billion in assessed taxes, interest and penalties in 2014.

In addition to going after delinquent taxpayers by revoking their passports, the FAST Act highway-transportation bill signed by President Obama on Dec. 4 also gives private debt collectors a shot at forcing taxpayers to make good on their debts. The act includes a mandate that the Internal Revenue Service turn over certain unpaid tax delinquencies to private debt collectors.

The passport-revoking provision allows the Department of the Treasury and the IRS to authorize the State Department to take away U.S. passports from individuals with seriously delinquent tax liabilities. That's defined as those greater than $50,000 and for which the IRS has filed a lien or levy, according to Matthew D. Lee of law firm Blank Rome. In a blog, he described the passport-revoking provision as a "powerful tool to force tax compliance." Affected taxpayers would receive written notice.

The State Department is now authorized to deny, revoke or limit use of a taxpayer's U.S. passport, and it isn't supposed to issue a passport to anyone owing that much money (with exceptions for emergencies or for humanitarian reasons). Americans out of the country when their passports are revoked may be allowed to return home.

The number of valid U.S. passports has surged in recent years, from roughly 30 million in 1995 to 126 million this year.

The new provisions wouldn't affect taxpayers who already have entered deals with the IRS to pay their tax debts, such as installment agreements or offers in compromise. Also, passports wouldn't be revoked for people who are seeking hearings or who are claiming innocent-spouse relief, according to Lee.

Wheelwright views the $50,000 limit as low, adding that it wouldn't take much to accumulate that much debt if a person lost a job or incurred big medical bills. It doesn't help that it's getting more difficult for people to contact the IRS, which is answering only about 40% of telephone calls from taxpayers, he said. Even tax professionals are looking at average phone waits of about 90 minutes, he said.

On the other hand, many of the people likely to get their passports revoked have been ignoring their tax obligations. An individual typically would receive three or four IRS notices over three to six months before getting to the collections stage, Wheelwright said.

Many of the people with severely delinquent accounts are U.S. citizens who live in other nations, said Mark Luscombe, principal federal tax analyst at researcher Wolters Kluwer in suburban Chicago. Some have dual citizenship and might not worry about losing their U.S. passports. "They feel they can ignore a tax problem for a while."

Americans out of the country when their passports are revoked may be allowed to return home. (Photo: Getty Images)


An IRS spokesman said the agency is reviewing the new law and taking steps to implement the program "as soon as feasible."

Congressional analysts expect the passport-revocation rule to raise about $400 million over the next 10 years, said Luscombe. That's less than the expected revenue from the new rule mandating non-IRS debt collectors. That's expected to bring in $4.8 billion total over the next 10 years, or around $2.4 billion after private collectors take their share, Luscombe said.

Private debt collectors would be called in on "inactive" tax delinquencies. "This means that the IRS has already tried to collect and failed because they couldn't locate the taxpayer or they deemed it not worth their time," Wheelwright said, adding that only those tax liabilities outstanding more than a year would be outsourced. The new rule carves out various debt-collecting exceptions, such as for minors with big tax bills as well as innocent spouses and military personnel in combat zones.

Reach Wiles at russ.wiles@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8616.

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m--------------------------------------------

P.S. 

Meanwhile:
Illegal aliens
Undocumented Immigrants continue to enter the United States unabated.  

Plus, they are embraced and provided with all types of assistance...

What ever happen to "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness"?

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IRS says data thieves accessed information on 100,000 taxpayers

CYBER CRIME

6:53 p.m. ET

Joe Raedle/Getty Images


From February to May, data thieves were able to gain access to the tax return information for roughly 100,000 taxpayers, IRS Commissioner John Koskinen said Tuesday.

During those four months, the thieves attempted to get information 200,000 times through the agency's "Get Transcript" online application, Reuters reports, and were successful about half of the time. It wasn't a hack, since the cyber criminals already had names, addresses, Social Security numbers, and other personal information that they used to access the system. IRS data outside of the application was not affected, and the agency said it plans to strengthen its security measures.

Koskinen did not share any information on who might have been behind the attack, and said the data theft was intended to steal information in order to submit fraudulent tax returns next year. "We're confident these are not amateurs," he said. "These are actually organized crime syndicates that not only we but everyone in the financial industry are dealing with." Catherine Garcia

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Facts About The USA!

by Frank M. Webb

06 August 2014

from FrankWebb Website

These documents are NOT secret.

They ARE a matter of Public Record.

HERE ARE TRUTHFUL FACTS

MOST PEOPLE DO NOT KNOW...

