Capitol Hill Prayer Alert: Breaking the Law?

I'm not a lawyer, and I don't play one on TV.  But the fundamentalist religious organization Capitol Hill Prayer Alert prints a sentence at the bottom of each page:

The Capitol Hill Prayer Alert is a religious educational charity meeting the IRS requirements for a 501 (c) 3 status.

As such, it is conveniently tax exempt.  But is the basis for its tax exemption invalid?  Has Capitol Hill Prayer Alert broken the law?  Read on for clear instances of political electioneering that may cross the line...

I'm not a lawyer, and I don't play one on TV.  But the fundamentalist religious organization Capitol Hill Prayer Alert prints a sentence at the bottom of each page:

The Capitol Hill Prayer Alert is a religious educational charity meeting the IRS requirements for a 501 (c) 3 status.

As such, it is conveniently tax exempt.  I further note IRS Publication IR-2004-59, which lists the legal condition of that tax exemption:

Organizations described in section 501(c)(3) of the Code that are exempt from federal income tax are prohibited from participating or intervening in any political campaign on behalf of, or in opposition to, any candidate for public office. Charities, educational institutions and religious organizations, including churches, are among those that are tax-exempt under this code section. These organizations cannot endorse any candidates, make donations to their campaigns, engage in fund raising, distribute statements, or become involved in any other activities that may be beneficial or detrimental to any candidate. Even activities that encourage people to vote for or against a particular candidate on the basis of nonpartisan criteria violate the political campaign prohibition of section 501(c)(3). Whether an organization is engaging in prohibited political campaign activity depends upon all the facts and circumstances in each case. For example, organizations may sponsor debates or forums to educate voters. If the debate or forum shows a preference for or against a certain candidate, however, it becomes a prohibited activity. The federal courts have upheld this prohibition on political campaign activity, most recently in Branch Ministries v. Rossotti, 211 F.3d 137 (D.C. Cir. 2000). The courts have held that it is not unconstitutional for the tax law to impose conditions, such as the political campaign prohibition, upon exemption from federal income tax. If the IRS finds a section 501(c)(3) organization engaged in prohibited campaign activity, the organization could lose its tax-exempt status and it could be subject to an excise tax on the amount of money spent on that activity.

So, then, what do we make of statements such as these?

• "Please Join Us in Solemn Prayer: Lord, MOVE upon Christians across our land to CONTEND for TRUTH! EXPOSE Hillary Clinton!" (link)

• "Dear Praying Biblical Christians and others:

  Recently Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) made news saying she feels it is important for Democrats (read leftists, socialists and mostly pagans ­ no matter what they profess with their mouths) to be open to "dialogue" with pro-lifers.

  Those of us who have watched Hillary and her colleagues for years knew this was nothing more than a blatant political attempt to portray herself as a "moderate centrist." She and the leadership of her party could NEVER truly dialogue with God-fearing pro-lifers.

  You might ask "Why?"; because Hillary and the party leadership are CONTROLLED by N.O.W., Planned Parenthood, the teachers unions, the homosexual lobby, the ACLU, anarchists, etc., all of whom have pledged their lives to "the shedding of innocent blood" (Isa 59:6,7), i.e. ABORTION.

  You may again ask "Why?"; because, as good pagans, they are dedicated to opposing what Jesus holds dear (Ro 1:18-25; 2:4-8).

  Back to Hillary. Our dear colleague Rev. Patrick Mahoney and his team have, for months, politely approached Sen. Clinton's office in a sincere effort to engage in her newly-announced desire to open dialogue with pro-lifers. Their efforts have been rebuffed continually (often hostilely). Obviously, she wears this "I'm so open" mask in public, but another in private and in truth.
  Unfortunately for her God knows her heart and plans (as He does ours as well). The Father, Son and Holy Spirit intensely dislike hypocrisy (Job 36:13) and promise sever judgment (Luke 11:44).

  Pray for Hillary! She desperately wants to be President. But, she could lose her soul in the quest (Mt 16:26) Pray that she will have a visitation from the Lord and REPENTS before it's too late. What a dramatic change would occur in our nation if that were to happen! Nothing is impossible with God (Mt 19:26)" (link)

• "A Kerry Court would be way left." (link)

• "Does John Kerry think it's evil to behead innocent men?" (link)

• "As President George W. Bush grows closer to God, cites more Scripture and references his prayer life more and more, his enemies are becoming evermore angry and filled with hate (for instance, the Democratic leaders, academics, liberal media, Muslims, the French political leaders, Hollywood elites, etc.)." (link)

• "Lord, thank You for overthrowing Your enemies who desperately wanted to crush Your sons John Ashcroft and George Bush.

  "We rejoice in Your power and Your marvelous works. Please strengthen and empower our brothers John Ashcroft and President Bush to execute JUSTICE.

  "We pray in Jesus' Name. Amen!" (link)

• "Unless we elect leaders in November who forcefully defend the Biblical institution of marriage, a small cadre of radical, unelected state and federal and Supreme Court judges WILL turn the American family, law and jurisprudence and 6000 years of human history upside down just as they did in Massachusetts!

  ...

