Page 63 - Johnson Amendment News Today

And allow our representatives of faith to speak freely and without fear of retribution. i will do that. remember. freedom of religion is a sacred right. but it is also a right under threat all around us. >> the johnson amendment is of course named for lyndon johnson, which he introduced into a senate tax bill when he was a senator in 1954. that amendment bars churches and all tax exempt nonprofits from endorsing political candidates. the idea of doing away with the amendment also appears in a wh...

Oppose this as well. this is -- this is not a slam dunk. by eliminating the johnson amendment, you not just allow churches to get involved in elections, but you also open the door to all sorts of other tax-exempt groups. then theres a question of the donations to those tax-exempt groups and churches and how political donations may end up just being something you can write off on your taxes. its -- its a pandoras box. >> well have -- well see if that becomes one of the top priorities or not. this...

Okay? >> among other things, president trump talked-- celebrity apprentice ratings asking the audience to pray for arnold schwarzenegger. trump vowed to overturn the johnson amendment. the risk of losing tax-exem exe status. we wanted to know how this went over with religious leaders listening in the room and elsewhere. joining us is executive director for catholic social justice. founder and chairman of the joshua fund and author of thriller without warning. thanks for being with us. president,...

The campaign by donald trump about how japan should get its own nuclear weapons or foot the economic bill for maintaining the presence in the region. there was concern from japanese officials about how this strategic relationship, alliance with japan and the united states, would move forward during the administration of donald trump. we dont have the official readout of the meeting with shinzo abe and james mattis. you can be sure the future of the alliance that has been in place for 70 years no...

Interesting. too many washington institutions end up being too somber and my guess the prayer breakfast that way too. i dont want people writing that im sackra ligs but the fact made a joke doesnt bug me that much. >> write this down. >> charles have at me. >> they were funny and lighthearted. we know that president trump talks about his ratings and was a joke that i think was in good taste. >> consensus. >> what bothers me more is the presumption that we take the full force of government and al...

Trump administration, i think, rightly had to draw a line and say, hey, dont go too far with this. i think what nikki haley said in the u.n. security council resolution sounds an awful lot like the obama administration. the real question is, is that the establishment talking and how does that affect, you know, donald trump and his budding relationship with vladimir putin? you know, hard to say at this point. yes, i think the second week is a little bit about, you know, greater reality and a slig...

>> back in 1954, lyndon johnson got this past as a senator. it essentially was targeted to some people who used political campaigns against them. it was never even thought of to be used against churches and nonprofit and 5o1c3 organizations. that is exactly what happened. so, since the 1950s, churches have had a chill put on them, fearing that the irs is going to come in and shut them down if they did anything that was deemed political. what do you have seen is a lot of churches, of all types an...

With steve scalise majority whip in the house, jody hice and james langford senator of oklahoma was there when we introduced the bill again. religious freedom needs to flourish in this country. our countrys ability to flourish was contingent upon that. >> shannon: the johnson amendment makes most churches and religious leaders feel like their hands are tied. if they express endorsement of a particular religious position, party or person who is running for office they risk their tax exempt status...

Johnson amendment. thats important discussion. >> yes. it prevents big foundation and schools all 501 c 3 charities from being involved. if you get rid of johnson amendment in whole sasale, you giving them -- i can imagine them taking a more tailored version aimed at churches and churches around the country that define this ban. there are pulpit movements and election season efforts to dare the -- assuming it doesnt happen. >> where it president obama these days? >> he was still in california on...

Attention, or his promise to get rid of the johnson amendment which prohibits nonprofit organizations from getting involved in politics. that kind of humor is fine, but in some ways i think we need to look at the rest of the speech. >> all right, ryan lizza, julian zelizer, thanks for playing this morning. ill be right back. dont let unanswered legal questions hold you up, because were here, were here, and weve got your back. legalzoom. legal help is here.