Current Events > Removing the Johnson Amendment would increase dark money in politics

(+) Yeah! (+)

http://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/363144-congress-would-hardwire-dark-money-into-our-democracy#.WihY6FscXMU.facebook

One policy rider that keeps making it into law is one that restricts the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) from making an anti-dark money rule. This prevents one part of the government from doing the right thing for investors and voters alike by letting us all know if a source of dark money is corporate.

The latest iteration of Congress enabling potentially more dark money instead of less is the move in the latest tax overhaul bill to eliminate the Johnson Amendment. This amendment keeps churches and other religious institutions out of politics. Right now, churches, synagogues or mosques that get involved in politics risk their tax exempt 501(c) status when they do. Getting rid of the Johnson Amendment would welcome mega churches into partisan fights and could create a new conduit for untraceable dark money in politics.

Seems to me this is at the core of the GOP plan: pass a bill that is hugely unpopular, but massively empowers their political fundraising, potentially allowing them to overcome the unpopularity from what is known to the public by running enough distractions to mollify that damage. And donors get a tax break when they give money to churches who proceed to run such ads!
---

HAHA! Take that liberals!
---

The only way for the evil conservatives to win is by cheating cuz they are hugely unpopular
---

they won

it's over man
---

They ever state a reason for repealing it?
---

Well, churches dictating policy arent worse than corporations doing so. Just bad in different ways...
---

A_Good_Boy posted...

They ever state a reason for repealing it?

because they want to

imo we're maybe 5 years and two big democrat cycle victories from the filibuster being gone, churches in general having their tax exempt status stripped, and 'corporate personhood' being declared a basis for the 'death penalty' (nationalization + seizure of all assets) as a 'take that' response. @Questionmarktarius brought that up in a previous topic of mine and while I strongly dislike it, it does seem like something that would happen

none of which i want, it's the wrong direction to go in, but the alternative to democrats is going to be "lose forever"

and probably no universal healthcare, proper alternative energy, or other 'good' things for the people
---

TheCyborgNinja posted...

Well, churches dictating policy arent worse than corporations doing so. Just bad in different ways...

So we want to be like islamic countries where religion decides the laws no thx
---