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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsSenator Rubio Pledges Government Handout to Churches in $2 Trillion Coronavirus Stimulus Package
Last edited Sun Mar 29, 2020, 09:43 AM - Edit history (1)
Today, the religious equality watchdog organization American Atheists denounced Senator Marco Rubios promise of a cash injection to churches amid the coronavirus crisis.
On Thursday, Rubio participated in a COVID-19 briefing for the Christian nationalist organization, Florida Family Policy Council. During the call, the groups founder and CEO John Stemberger asked Rubio if the government could provide help to churches from the $2 trillion stimulus bill currently in the Senate. Rubio pledged that churches would receive taxpayer funds to meet payroll and rent or lease payments.
This is as un-American as it gets, said Nick Fish, president of American Atheists. This is precisely the type of government funding of religion the framers of our Constitution warned against. That a sitting United States senator would propose diverting taxpayer dollars to subsidize religion over the lives of our fellow Americans in a time of crisis is outrageous.
This is a clear violation of the Establishment Clause of the U.S. Constitution, said Alison Gill, Vice President for Legal and Policy at American Atheists. The Supreme Court has been clear that the government cannot subsidize worship and other inherently religious activities.
In Walz v. Tax Com. of New York (1970), the Supreme Court wrote that for the men who wrote the Religion Clauses of the First Amendment the establishment of a religion connoted sponsorship, financial support, and active involvement of the sovereign in religious activity.
We cant set aside our Constitution and ignore our values at a time of crisis, said Fish. There are other, far simpler ways to ensure that every American receives the help they need without giving a massive handout to unaccountable religious groups that are free to use that money to discriminate.
https://www.atheists.org/2020/03/senator-rubio-government-funding-churches-coronavirus-stimulus/
Recording in rubios own words.
https://soundcloud.com/rightwingwatch/marco-rubio-says-coronavirus-stimulus-legislation-will-provide-government-grants-to-churches
2naSalit
(86,069 posts)I don't believe in religion or churches and I don't want our money going to pay for them to lie to people and take their money along with their common sense.
Fuck that noise.
stopbush
(24,378 posts)No fucking way.
yourmovemonkey
(264 posts)for God to supply any help he needs?
His faith seems a little weak.
smirkymonkey
(63,221 posts)I am sick of these vultures sponging off our tax dollars. They deserve nothing.
rockfordfile
(8,682 posts)SunSeeker
(51,378 posts)Fuck you, Rubio. Read the First 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.
grantcart
(53,061 posts)1) They don't even have an exact quote
2) Not only does Google not show any news source reporting this it doesn't show any other source of any kind.
3) Does it make any sense that if they were pledging financial support to churches that they would not broadcast it to churches for propoganda value?
These are bad times that are going to get worse but we should resist the temptation to post every internet rumor just because it seems to confirm our worst fears.
Because so much is at stake from now to the GE we should raise our standards in passing on reporting not lower it, it's not as if we aren't going to have enough material.
yortsed snacilbuper
(7,939 posts)link
https://soundcloud.com/rightwingwatch/marco-rubio-says-coronavirus-stimulus-legislation-will-provide-government-grants-to-churches
Of course the msm and google isn't going to report on this.
If someone tries to tell you this doesn't pass the smell test, investigate it yourself.
www.rightwingwatch.org/post/marco-ru
-to-churches/
Right Wing Watch reports on the extreme rhetoric and activities of key right-wing figures and organizations by showing their views in their own words. In this clip, Sen. Marco Rubio reveals that he has drafted plans to provide churches and other nonprofit organizations with free government grants as part of the coronavirus stimulus package.
hatrack
(59,442 posts)Well, uh, good luck with that.