The First doesn’t specifically require tax exemption for churches, true, but it does forbid discriminating against religion. So this -
is theoretically possible. You could not eliminate tax-exemption from churches but not other non-profits.
But Beto suggesting removing tax exemption from all charities would piss off everybody, not just religious people.
No, it’s un-Constitutional to interfere with the free practice of religion and free speech by imposing a litmus test on churches.
Given Mr. O’Rourke’s current position in the polls, and his unfortunate habit of warning us of his anti-Constitutional views, I think his chances are not so much “small” as “not a snowball’s chance in hell”.
Maybe somebody will pick him as VP. But I doubt that. He almost didn’t lose in Texas. He almost didn’t embarrass himself in the Democratic race for the nom. I suspect he has reached the pinnacle. At 3%. Among Democrats.
Who gives a fuck what republicans think? THey are going to say this no matter what.
Also they aren’t going to vote for O’Rourke anyway. It isn’t like a bunch of angry white people from small towns in love with their guns were ever going to vote democrat anyway.
Also right wingers are not the average voter. The average voter believes in reasonable gun control.
When republicans raised taxes on churches you didn’t hear conservatives saying these things.
Which again brings up the point, why is it always the democrats who have to be moderate and reach across the aisle? And why do people always assume independents and moderates will recoil from anything remotely controversial if the democrats do it, but they’re fine if republicans do the same thing?
No, I’m sure you could. You just make the litmus test be the percentage of your activities/spending that are actually charitable work, like every organization that isn’t a church. If 80% of your business is giving speeches on the weekend, not tax exempt.
Fox News and Breitbart might engage in some recreational outrage and gin up some apoplexy among their fans, no doubt. But moderates and independents don’t give any more shits about Fox News and Breitbart than they do about O’Rourke.
People who vote solely on having their supposed right to own guns aren’t going to vote Democratic in a million years. Neither are evangelicals. It doesn’t matter what Beto says or does.
Due to the current occupant of the White House, the scandal du jour just gets way less traction now than it used to. Few will remember this three weeks from now. Hell, most people won’t hear about it in the first place.
Don’t worry. I’m sure there will be a number of conservatives who will post in this thread to explain the legal definition of treason and how Northeast Refugee used the word incorrectly. That’s been a major cause with conservatives lately. So any second now…
I am not even lying, when I saw the thread title, I was wondering what PJ was up to, and then I thought, maybe there’s some other O’Rourke in politics I don’t know about? I had to click through the link before I remembered Beto was in the race.
In all the discussion about “free” health care it does need to be restated that Medicare (and, presumably, Medicare for all) does have a premium. As any recipient of it can attest.
Me? I’m not feeling “concern”, and nothing I’ve written in this thread was intended to suggest that I do. Frankly, I’m delighted that asshat is running.