BUT SHOULD…

1. The IRS is Not a US government agency. It is an agency of the IMF - International Monetary Fund (Diversified Metal Products vs. I.R.S et al. CV-93-405E-EJE U.S.D.C.D.I., Public Law 94-564, Senate report 94-1148 pg. 5967, Reorganization Plan No. 26, Public Law 102-391)
2. The IMF (International Monetary Fund) is an agency of the United Nations - UN (Black's Law Dictionary 6th Ed. page 816)
3. The United States has NOT had a Treasury since 1921 (41 Stat. Ch 214 page 654)
4. The U.S. Treasury is now the IMF (International Monetary Fund) (Presidential Documents Volume 24-No. 4 page 113, 22 U.S.C. 285-2887)
5. The United States does not have any employees because there is no longer a United States! No more reorganizations. After over 200 years of bankruptcy it is finally over. (Executive Order 12803)
6. The FCC, CIA, FBI, NASA and all of the other alphabet gangs were never part of the U.S. government, even though the "U.S. Government" held stock in the agencies. (U.S. vs. Strang, 254 US491 Lewis vs. US, 680 F.2nd, 1239)
7. Social Security Numbers are issued by the U.N. through the IMF (International Monetary Fund). The application for a Social Security Number is the SS5 Form. The Department of the Treasury (IMF) issues the SS5 forms and not the Social Security Administration. The new SS5 forms do not state who publishes them while the old form states they are "Department of the Treasury". (20 CFR (Council on Foreign Relations) Chap. 111 Subpart B. 422.103 (b))
8. There are NO Judicial Courts in America and have not been since 1789. Judges do not enforce Statutes and Codes. Executive Administrators enforce Statutes and Codes. (FRC vs. GE 281 US 464 Keller vs. PE 261 US 428, 1 Stat 138-178)
9. There have NOT been any judges in America since 1789. There have just been administrators. (FRC vs. GE 281 US 464 Keller vs. PE 261 US 428 1 Stat. 138-178)
10. According to GATT (The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) you MUST have a Social Security number. (House Report (103-826)
11. New York City is defined in Federal Regulations as the United Nations. Rudolph Guiliani stated on C-Span that "New York City is the capital of the World." For once, he told the truth. (20 CFR (Council on Foreign Relations) Chap. 111, subpart B 44.103 (b) (2) (2) )
12. Social Security is not insurance or a contract, nor is there a Trust Fund. (Helvering vs. Davis 301 US 619 Steward Co. vs. Davis 301 US 548)
13. Your Social Security check comes directly from the IMF (International Monetary Fund), which is an agency of the United Nations. (It says "U.S. Department of Treasury" at the top left corner, which again is part of the U.N. as pointed out above)
14. You own NO property!!! Slaves can't own property. Read carefully the Deed to the property you think is yours. You are listed as a TENANT. (Senate Document 43, 73rd Congress 1st Session)
15. The most powerful court in America is NOT the United States Supreme court, but rather the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. (42 PA. C.S.A. 502)
16. The King of England financially backed both sides of the American Revolutionary War. (Treaty of Versailles-July 16, 1782 Treaty of Peace 8 Stat 80)
17. You CANNOT use the U.S. Constitution to defend yourself because you are NOT a party to it! The U.S. Constitution applies to the CORPORATION OF THE UNITED STATES, a privately owned and operated corporation (headquartered out of Washington, DC) much like IBM (International Business Machines, Microsoft, et al) and NOT to the people of the sovereign Republic of the united States of America. (Padelford Fay & Co. vs. The Mayor and Alderman of the City of Savannah 14 Georgia 438, 520)
18. America is a British Colony. The United States is a corporation, not a land mass and it existed before the Revolutionary War and the British Troops did not leave until 1796 (Republica vs. Sweers 1 Dallas 43, Treaty of Commerce 8 Stat 116, Treaty of Peace 8 Stat 80, IRS Publication 6209, Articles of Association October 20, 1774)
19. UNITED STATES is a Corporation - There are Two Constitutions-Sovereignty:
    
20. Britain is owned by the Vatican. (Treaty of 1213)
21. The Pope can abolish any law in the United States (Elements of Ecclesiastical Law Vol. 1, 53-54)
22. A 1040 Form is for tribute paid to Britain (IRS Publication 6209)
23. The Pope claims to own the entire planet through the laws of conquest and discovery. (Papal Bulls of 1495 & 1493)
24. The Pope has ordered the genocide and enslavement of millions of people. (Papal Bulls of 1455 & 1493)
25. The Pope's laws are obligatory on everyone. (Bened. XIV., De Syn. Dioec, lib, ix, c. vii, n. 4. Prati, 1844 Syllabus Prop 28, 29, 44)
26. We are slaves and own absolutely nothing, NOT even what we think are our children. (Tillman vs. Roberts 108 So. 62, Van Koten vs. Van Koten 154 N.E. 146, Senate Document 438 73rd Congress 1st Session, Wynehammer vs. People 13 N.Y. REP 378, 481)
27. Military dictator George Washington divided up the States (Estates) in to Districts (Messages and papers of the Presidents Volume 1 page 99 1828 Dictionary of Estate)
28. "The People" does NOT include you and me. (Barron vs. Mayor and City Council of Baltimore 32 U.S. 243)
29. It is NOT the duty of the police to protect you. Their job is to protect THE CORPORATION and arrest code breakers. (SAPP vs. Tallahassee, 348 So. 2nd. 363, REiff vs. City of Phila. 477 F. 1262, Lynch vs. NC Dept. of Justice 376 S.E. 2nd. 247)
30. Every thing in the "United States" is up for sale: bridges, roads, water, schools, hospitals, prisons, airports, etc, etc… Did anybody take time to check who bought Klamath Lake?? (Executive Order 12803)
31. "We are human capital" (Executive Order 13037) The world cabal makes money off of the use of your signatures on mortgages, car loans, credit cards, your social security number, etc.
32. The U.N. - United Nations - has financed the operations of the United States government (the corporation of THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA) for over 50 years (U.S. Department of Treasury is part of the U.N. see above) and now owns every man, woman and child in America. The U.N. also holds all of the land of America in Fee Simple.

The good news is we don't have to fulfill

"our" fictitious obligations.

You can discharge a fictitious obligation

with another's fictitious obligation.

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Pastor Chuck Baldwin Reveals Organized Religion’s Dirty Little Secret …

Monday, August 18, 2014 14:19

(Before It's News)



I am a Christian through and through and I love God with all of my heart!! But this dirty little secret that many of our churches are keeping from us needs to be busted WIDE open! I am sick and tired of our churches bowing down to the political pressure from their 501(c)3 tax exempted status.

In 1954 Senator Lyndon Johnson unleashed a monstrous action directed at American churches…the 501(c)(3). Because he did not like the fact that pastors and churches were opposing his liberal agenda, he set out to silence them with the power he had readily available to him….the Law! As a result he introduced verbiage to the IRC prohibiting churches from influencing political legislation and supporting political campaigns, or risk losing their tax-exempt status. And thus it began…

Pastors today have become the servant of the State and in a sense sold their souls to the state. They remain silent on political issues and side swipe issues the government tells them they are not allowed to talk about. They bow down to the governing political body and sold out parts of the Gospel. OUTRAGE!

