Topic: Rick Santorum Coming To A Church In My Town

[Neon Genesis]

Rick Santorum is coming to this conservative Christian church in my town this weekend to speak.  Is this constitutional for them to invite presidential candidates?  Doesn't that count as endorsing a candidate?

[Desert Fox]

In my opinion yes although I first complained about this with Al Gore

[Neon Genesis]

Here's an article about it: http://timesfreepress.com/news/2012/feb/17/local-tea-party-lures-santorum-for-liberty-forum/

Presidential candidate Rick Santorum will visit Chattanooga next week, just 10 days before Tennessee's March 6 "Super Tuesday" primary.

Santorum will headline the Chattanooga Tea Party's Liberty Forum on Feb. 25 at Abba's House in Hixson.

The former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania has surged recently in national and state polls. Santorum hat-tricked elections in Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri one day last week, and a recent poll shows him beating Mitt Romney in Tennessee by seven percentage points.

However, he wasn't the local tea party's first choice.

"I think generally what we've seen is there's no perfect candidate," Chattanooga Tea Party President Mark West said, "but at this point we feel -- well, many of us feel -- that Rick Santorum most closely aligns with our values."

Communications with former House Speaker Newt Gingrich fell through, and officials also approached Rick Perry's staff before the Texas governor quit the race in January, he said.

"None of the others ever came through. ... Santorum was the first to say, 'Yes, we're there,'" West said.

Not everyone is thrilled with Santorum's appearance. Daniel Wahlen, a film student at Southern Adventist University in Collegedale, quickly organized a Facebook event called "Protest Santorum -- Idiocy + Bigotry in Chattanooga."

"The Chattanooga Tea Party has senselessly invited the worst presidential candidate in history to our wonderful city to speak on his warped view of American fascism," Wahlen wrote. "Please join the protest against the government regulating social law and plunging our country into ... social 'values' no one should enforce."

[Calinthalus]

I don't think he has a shot in hell either way.


But yes, I think it's unconstitutional.



As a side story, I live in Kentucky at a fairly religious workplace.  Also, a fairly conservative workplace.  I asked a PM here at the office if he had watched the debates the other night and he said no, that he'd seen highlights on the news.  Then he said, "They were going after that one guy pretty hard...what's his name?  The poop guy."

[David E.]

It might be worth having him elected for the jokes. 

[andrewclunn]

Oh come off it.  How often did Clinton use faith for political self promotion and visit churches?  Seriously, having a speaker is now unconstitutional when it's a church inviting them?  Oh no, universities are publicly funded and so is NPR and PBS!  They'd better not have political figures and politicians speak on their campus / programs!

/end angry rant about skeptics and atheists selectively interpreting freedom of expression to advocate for/against specific political and religious figures and position.

[Calinthalus]

Oh come off it.  How often did Clinton use faith for political self promotion and visit churches?  Seriously, having a speaker is now unconstitutional when it's a church inviting them?  Oh no, universities are publicly funded and so is NPR and PBS!  They'd better not have political figures and politicians speak on their campus / programs!

/end angry rant about skeptics and atheists selectively interpreting freedom of expression to advocate for/against specific political and religious figures and position.

Except that churches are tax free based on their non-involvement.

They are not legally allowed to promote a candidate for office or they risk losing their tax free status.  Having them speak can be construed as a tacit promotion of said candidate...Democrat or Republican.

[Chew]

Oh come off it.  How often did Clinton use faith for political self promotion and visit churches?  Seriously, having a speaker is now unconstitutional when it's a church inviting them?  Oh no, universities are publicly funded and so is NPR and PBS!  They'd better not have political figures and politicians speak on their campus / programs!

/end angry rant about skeptics and atheists selectively interpreting freedom of expression to advocate for/against specific political and religious figures and position.

Isn't it about churches' tax free status?

[andrewclunn]

So tax free = no political speech, but taxpayer funded doesn't?  Alright, now find me the place in the Constitution where it says that.

[Chew]

So tax free = no political speech, but taxpayer funded doesn't?  Alright, now find me the place in the Constitution where it says that.

That would be the 1st Amendment.

[David E.]

Ask him if he is aware that Women, and non Christians can vote?

[andrewclunn]

So tax free = no political speech, but taxpayer funded doesn't?  Alright, now find me the place in the Constitution where it says that.

That would be the 1st Amendment.

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

Looks like you're full of shit.

[Chew]

So tax free = no political speech, but taxpayer funded doesn't?  Alright, now find me the place in the Constitution where it says that.

That would be the 1st Amendment.

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

Looks like you're full of shit.

No, I was jerking your chain. You obviously misunderstood the purpose of the question mark at the end of the sentence when I asked about churches' tax free status. See that? The question mark? It is used in some languages to indicate the sentence is asking a question. Sometimes it can be used as a literary device to imply sarcasm but in this case it was a sincere question.

Persecution complex much?

[andrewclunn]

The only question mark in that quote block was mine.

[Chew]

The only question mark in that quote block was mine.

Citation: Re: Rick Santorum Coming To A Church In My Town