Norton Blasts Republican Attempt to Inject Political Money into Houses of Worship Under the Guise of Religious Freedom

Press Release

On the same day President Trump signed a controversial executive order easing regulations that prevent places of worship and tax-exempt charities from engaging in political activity, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today at an Oversight and Government Reform Committee (OGR) hearing spoke out against Republican attempts to gut the Johnson Amendment, which prohibits churches and charitable organizations from engaging in political campaign activity. Norton noted that the vast majority religious institutions, including 90 percent of the clergy, oppose repealing the Johnson Amendment. Republicans instead are intent on expanding the dark money of Citizens United into our houses of worship, which Norton said would undermine the special status and respect they enjoy in America. Norton, a constitutional lawyer, said there had been only one court ruling on the Johnson Amendment because, she believes, it is obviously a constitutional provision that protects religious institutions.

"None of the witnesses invited by the Republican majority to today's hearing were members of the clergy," Norton said. "Clergy are among our most powerful groups and know how to make their voices heard to protect their unique place in American society, and the overwhelmingly majority of clergy oppose repealing the Johnson Amendment. Clergy already enjoy great leeway in their houses of worship when it comes to political speech, and some of the most political figures in our country are ministers and rabbis. The Republican attempt to roll back the Johnson Amendment is not about free speech; it is about using houses of worship to inject more money into our political system."

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