Dick Greb of the Save-A-Patriot Fellowship in Westminster, Maryland, wrote:

“Many Americans find it disturbing that some of our churches today are little more than milquetoast corporations that fear our federal government more than the great I AM. Moreover, it can even be said that some preachers have the appearance of cringing, ‘politically correct’ cowards, rather than committed Godly men of fortitude with backbone, such as those we read of in the Bible.” (Source: Greb, Dick. “The 501(c)(3) Hallucination: A Bane to Liberty.” Reasonable Action Issue #244 Winter 2003.)

Amen and Amen! Sadly the majority of churches are members of the 501(c)(3) and when push comes to shove, they will demonstrate loyalty to the State sacrificing Biblical principles to remain tax-exempt!

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Sinister Sites: IRS Headquarters, Maryland

Nov 28th, 2012



The IRS headquarters in New Carrollton, Maryland is a government building that, despite being constructed with public funds, contains art referring to elite secret societies. More importantly, the art conveys a strange message about the U.S. Constitution, and the American people in general. We’ll look at the symbolic meaning of the art found in front of the IRS headquarters in Maryland.



The IRS is probably the most hated institution in America – mainly because its primary role is to force people to hand over their hard-earned cash. This modern equivalent of the proverbial tax collector indeed collects money from American workers and gives it to a government that will, in turn, use this money to send drones abroad or to build information superstructures to better monitor these same workers. What’s not to like?

The IRS was originally created as a “temporary measure” during wartime (funny how the Canadian Revenue Agency was also supposed to be “temporary”), but there is nothing temporary about it now. In fact, the gigantic IRS complex in New Carrollton, Maryland was built in 1997 and is still growing today, indicating that this institution is indeed here to stay. This modern building has all of the state-of-the-art amenities one can think of, but it is the odd public art in front of it that is the most noteworthy. As is the case for many government buildings, the art displayed means absolutely nothing to most people, but to those who are versed in secret society symbolism, its implications are manifold and profound. In fact, fully understanding the origins and the meaning of the symbols in front of the IRS building means understanding who are truly in power in America (and around the world), what they believe in and what they truly think about us, the masses.

The IRS is not known to be a very artistic institution and likewise there is not much art present at its headquarters in Maryland. However, the few pieces that are on display manage to convey everything that needs to be known about the occult elite.

General Layout

The entrance to the IRS headquarters is guarded by two black and white pillars made of the highest quality marble, topped with white hands. Between the two pillars is a dark pyramid with a metallic capstone on which is written “We the People”. What does all of this represent? Here’s an “official” description:


“The most striking elements are the huge, white marble hands atop each column. Each hand points skyward, one with the forefinger extended; the other is an open hand, the fingers ever so slightly cupped.

The 1997 work is called “Vox Populi,” which is Latin for “the voice of the people.” The hand with the raised index finger represents deliberation, argument, the gesticulation of a speaker giving his or her opinion. The hand with an open palm represents the act of voting or taking an oath.”
- The Washington Post, “The Big Hands of the Law”

That is all well and good, but what does “Vox Populi” have to do with the IRS? Can citizens weigh in or vote on anything about the IRS? Why are the pillars black and white? Why is there a pyramid with a capstone between them? As it is the case for most occult symbols, there’s as basic (and unsatisfactory) interpretation given to the masses and a “real” meaning for those in the know. For those in the know, the art is a nod to the highest degrees of Freemasonry, the true source of power in America – not unlike what the Washington monument stands for.

The art in front of the IRS Headquarters features a pyramid with a capstone between two pillars. The black and white stripes refer to the Hermetic concept of duality.

This Masonic monument in Israel bears exactly the same elements: A pyramid with a capstone between two pillars. The stripes on the ground represent duality.

Let’s look at each element of this (not so) public art.
Twin Pillars

The symbolism of the twin pillars is ancient and very meaningful as it refers to the core of hermetism, the basis of secret society teachings. In short, the pillars represent duality and the union of opposites:

“The right Tablet of the Law further signifies Jachin – the white pillar of light; the left Tablet, Boaz – the shadowy pillar of darkness. These were the names of the two pillars cast from brass set up on the porch of King Solomon’s Temple. They were eighteen cubits in height and beautifully ornamented with wreaths of chainwork, nets, and pomegranates. On the top of each pillar was a large bowl – now erroneously called a ball or globe – one of the bowls probably containing fire and the other water. The celestial globe (originally the bowl of fire), surmounting the right-hand column (Jachin), symbolized the divine man; the terrestrial globe (the bowl of water), surmounting the left-hand column (Boaz), signified the earthly man. These two pillars respectively connote also the active and the passive expressions of Divine Energy, the sun and the moon, sulphur and salt, good and bad, light and darkness. Between them is the door leading into the House of God, and standing thus at the gates of Sanctuary they are a reminder that Jehovah is both an androgynous and an anthropomorphic deity. As two parallel columns they denote the zodiacal signs of Cancer and Capricorn, which were formerly placed in the chamber of initiation to represent birth and death – the extremes of physical life. They accordingly signify the summer and the winter solstices, now known to Freemasons under the comparatively modern appellation of the “two St. Johns.”

