Free Republic

President Donald Trump will take executive action on Thursday to ease a ban on political activity by churches and other tax-exempt institutions as part of an order on religious liberties, a senior White House official said on Wednesday. Trump's executive order to mark the National Day of Prayer will also mandate regulatory relief to religious employers that object to contraception, such as Little Sisters of the Poor, the official said in a briefing.

The executive order President Trump is expected to sign Thursday will be focused on the Johnson Amendment and allow non-profit organizations to deny certain health coverage for religious reasons, administration sources told Fox News Wednesday. Trump will instruct the Treasury Department and the IRS to not enforce the provisions of the Johnson Amendment regarding political activity in churches and non-profit organizations, according to sources. The timing and contents of the order, which would come on the National Day of Prayer, are still "very fluid" and there are still several drafts, according to a senior administration official. The Johnson Amendment, named...

All three networks this morning predictably reacted negatively to President Trump signing an executive order to scale back federal regulations on religious organizations. Calling the order “controversial,” the three networks warned the bill would likely cause discrimination and fretted about forced birth control coverage. Yet not one of the networks interviewed a religious group that would be affected positively by this order.

Fresh on the heels of a budget deal that fully funds Planned Parenthood, Donald Trump has signed a religious-liberty executive order that — if reports are correct — is constitutionally dubious, dangerously misleading, and ultimately harmful to the very cause that it purports to protect. In fact, he should tear it up, not start over, and do the actual real statutory and regulatory work that truly protects religious liberty.

President Trump's Religious Liberty executive order, like many of his orders, set out good general principles. The principles, e.g. "It shall be the policy of the executive branch to vigorously enforce Federal law's robust protections for religious freedom" are good. The actual legal authority is limited. It's a good start for a much broader program. The order largely takes on the Johnson Amendment. But as a practical matter, that needs to be repealed by Congress. And it should find its way to the agenda. President Trump can try to limit its enforcement, but as long as it's there, it's a...

There is a war on religious liberty in America – and this war is targeting people of the Christian faith. An Army of militant atheists and LGBT activists are hell-bent on eradicating Christianity from the public marketplace and punishing Christians who follow the teachings of Christ. That’s why President Trump signed an executive order on religious liberty today in the Rose Garden – to protect Americans who have been targeted by a politically correct lynch mob. The order is for people like Barronelle Stutzman – a grandmother and the owner of a Washington state flower shop. Mrs. Stutzman, a...

Yesterday, President Trump issued an Executive Order on religious liberty. The Executive Order cheered many conservatives who had expected some action on religious liberty during the President’s first 100 days.With this executive order, the Trump Administration is making clear that the federal government will never penalize any person for their protected religious beliefs.  It will be the policy of the administration to vigorously promote religious liberty.It shall: Direct the IRS to exercise maximum enforcement discretion to alleviate the burden of the Johnson Amendment, which prohibits religious leaders from speaking about politics and candidates from the pulpit; Provide regulatory relief for...

An atheist group is suing President Donald Trump over his religious liberty executive order, which loosens restrictions on political activity by religious groups. The Freedom From Religion Foundation filed suit Thursday in federal court against Trump and the Internal Revenue Service, claiming the order is unconstitutional because it makes government favor religion over nonreligion. Although the executive order applies to all nonprofits, FFRF believes it will be selectively enforced so as to only benefit churches and religious organizations.