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September 16, 2005
Seperation Of Church And State, My A@*!
There was a very reasonable flat tax proposal here in Utah that was crushed by a not so casual word from the LDS Church because the proposal would eleminate deductions for charitable donations. Given that proper LDS tithe, this is a non-negotiable issue for them and all it took was for the LDS Churches lawyer to show up and express the church's displeasure. As the trib reports in the opening paragraph:
When the LDS Church talks, people on Utah's Capitol Hill listen.
And Thursday, when an attorney representing the faith urged state lawmakers debating tax reform to keep a tax deduction for charitable giving in place, the message had the desired effect.
The whole idea was tossed into the nearest trashcan, although that's not how they framed it:
At word of the church's scheduled statement, Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.'s advisers pulled back a team of economists prepared to propose a 4.6 percent flat tax. They said they wanted to give the experts more time to refine their models.
Refine their models, huh? In other words, nothing passes unless it makes us happy, and none of those spineless politicians have the gumption to stand up to the church else the church bring out it's formidable fund-raising prowess and end their political career. If this were the real world instead of Utah, this would be blackmail!
It's pathetic.
Cross posted at Political State Report
Posted by Jonathan at September 16, 2005 5:54 PM
Comments
In a representative government, legislators have a responsibility to their constituency. A constituency that has an LDS majority would expect their legislators to act in their best interest. And if you really believe this is a separation of church and state issue, perhaps you need to take a fresh look at the first ammendment. Does the first ammendment imply separation of church and state, or simply religious freedom from oppressive government?
Posted by: Dave at May 5, 2006 3:10 PM