In the mysterious Sephirothic Tree of the Jews, these two pillars symbolize Mercy and Severity. Standing before the gate of King Solomon’s Temple, these columns had the same symbolic import as the obelisks before the sanctuaries of Egypt. When interpreted Qabbalistically, the names of the two pillars mean “In strength shall My House be established. “In the splendor of mental and spiritual illumination, the High Priest stood between the pillars as a mute witness to the perfect virtue of equilibrium – that hypothetical point equidistant from all extremes. He thus personified the divine nature of man in the midst of his compound constitution – the mysterious Pythagorean Monad in the presence of the Duad. On one side towered the stupendous column of the intellect; on the other, the brazen pillar of the flesh. Midway between these two stands the glorified wise man, but he cannot reach this high estate without first suffering upon the cross made by joining these pillars together. The early Jews occasionally represented the two pillars, Jachin and Boaz, as the legs of Jehovah, thereby signifying to the modern philosopher that Wisdom and Love, in their most exalted sense, support the whole order of creation – both mundane and supermundane.”
- Manly P. Hall, The Secret Teachings of All Ages

The same way Masonic pillars guard the entrance of Masonic temples, two pillars guard the entrance of the IRS building.




Masonic art depicting the twin pillars named Jachin and Boaz guarding the entrance of a Masonic temple.

While not all pillars are necessarily Masonic, those in front of the IRS building contain other features that leave no doubt regarding their secret society connection.

The IRS pillars feature exactly 13 black and white stripes and a very significant hand sign.

Sharply contrasting with the rest of the building, the pillars are stripped in black and white, a pattern evoking duality, a concept that is visually represented on the Masonic mosaic pavement.

Probably the most important feature in Masonic lodges, the black and white checkerboard pattern is meant to be a visual representation of the concept of duality. Variations of this pattern do exist.

To make things even more explicitly Masonic (for those in the know) each pillar is comprised of exactly 13 stripes, a number that is of the utmost importance in Masonic lore (research the omnipresence of the number 13 on the American dollar bill). Considering the constant attention to occult numerology in Masonic art, this fact alone should be very telling.

Above each pillar are white marble hands. It is interesting to know that formal Masonic attire requires white gloves. One of the hands points upwards, towards the sky. While the official meaning claims that it refers to the act of public discussion and discourse, this hand sign, place in the esoteric context of the artwork, takes on a much more ancient and mystical meaning.

Named the “hand to god”, the “sign of Preservation” or the “hand of the Mysteries”, the sign of the hand pointing upwards can be found in many works of art that bear an esoteric meaning. It appears to be always associated with figures that are seen to possess “knowledge from the gods”.

The classic depiction of Hermes always depicts him pointing towards the heavens. Known as the “messenger of God”, Hermes is a central figure in Masonic lore. He is considered to be the teacher of theurgic sciences, therefore helping humanity ascend towards godhood (the word Hermetism derives from Hermes).

“Plato, an initiate of one of these sacred orders, was severely criticized because in his writings he revealed to the public many of the secret philosophic principles of the Mysteries.” – Manly P. Hall. In this classic depiction of Plato by Raphael, he is pointing upwards – probably because he “initiated” the world to some of the secret teachings of Mystery schools.

This Masonic item for sale at 1stdibs.com features the same hand sign as found in front of the IRS building.

In the context of esoteric teachings, a human pointing towards God can represent the ultimate goal of the Mysteries: Ascending from the state of mere mortal to achieve godhood.

The hand above the other pillar does not point towards the sky, but is rather opened. While pointing towards somewhere means moving into that direction, an opened palm is traditionally associated with “stop” or “halt”. In Masonic symbolism, the twin pillars are often topped with contrasting symbols (the sun and the moon or globes representing earth and heavens). Could the white hands above the pillars represent the same opposite notions of godhood (pointing towards god) and earthly materiality (halt sign)?

On these Masonic pillars are etched various quotes regarding the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Some of them are quite odd in the context of today, such this one by Barbara Jordan:

“The Bill of Rights was not ordained by Nature or God. It’s very human, very fragile.” Hmmm, that’s … unsettling.

Considering the fact that a bunch of laws blatantly violating the Bill of Rights (notably the First and Fourth Amendment) were enacted shortly after this building was erected, one can ask if this quote wasn’t some kind of a warning. As we see new police-state-style laws violating privacy, free speech and encouraging oppression, we can definitely conclude that the elite views the Bill of Rights as something “very human, very fragile” that can easily be violated. While the above quote can be interpreted as a reminder to not take the Bill of Rights for granted, in the context of its location, it conveys an unsettling message about how it can easily be tampered with … and even disappear. Think I’m going too far? Check out this next piece.

The Pyramid



Between the two pillars is the most recognizable symbol representing the occult elite: A pyramid with a shiny capstone. On the pyramid is written the US Constitution, which famously starts with “We the People”. Looking closer at this sculptures, several questions come to mind.

First, why is the U.S. Constitution etched on a symbol that is associated with occult secret societies whose highest degrees are restricted to “elite men”? Isn’t there a contradiction here? Second, it is somewhat clear that the charcoal-colored base of the pyramid represents the masses (it is written “We the People” right on it), while the shiny, illuminated capstone represents the “illuminated” elite. Isn’t this … elitist? Does the capstone that is standing above the pyramid and the U.S. Constitution mean that the elite is above the law? Finally, why isn’t the Bill of Rights on the pyramid? Is it because it is “very human, very fragile”? Is it considered outdated by the NWO elite? As it is the case for many Sinister Sites described on Vigilant Citizen, this barely noticeable artwork contains an infinitely of dark implications.


In Conclusion

In this edition of Sinister Sites, we looked at a relatively small amount of items that nonetheless conveyed a massive amount of symbolism. Far from being merely decorative, the art in front of the IRS building in Maryland describes in a symbolic matter the true source of power behind the American (and world) government, its spiritual and political philosophy, its perception of the masses and so forth. But while the symbolism is unmistakably Masonic, your local front-porch Freemasons have nothing to do with the occult elite. Those in power are part of the highest, hidden levels of the order – what we like to call the Illuminati.

While the IRS doesn’t shy away from collecting money from every single American worker in the United States, the occult symbols in front of its headquarters is not definitely not meant for every single American worker. It is meant to be understood by a very few “select” ones – the same way real power is owned by a very few “select” ones. Why are there symbols associated with secretive and elite groups displayed on buildings that are supposedly public? Isn’t this a contradiction?


