IRS targeted church for speaking out against White House two days before the president's reelection

[ProSense]

IRS targeted church for speaking out against White House two days before the president's reelection

by Jed Lewison

Karl Rove speaking on Fox Monday morning about what would have happened if the IRS had targeted liberals for scrutiny during the Bush administration:

We'd have every major liberal newspaper in America calling for investigation ending in impeachment. It'd be leading the evening news. We'd have have every group that had liberal or progressive tendencies demanding answers and marching on the White House. And leaders of Congress, Democrats in Congress, demanding to have answers. It'd be a nightmare at the Bush White House had this been done on our watch.

Poor Republicans. Always the victim of hypocritical liberals. Except:

Stepping up its probe of allegedly improper campaigning by churches, the Internal Revenue Service on Friday ordered a liberal Pasadena parish to turn over all the documents and e-mails it produced during the 2004 election year with references to political candidates.

All Saints Episcopal Church and its rector, the Rev. Ed Bacon, have until Sept. 29 to present the sermons, newsletters and electronic communications.

The IRS investigation was triggered by an antiwar sermon delivered by its former rector, the Rev. George F. Regas, at the church two days before the 2004 presidential election. The summons even requests utility bills to establish costs associated with hosting Regas' speech. Bacon was ordered to testify before IRS officials Oct. 11.

Maybe it's just me, but somehow I'm forgetting the part about where George W. Bush got impeached because the IRS investigated liberals under his watch. That doesn't mean we should ignore what happened under President Obama, but Rove's baseless hyperventilating is a reminder to keep things in perspective. Of course, with Darrell Issa in charge of the House Government Oversight committee, fat chance of that happening.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/05/13/1208761/-IRS-targeted-church-for-speaking-out-against-White-House-two-days-before-the-president-s-reelection

Again, am I the only one who thinks Republicans opened a can of worms?
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022836745

GOP shill media jump to push Republican talking points on IRS
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022836611

[madokie]

1. And who was the head of the IRS at the time?

a W appointee thats who. Of course you knew this. I'm simply pointing this out. These people, republiCON's are dirty and soooo shallow as to not be able to put two and two together. If they could they'd see the onus is on them

[peace13]

2. How is that a target.

If a church is involved in politics then it needs to be taxed. Pretty simple. Why isn't the law upheld? That is the question

[markpkessinger]

8. This case was not nearly as cut and dried as you seem to think

The rector emeritus of this parish, a large, liberal Episcopal parish, preached a sermon, in the context of a Sunday worship service, in which he set up a hypothetical "debate" over the war in Iraq between John Kerry and George Bush, with Jesus as moderator. This was NOT a case of a church getting involved in politics. It was a discussion about the morality of the war in Iraq. It was heard only by those who, of their own accord, chose to attend services on that particular Sunday at that particular church. If you are really suggesting that churches should lose their tax exempt status for discussing the morality of public matters with their own members, then you are basically saying that, for example, African American churches should have lost their tax exemptions for their crucial role in the civil rights movement. And since virtually any item of public interest can be deemed "political" in nature, an approach that is as cut-and-dried as what you suggest would have the effect of denying churches the ability to publicly advocate on behalf of the poor, the environment or anything else (and yes, the liberal denominations DO advocate for these things).

[sinkingfeeling]

3. I seem to recall a Bush administration IRS probe of NCAAP and this from

2006.

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0916-01.htm

IRS Orders All Saints to Yield Documents on '04 Political Races
Antiwar remarks at All Saints in Pasadena were made two days before the 2004 election. The church is ordered to hand over records.

[Initech]

4. Big difference between churches and liberal groups: tax exempt status.

[PDJane]

5. Doug Shulman is the guy that they're talking about.

He's been gone since 2102, and Stephen Miller is acting Commissioner.

It's a bit hypocritical to come down on Obama for a bush appointee who has resigned. This is another freaking tempest in a teapot. These guys are counting on the ignorance of the American public.

[ProSense]

6. Details. n/t

[PDJane]

7. Sigh. Yes, I know. Disgusting of me.

[markpkessinger]

9. Here's something I posted about this in 2011...

http://election.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=439&topic_id=1515782&mesg_id=1516720

[markpkessinger]

10. There is one critical difference between the case against All Saints and the current controversy...

The case against All Saints Pasadena was surely politically motivated, but there is one really critical difference between that case and the controversy surrounding the IRS' targeting of groups with "tea party" or "patriot" in their name. The IRS' investigation of and case against All Saints commenced after the IRS received a complaint from someone about the sermon preached by Fr. Regas (possibly from a more conservative=minded parishioner -- we do have some of those in the Episcopal Church, too). It wax NOT targeted because it was a liberal parish, but because the IRS had received a complaint. No doubt the IRS' conclusion (that the sermon was a de facto endorsement of a particular candidate) was politically motivated. But investigating a group after having received a complaint about it is categorically different from targeting for cold investigations based on a particular word or phrase that occurs in the group's name (a word or phrase understood to be widely associated with a particular political bent). There really isn't a good excuse to be had hare (much as I might wish there were).