'Don't Vote for Obama' - IRS Church Audit Dropped (For Now)

CBS47 ^ | July 31st 2009 | cakid1

[cakid1]

Minnesota Pastor Gus Booth of Warroad Community Church got an audit from the Internal Revenue Service because he advised his congregants in a sermon last year not to vote for Barack Obama.

Booth was one of several pastors who endorsed presidential candidates from the pulpit last September.

The Internal Revenue Service has...

[cakid1]

Didn't see this posted. Is this a victory? Or something else...?

[FlingWingFlyer]

It’s time for the IRS to go. It’s nothing but a worthless ass political weapon.

[bareford101]

the IRS has said it isn't going any further now, BUT it could commence at any time. Sounds like a threat to me.

How many Communist punches to the belly are we going to stand for?? obamanation is a dirty man, in every way, and goes for the death of anyone/thing who does not go along with his communist/socialist/Marxist agenda!!

I hope this church goes very VOCAL if they hear anymore about this.

[bareford101]

I would bet the farm that NONE of the LIBERAL “churches” got audited!!! even those who really aren’t a church, but a cult, such as scientology

[pnh102]

If liberal leaning “churches” can openly endorse 0bama without risking their tax-exempt status then other churches should be able make the opposite endorsement without said risk.

[gargoyle]

...Seems the issue is on hold, but, will be brought up later. SOS, the long arm of the current executive branch will be watching. They have their friends at their church, and an enemies list at other churches...

[Stingray]

Think about this for a hot minute...

We all expect the IRS (like most government agencies) to be arrogant bastards, but there’s something scarier about this story that no one seems to catch: how does the IRS find out about these things?

A small, rural church in the middle of nowhere. How would an organization like the IRS find out about this?

My guess: someone sitting in the pew listening to that sermon picked up the phone and called the IRS to rat the pastor out.

Someone in the church - filling the role of a Nazi “quizling” - turned in their friends and pastor and put this church at risk for persecution by the IRS.

That, my friends, ought to make any of us think twice about the people we share a pew with. Be careful what you say and to whom you say it. You never know who’s going to stab you in the back with your own words.

[SeaHawkFan]

the IRS has said it isn't going any further now, BUT it could commence at any time. Sounds like a threat to me.

The IRS knows if it pursued a case, they would lose and then every pastor would know for sure they could advocate from the pulpit. As it is liberal pastor get no grief and a conservative pastor would have a great equal protection claim.

[wastoute]

Actually this kind of behaviour from our gummint is almost humorous. How am I supposed to react to this? Let us consider, here I sit as a patriot. I am ready to re-enact Lexington, Concord, and Ft Sumner for real. I am willing to be waterboarded by Zero's minions if captured and probably would actually be mistreated far worse. BUT somewhere along the way I might be audited by the IRS so I guess I better just sit down and shut up. It is insulting actually.

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[GreenLanternCorps]

My understanding is that several churches did this last year specifically to challenge the IRS regulations that penalize churches when pastors take a political stance from the pulpit.

The argument is that pastors should not have to give up their free speech rights to comment on politics as a pastor in order to keep their tax-exempt status. Exhibit A for them is the large number of liberal churches that implicitly endorse Democrat candidates by giving them the pulpit.

I think they have been than even odds to win, and that's why the audit was dropped...