While some might say that the true, mystical meaning behind these symbols is not inherently evil, the real upsetting part is that those “in the capstone” are clearly telling us that those at the base of the pyramid are not meant to understand these things. They are meant to be distracted and controlled in order to fund the elite while not causing too much damage … and that’s about it. And the IRS is part of the equation.

Contrarily to the “official” meaning of the pointing hand, no citizen has a say on the policies of these institution or even what they display in front of their building. It is rather those in the capstone that dictate what will happening to “We the People” … even if it means making the Bill of Rights disappear. As the official IRS motto goes: Service plus Enforcement equals Compliance. In short, maybe the finger that is pointing upwards should be the middle one.

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IRS Loses Lois Lerner Emails---What Tea Party Targeting?

 

Robert W. Wood Contributor

6/13/2014 @ 11:50PM


Lois Lerner’s emails are missing, says the IRS. Remember Lois Lerner? The IRS probably would like to forget her, and no doubt her emails too. She was the former Director of Tax Exempt Organizations at the IRS. That makes her the IRS official at the center of the targeting scandal.

She is retired now on a government pension, but conceivably could still face prosecution. Lerner allegedly flagged tax-exemption applications of conservative organizations, including Crossroads GPS. She allegedly also turned a blind eye to liberal groups like Priorities USA. But when the whole mess came to light, she refused to testify on multiple occasions.

She was held in contempt of Congress for refusing to testify. After making a statement in which she said she had done nothing wrong, Lerner refused to answer questions, invoking her constitutional right against self-incrimination. But some Republicans say her statement amounted to a waiver. Her case was turned over to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia.



The Gadsden flag (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

If prosecuted and convicted–which seems unlikely–the raft of charges could conceivably add up to 11 years. Given the stakes, her silence should not be surprising. And despite a 14-page letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder lambasting her conduct, she may just slip quietly away. But the latest development involves her emails.

The IRS has admitted to Congressional investigators that many of Lois Lerner’s emails prior to 2011 are missing. Oops. Her computer crashed. The IRS came up with 24,000 Lerner emails from 2009 to 2011. The IRS did this by getting emails from 83 other IRS employees that had cc’s of Lerner emails. But no one knows how many of Ms. Lerner’s emails are gone.

According to Representative Dave Camp (R-Mich), the missing emails were mainly to and from people outside the IRS. Oh, that means emails from Ms. Lerner to the White House, Treasury, Department of Justice, FEC, or Democrat offices. Mr. Camp sounds fit to be tied: ”The fact that I am just learning about this, over a year into the investigation, is completely unacceptable and now calls into question the credibility of the IRS’s response to congressional inquiries,” he said.

He has called for a Department of Justice investigation. One key issue is just who outside the IRS was involved in handling tea party applications. That is why emails between Ms. Lerner and others in the administration could be so very valuable. The IRS says it went to great lengths and spent nearly $10 million to produce more than 750,000 documents. (Those are $10 million of our tax dollars, correct?)

Overall, the IRS said it is producing 67,000 emails to and from Lerner, covering 2009 to 2013. And as the investigation trundles on, it may begin to sound to some people as if the grassy knoll of the key emails may remain shrouded. That is one more black eye for the IRS, an important agency that has had too many.

No matter how genuine the loss of the emails, no matter how innocent those at the IRS may be who are trying to comply with law, this doesn’ t look good. At least a few taxpayers may feel a little more secure when they show up for their tax audit proclaiming that they lost key records. Perhaps the IRS will be a little more forgiving now when a taxpayer doesn’t have receipts?

And another question worth asking is Dear Mr. President: Is There A ‘Smidgen Of Corruption?’ In IRS ‘Lost’ Lerner Emails?


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Atheists Take On The IRS

By Victoria Bekiempis / November 22 2013 4:17 PM





Top American secularists allege the tax agency discriminates against them. Reuters


IRS policies on church tax exemptions aren’t just potentially making America poorer – they also illegally discriminate against atheists, a lawsuit alleges.

American Atheists and several other secularist groups claim that the Internal Revenue Service gives preferential treatment to churches and religious organizations who seek or have 501(c)(3) non-profit status compared to secular non-profit organizations. The groups say this violates non-believers’ Constitutional rights because it treats churches differently than non-churches and equates to government support of religion.

Under current IRS policy, churches automatically qualify for 501(c)(3) status, though nonreligious 501(c)(3)s must go through an extensive application process to get the same tax benefits. In addition, religious organizations do not have to fill out annual Form 990 returns reports, which detail charities’ finances so the IRS or nonprofit watchdogs can identify possible fiscal wrongdoing and law-breaking. Critics, who have recently renewed their calls for religious exemption reform, say that these filing differences cost the U.S. government from some $17 to $71 billion annually.

Though American Atheists’ first filed their federal lawsuit in December 2012, oral arguments in the case began late this week.

“We find it discriminatory, so we’re suing,” American Atheists spokesman Dave Muscato tells Newsweek. “The way that this is set up, we all pay for it. We’re all supporting churches for what they do.”

In court filings, the advocacy group argues that a 1961 U.S. Supreme Court opinion that “neither the federal government nor state governments can ‘constitutionally pass laws or impose requirements which aid all religions as against non-believers, and neither can aid those religions based on a belief in the existence of God, as against those religions founded on different beliefs’” supports their claims. American Atheists is also arguing that church-only tax breaks, such as the “parsonage exemption,” which lets clergy members write off housing expenses from their taxable income, aren’t constitutionally kosher, since “non-religious entities may not take any deductions for the housing or living expenses of their employees or volunteers.”