  "Let Freedom Ring Inc., a new group to "counter the millions of dollars being spent to discredit President Bush by leftist groups like billionaire George Soros' MoveOn.org," will use TV commercials, videos, documentaries, Web campaigns, and voter-registration drives to "reinforce traditional values and inspire a new generation of Americans to participate actively in our political process" (link)

• "DeLay is a bold dedicated Believer in Jesus Christ. No one in Washington could replace him were he absent even temporarily. His recently announced intention to shape a House agenda, boldly more conservative than that planned by the White House, has made him a target of the left, as well as by some moderates and conservatives. We believe this is an election year effort to malign perhaps Washington's most powerful and effective pro-life, pro-family leader.
  This battle is a must win for dedicated, praying Christians.

  Let Us Prevail in Prayer for Tom DeLay..."link

• "Democrats falsely accuse and abuse President George W. Bush. Even some conservative Christians harshly condemn him. There may be reasons to criticize our President, but there are many, many reasons to thank God for him and all he has done. Scripture urges us both to intercede and offer thanks for our President. We ought to do both, often.

      * Bush is a great leader. He has vision, intuition, strong core values; he builds trust and alliances, communicates, is disciplined, gets good people and lets them do their job.

      * He defends U.S. national sovereignty and refused to subject Americans to the International Criminal Court. He abandoned the Soviet ABM Treaty to build a missile defense system to protect America's mainland. He rejected the Kyoto (global warming) Treaty.

      * He kept his tax cut promises (impacting the economy for years to come). His Mid-East policy has anti-Israel Arab nations on notice. He refuses to deal with Yasser Arafat. Via a restored Mexico City policy, he has defunded organizations that support abortion abroad. He'll defend the Partial Birth Abortion Ban and promises to uphold traditional marriage.

      * Bush has made excellent judicial appointments. He was courageous to appoint Attorney General John Ashcroft and has made other good cabinet and agency appointments (e.g., Donald Rumsfeld). He rejects all human cloning at home and abroad (Bush appointees heroically led the U.N. cloning battle).

      * The President has been a remarkable leader in the war against terrorism and is a great Commander in Chief to our men in arms!

      * He is a bold believer in Jesus Christ whose private life supports his profession (i.e., no more White House SCANDALS)....and much more.

  Conservatives dislike certain popular measures Bush has supported. But what if Al Gore, Howard Dean or Hillary Clinton was President? Unless God sends REVIVAL, America will likely never elect a better President than G.W. Bush. From God's view, he may be much better than we deserve. As we gather with our families on Thanksgiving Day, may we be thankful to God for President Bush and every other God-fearing leader with whom He has blessed us." (link)

• "May God FRUSTRATE the deceitful efforts of liberal groups and candidates bent upon destroying Christian morality in America..." (link)
  

As I said, I'm not a lawyer, but even a non-lawyer can pose an honest question:

Is Capitol Hill Prayer Alert in violation of the law?

If so, what can be done about it?

(This diary entry brought to you from the folks at Irregular Times)

•  If you're a lawyer...

  ...your legal knowledge would be much appreciated.

  by theolock on Tue May 03, 2005 at 06:56:33 PM PDT

•  I'm not a lawyer...

  ... so of course my viewpoint isn't particularly useful, but it certainly does seem suspect.  The question is... what can be done about it?  File a complaint with the IRS?

  by tree hugger on Tue May 03, 2005 at 07:16:22 PM PDT

  •  first try

    their home state's authorities, such as bureaus of revenue (state taxes) and business licensing.

    by Cedwyn on Tue May 03, 2005 at 07:42:50 PM PDT

•  fundamentalist?

  Do they worship Huitzipochtli?  What kind of scripture do they use:

  "Scripture urges us both to intercede and offer thanks for our President. We ought to do both, often. ...

  Bush is a great leader. ... He abandoned the Soviet ABM Treaty to build a missile defense system to protect America's mainland. He rejected the Kyoto (global warming) Treaty."

  So Democrats are pagans, whatever they profess, and they are bent on destroying morality by re-joining ABM Treaty and accepting Kyoto Treaty.  And ICC.  God frowns upon ICC.  God demands defending "American suvereignty".

  I think that they should be sued for fraud and slander.

  by Piotr on Tue May 03, 2005 at 08:47:30 PM PDT

•  Sooner or later

  Sooner or later these pseudo-christian political groups need to be pruned back to the confines of the law.  The longer this shit goes on the worse off this country will be.  The only other option is for decent people on the left to knowingly break the same laws with the same amount of impunity and pride, which ain't gonna happen because good people are, uh, not like that.

  How far does the law have to deteriorate before the entire population gives up on it altogether?

  by Bob Love on Tue May 03, 2005 at 11:37:44 PM PDT

•  I agree, so...

  I agree.  So who are the people to do it?  I'm just a single person; you're just a single person.

  What's the organization that's out there to take care of law-breaking by the religious fundamentalists?  The ACLU is not that organization -- they'd take the side of liberty rather than restriction.  So who is it?  Americans United for the Separation of Church and State?  Does anyone know who takes up these cases?

  by theolock on Wed May 04, 2005 at 04:06:34 AM PDT