IRS ATTACKS RELIGIOUS GROUPS FOR EXERCISING FREE SPEECH CHALLENGED IN COURT
By NWV News Writer Jim Kouri
October 28, 2011
NewsWithViews.com
A Christian organization that espouses conservative values and morality charged the Internal Revenue Service with silencing the groups First Amendment rights utilizing “legal gymnastics” to tax nonprofits’ free speech. When the group challenged the IRS’ actions it prevented a court challenge through stonewalling and deception.
The nonprofit Catholic Answers is just one victim of this tactic. In 2008, when its president, Karl Keating, posted a discussion on the organization’s website arguing that, according to church rules, presidential candidate, Senator John Kerry(D-MA), should not be allowed to receive the Holy Eucharist in any Catholic Church due to his support for legalized abortion, even partial-birth abortion.
In what they termed ‘retaliation’ by the government tax collectors, IRS agents ordered Catholic Answers to pay an excise tax for engaging in alleged “political speech” against then-presidential primary candidate John Kerry. Catholic Answers paid the tax but complained about being singled out by a politicized government agency.
“In many churches, especially black churches, politicians and civil rights leaders regularly make political statements during church services. President Obama’s own pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, uttered vitriolic messages that were extremely political,” said political strategist and attorney Mike Baker.
“In fact, Wright and others, such as Nation of Islam’s Louis Farrakhan, often make speeches that contain what’s arguably hate speech, such as when Wright repeatedly — and loudly — said ‘God damn, America!'” said Baker.
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