IRS policies also discriminate against donors to non-religious organizations, American Atheists alleges. Non-religious nonprofits must identify, on Form 990, contributors who give more than $5,000, or 2 percent of the organization’s total contributions and grants. But religious non-profits don’t have to disclose mega donors, because they don’t have to fill out a 990. These policies, plus the expense and labor required to meet 501(c)(3) filing requirements, gives churches a “fundraising advantage” and put atheists at risk. “Because there’s a lot of stigma about atheism, many people talk to us and say they would donate more but don’t want their name publicized in that way,” Muscato says.

Court proceedings are set to continue in the coming weeks.

The IRS did not immediately reply to requests for comment, though the agency often does not comment on pending litigation.

When asked previously about the issue, an IRS spokesman sent Newsweek an e-mail linking to a tax guide for religious nonprofits.

 
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Karen Hudes - World Bank in Collusion with the Jesuits.

the jesuits' jungle

Published on Oct 30, 2013

The Federal Reserve and the Bank for International Settlements are in collusion with the biggest crooks of all, the Jesuits, who "bought out" Bank of America and they have secret deals to apportion to themselves the riches of the world, says Karen Hudes (time 3:44 in video). Ms. Hudes is a former senior counsel for the World Bank who was fired for being a whistleblower.
http://beforeitsnews.com/watercooler-...

She also says that the IRS revenue goes to the Vatican.
Here at: 12:28

Source: Greg Hunter' channel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHVgRg...

Karen Hude's website http://kahudes.net/

'Dollar About to Crash',
170,000 Tons of Gold Held in Secret Hawaii Vault
-- World Bank Whistleblower
http://www.silverdoctors.com/dollar-v...

Very informative article.
World Bank Whistleblower Karen Hudes
Reveals How The Global Elite Rule The World
http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/ar...\

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Americans renouncing citizenship in record numbers, seek to avoid tax

Published August 12, 2013
The Wall Street Journal


The U.S.'s crackdown on global tax evaders is leading to a record number of people renouncing their citizenship, and its effects are being felt keenly in Asia -- now the world's wealthiest region by household assets.

A growing number of wealthy Americans in Asia -- and others with green cards -- are exploring whether to renounce their U.S. citizenship or give up their green cards to avoid onerous tax obligations.

Globally, more U.S. citizens have renounced their citizenship in the first and second quarters than all of 2012 combined, and 2013 is already on track to becoming a record year for renunciations. A total of 1,130 names appeared on the latest list of renunciations from the Internal Revenue Service, according to Andrew Mitchel, a tax lawyer who tracks the data. That is far above the previous high of 679, set in the first quarter, and more than were reported in all of 2012.

While those numbers are still a fraction of the estimated six million Americans living abroad, lawyers say the main trigger for cutting ties with U.S. recently is the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, or Fatca, which requires foreign institutions to disclose the overseas assets of U.S. green-card holders and citizens to the U.S. government.

The U.S. Congress estimates that tax evasion by U.S. citizens results in losses of up to $100 billion a year. The main objective of Fatca is to identify people who may be evading taxes through offshore investment vehicles.

"When I became an immigration lawyer 30 years ago, people really were excited about going to America. Now, more than half of my clients are people thinking of other alternatives rather than people seeking to immigrate to America," said Eugene Chow, the principal of Chow King & Associates.



Source: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/08/12/americans-renouncing-citizenship-in-record-numbers-seek-to-avoid-tax/?cmpid=GoogleNewsEditorsPicks&google_editors_picks=true#ixzz2br4dSuk4

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Americans Giving Up Passports Jump Sixfold as Tougher Rules Loom

 


By Dylan Griffiths | Bloomberg – 14 hours ago



Getty Images/Thinkstock -


RELATED QUOTES

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Americans renouncing U.S. citizenship surged sixfold in the second quarter from a year earlier as the government prepares to introduce tougher asset-disclosure rules.

Expatriates giving up their nationality at U.S. embassies climbed to 1,131 in the three months through June from 189 in the year-earlier period, according to Federal Register figures published today. That brought the first-half total to 1,810 compared with 235 for the whole of 2008.

The U.S., the only nation in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development that taxes citizens wherever they reside, is searching for tax cheats in offshore centers, including Switzerland, as the government tries to curb the budget deficit. Shunned by Swiss and German banks and facing tougher asset-disclosure rules under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, more of the estimated 6 million Americans living overseas are weighing the cost of holding a U.S. passport.

"With the looming deadline for Fatca, more and more U.S. citizens are becoming aware that they have U.S. tax reporting obligations," said Matthew Ledvina, a U.S. tax lawyer at Anaford AG in Zurich. "Once aware, they decide to renounce their U.S. citizenship."

Fatca requires foreign financial institutions to report to the Internal Revenue Service information about financial accounts held by U.S. taxpayers, or held by foreign entities in which U.S. taxpayers hold a substantial ownership interest. It was estimated to generate $8.7 billion over 10 years, according to the congressional Joint Committee on Taxation.

Delaying Implementation

The 2010 Fatca law requires banks to withhold 30 percent from "certain U.S.-connected payments" to some accounts of American clients who don't disclose enough information to the IRS. While banks can sign agreements to report to the IRS individually, many are precluded from doing so by privacy laws in their jurisdictions.

The Treasury Department last month announced that the IRS will delay the start of Fatca by six months until July 1, 2014, to give foreign banks time to comply with the law. The extension of the act follows a previous one-year delay announced in 2011.

Financial institutions including Canada's Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD) and Allianz SE of Germany have expressed concerns that Fatca is too complex.

The latest delay comes after the Swiss government agreed in February to simplifications that will help the country's banks implement Fatca.

Penalty Threat

"The United States wishes to ensure that all income earned worldwide by U.S. taxpayers on accounts held abroad can be taxed by the United States," the Swiss government said on April 10.

Since 2011, Americans, who disclose their non-U.S. bank accounts to the IRS, must file the more expansive 8938 form that asks for all foreign financial assets, including insurance contracts, loans and shareholdings in non-UNN.S. companies.

