Federal Roundup (federal courts and IRS)

Big Brother By Rob Boston

Chancellor Falwell Is Trying To Turn Tax-Exempt Liberty University Into A Partisan Political Machine – And Dominate Lynchburg Elections. Will The IRS Step In?

“This is one of the most blatant and dishonest attempts to influence an election by a non-profit religious organization I have ever seen,” (The Rev. Barry) Lynn said. “We hope the IRS acts swiftly to stop Liberty’s overt partisan politicking.”

Read more here.

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High Court: Okla. Commandments Display Is Not OK

The Ten Commandments must be removed from an Oklahoma courthouse lawn, now that the U.S. Supreme Court has passed over an appeal requesting that the monument remain...

Read more here.

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A contract postal unit cannot promote religion, says the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear the case, which means the Circuit Court decision stands.

To find out more, see Supreme Court Won’t Take Delivery On Post Office Religion Case.

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Church Or B&B?: Infamous ‘C Street House’ Should Lose Tax Break, Clergy Say

A group of clergy has asked the Internal Revenue Service to examine the tax-exempt status of a house in Washington, D.C., connected to a shadowy Religious Right group called The Family.

The residential building in question is located on Capitol Hill near congressional offices. The Family, also known as the Fellowship Foundation, has for years received a tax exemption for the property (formally called the C Street Center), claiming it is a church.

An alliance of Ohio-based ministers challenged that assertion. In a Feb. 23 letter to the IRS, members of Clergy Voice asserted that the C Street house is “an exclusive club for powerful officials…masquerading as a church.”

Read more here.

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Appeals Court Upholds Use Of ‘Under God’ In Classroom Pledge

A federal appeals court has ruled that classroom use of the phrase “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance does not violate the separation of church and state.

The 2-1 ruling March 11 by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is the latest decision in a long-running legal campaign by Michael Newdow to have “under God” declared unconstitutional in the public school context.

Newdow, a California atheist activist, scored an initial victory in 2002 when a separate panel of 9th Circuit judges ruled in his favor. That decision was appealed to the Supreme Court, which vacated it, holding that Newdow lacked the right to sue (“standing”) on behalf of his daughter. (He does not have full custody of her.)

In the more recent decision, the 9th Circuit majority in Newdow v. Rio Linda School District declared that the Pledge is a patriotic exercise. The insertion of “under God” by Congress in 1954, the judges said, does not make the oath religious...

Read more here.