Failure to file the 8938 form can result in a fine of as much as $50,000. Clients can also be penalized half the amount in an undeclared foreign bank account under the Banks Secrecy Act of 1970.

The implementation of Fatca from July next year comes after UBS, Switzerland's largest bank, paid a $780 million penalty in 2009 and handed over data on about 4,700 accounts to settle a tax-evasion dispute with the U.S. Whistle-blower Bradley Birkenfeld was sentenced to 40 months in a U.S. prison in 2009 after informing the government and Senate about his American clients at the Geneva branch of Zurich-based UBS AG.

Compliance Costs

The additional compliance costs for companies to ensure that Americans they hire are filing the correct U.S. tax returns and asset-declaration forms are at least $5,000 per person, said Ledvina.

For individuals, the costs are also rising. Getting a mortgage or acquiring life insurance is becoming almost impossible for American citizens living overseas, Ledvina said.

"With increased U.S. tax reporting, U.S. accounting costs alone are around $2,000 per year for a U.S. citizen residing abroad," the tax lawyer said. "Adding factors, such as difficulty in finding a bank to accept a U.S. citizen as a client, it is difficult to justify keeping the U.S. citizenship for those who reside permanently abroad."

To contact the reporter on this story: Dylan Griffiths in Geneva at dgriffiths1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Frank Connelly at fconnelly@bloomberg.net


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Pulpit Freedom Sunday takes on controversial issues

Jun. 7, 2013 1:37 AM




Pastors take stand for Pulpit Freedom Sunday: Pulpit Freedom Sunday, recognized on Sunday, June 9, 2013, is a day during which pastors will discuss politics during their usual services. Video by Craig Rubadoux. Voiceover by Emre Kelly.


Written by
J.D. Gallop
FLORIDA TODAY



Pastor Charles Ross Rowland of Satellite Beach's Oceanside Community Church preaches to his congregation. / CRAIG RUBADOUX/florida today


church rules

IRS rules and regulations regarding churches and religious organizations:
• A church or religious organization’s earnings may not be used to benefit any private shareholder or individual
• Religious groups must not provide a substantial benefit to private interests
• Churches cannot devote substantial efforts in an attempt to influence legislation
• Churches and religious organizations must not participate in political campaigns, either for or against a candidate seeking public election



Charles Rowland is not worried that his message may be politically incorrect or out of vogue with popular culture. He may even rub political powers the wrong way.

The 65-year-old Southern Baptist pastor says he will step to the pulpit this Sunday and speak about his belief that homosexuality is a sin against God, that marriage is between a man and a woman, abortion is wrong and that believers must speak their conscience.

“I’m going to preach the gospel no matter what,” said Rowland, the spiritual leader of Oceanside Community Church in Satellite Beach.

This Sunday, many pastors across the nation plan to participate in the fifth annual Pulpit Freedom Sunday, a day aimed at defying IRS rules intended to regulate the balance between free speech, religion and laws governing tax-exempt statuses for churches.

Government rules restrict churches, and some other nonprofits, from campaigning for or against specific candidates for office or politicking about proposed legislation.

Some pastors say the rules contradict their biblical commission to preach the gospel or even call certain actions sin.

Rowland said he believes that more than ever, ministers are on the front line of an ongoing culture war and need to be outspoken — even if it against Internal Revenue Service regulations.

“What the government says is legal is not necessarily moral. You see that in the fact that the cohesiveness that held our country together has been breaking down for some time,” he said. “Having that community of shared values is eroding and everyone is doing what is right in their own eyes. We have to speak out.”
Shared views

Increasingly, some pastors say, issues about which they’ve been preaching cross into the political realm.

Some pastors point to the recent IRS admission that officials targeted dozens of conservative groups applying for tax exempt status. Some say the IRS case is another indication that churches could face similar scrutiny for what someone deems political speech. Last year, pastors at about a half dozen local churches participated in Pulpit Freedom Sunday, directly calling for a conservative outcome in the coming election. Many of the local pastors focused on issues like abortion and same-sex marriage.

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Lois Lerner, Head of I.R.S. Dept. on Tax-Exempt Groups, Put on Leave

BREAKING NEWS Thursday, May 23, 2013 5:55 PM EDT



Lois Lerner, the head of the Internal Revenue Service’s division on exempt organizations, was put on administrative leave Thursday, a day after she invoked the fifth amendment to the Constitution and declined to testify before a House committee investigating her division’s targeting of conservative groups.
Ms. Lerner has been under severe pressure since May 10, when she delivered an awkward apology to Tea Party and other conservative groups whose applications for 501(c)(4) tax exemptions had been singled out for special scrutiny.

At that time, she said she learned of the targeting in 2012, when Tea Party groups publicly accused the I.R.S. of mistreatment. But a Treasury inspector general’s audit released days later appeared to make it clear that she knew of the effort well before then and had tried to reshape it. Lawmakers from both parties publicly accused her of lying to them.

READ MORE »http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/24/us/politics/irs-official-who-refused-to-testify-is-put-on-leave.html?emc=na

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Dan Pfeiffer: IRS Behavior ‘Inexcusable’ Whether or Not Illegal

US News | Syria News | More ABC News Videos

By Benjamin Bell
@benjaminbell
Follow on Twitter

May 19, 2013 9:38am

This morning on “This Week,” White House Senior Adviser Dan Pfeiffer told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos that the legality surrounding the targeting of conservative groups by the Internal Revenue Service is “irrelevant,” but called the behavior “outrageous and inexcusable.”

READ MORE

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White House Aide Calls Criticism of Obama ‘Offensive’

May 19, 2013, 1:51 pm

By BRIAN KNOWLTON


A senior adviser to President Obama mounted a combative defense of the administration on Sunday, saying that the controversies enveloping the White House were the result of Republican lawmakers trying to “drag Washington into a swamp of partisan fishing expeditions, trumped-up hearings and false allegations.”

The remarks came from Dan Pfeiffer, a member of the president’s inner circle, as he appeared on all five major Sunday morning talk shows in an effort to move the administration past what commentators have described as a “hell week” of controversy and missteps. He pointedly rejected Republican criticisms of the president’s actions and leadership style as “offensive” and “absurd,” and he said the administration would not be distracted from doing the nation’s business.

In his appearances, Mr. Pfeiffer faced often tough questioning over the Internal Revenue Service’s targeted reviews of conservative groups; the lethal attack on an American diplomatic post in Benghazi, Libya, last September; and the Justice Department’s seizure of journalists’ records.

He repeatedly pointed the finger at Republicans for exploiting the three issues for political purposes, even as he urged them to work with the administration on legislation to revamp the immigration system and trim the budget deficit.

His warning against “fishing expeditions” came when he was asked on the CBS program “Face the Nation” about a remark by the White House chief of staff, Denis R. McDonough, who had told The New York Times that he had instructed staff not to spend more than 10 percent of their time on the three controversies.

The program’s host, Bob Schieffer, asked whether that meant that the White House did not take the issues seriously.

“Oh, no. Absolutely not,” Mr. Pfeiffer said. “There are some very serious issues here, particularly the I.R.S., where there was inexcusable conduct that needs to be fixed. And that’s going to happen.” But he said that the president and his staff needed to keep “actually doing the people’s work and fighting for the middle class.”

Republicans appearing on the Sunday shows insisted that they would be aggressive in pushing for fuller investigations, particularly of the I.R.S. and Benghazi matters. The administration has promised to cooperate, but is also fighting to keep the problems from overshadowing its agenda.

Representative Paul D. Ryan, Republican of Wisconsin, said on “Fox News Sunday” that investigators examining the I.R.S. scandal needed to answer key questions: “Who knew? When did they know? Why did they do this? How high up in government did it go?”

Mr. Ryan, a member of the Ways and Means Committee, which held an often testy hearing into the I.R.S. matter on Friday, said Americans had lost confidence in their government, adding, “This is arrogance of power, abuse of power, to the nth degree.”

Representative Tom Price, a Georgia Republican who is also on the committee, said that an inspector general’s review of the I.R.S. matter that was released last week – it largely blamed ineffective I.R.S. management for the undue scrutiny of Tea Party groups – was “just the beginning of this process.”

Mr. Pfeiffer tried to clarify a key point – Mr. Ryan’s “when did they know” – about exactly when Mr. Obama learned that an I.R.S. unit had given extra scrutiny to conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status. The president’s response to a reporter’s question on Thursday had seemed open to interpretation.

But Mr. Pfeiffer said repeatedly on Sunday that the president had learned about the matter only weeks ago. That was appropriate, Mr. Pfeiffer said, given the importance of insulating the I.R.S. from White House pressures.

Mr. Pfeiffer made the administration’s Republican critics the prime target of his anger. “There is no question Republicans are trying to make political hay here,” he said of the I.R.S. scandal. And regarding Benghazi, he said on Fox, “There’s a series of conspiracy theories the Republicans have been spinning about this since the night it happened.”

When Chris Wallace, the Fox host, pressed Mr. Pfeiffer to explain exactly what Mr. Obama was doing last Sept. 11, as reports emerged of the attack on the United States mission in Benghazi – specifically whether the president had gone to the Situation Room to monitor events – Mr. Pfeiffer dismissed the question as irrelevant and rejected what he said was an implication of presidential inattention. Four Americans, including Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens, were killed in the attack.

“The assertions from Republicans here that somehow the president allowed this to happen and didn’t take action is offensive,” Mr. Pfeiffer said, adding, “There’s no evidence to support it.”

But the minority leader of the Senate, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, picking up on a recent Republican theme, cast the various scandals as symptoms of a deeper problem. “There is a culture of intimidation through the administration,” he said on the NBC News program “Meet the Press.” “The I.R.S. is just the most recent example.”

The president has insisted that it would have been wrong to be involved earlier in the I.R.S. matter or to interfere with the Justice Department’s investigation into leaks that led to the seizure of the journalists’ records. That has provoked criticism that his management style leans too far in the other direction – so detached as to be ineffectual.

Mr. Pfeiffer brusquely dismissed those suggestions.

“I think that’s an absurd proposition,” he said on Fox, adding, “What would be a real problem is if he was involved in those cases.”

He said that a cardinal rule of the presidency is “you don’t get involved with independent investigations, and you don’t give the appearance of doing so.”

Some Republicans have sought to link the I.R.S. scandal to their concerns about the president’s health care law, calling for Sarah Hall Ingram, who had headed the I.R.S. section involved in the tax-exempt determinations, to be relieved of her current role in carrying out that law.

Mr. Pfeiffer said no such step should be taken before a monthlong investigation ordered by the new acting I.R.S. commissioner is completed. “No one has suggested that she did anything wrong yet,” he said.

But Senator Rob Portman, Republican of Ohio, said that he did not think the I.R.S. review would suffice. “I think a special counsel is going to wind up being necessary,” he said on the ABC News program “This Week.”

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Who is Dan Pfeiffer?

7 hours ago
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Daniel Pfeiffer
Spokesman to Vice President Al Gore
Daniel Pfeiffer is Assistant to the President of the United States and Senior Advisor to the President for Strategy and Communications. He was previously a member of Obama's presidential transition team.Wikipedia


Born: December 24, 1975 (age 37), Wilmington
Education: Georgetown University
Spouse: Sarah Feinberg (m. 2006)
Office: Deputy White House Communications Director since 2009

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Arsenio: Yes, an epidemic of Mass Hysteria!   

Great Political Science programs at Georgetown University?

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