Churches weigh in on Trump's executive order on religion

Trump's executive order specifically refers to religions and religious organizations, and Trump pointedly spoke only of "people of faith" and religions in his remarks in the Rose Garden Thursday as he signed the order.

The 1954 Johnson Amendment restricts political activity by nonprofits, and previous year on the campaign trail, Trump told a meeting of 100 evangelical and conservative Catholic leaders he would abolish that rule, at least inasmuch as it pertains to religious entities.

"No one should be censoring sermons or targeting pastors". But Mat Staver of Liberty Counsel says to restore religious freedom, a lot of the work needs to be done by the states. While Congress would need to officially scrap the law, the order will reduce the likelihood that a religious organisation would be penalised if one of its leaders endorsed a candidate.

Surrounded by a variety of religious leaders, President Trump signed an executive order calling on the IRS to essentially refrain from going after churches who speak out on political issues.

Both praise and criticism following the President's new executive order that could allow religious groups to become more politically active.

The executive order promises that the executive branch of the federal government will honor and enforce all existing protections for religious liberty.

But the copy Trump signed on Thursday was much narrower in scope, with language so vague that some conservatives wondered if the order would have any effect at all.

The order does not seem to include a measure that would allow organizations to discriminate against LGBTQ people based on religious beliefs, as it had been thought it might.

The order also asks the government to issue rules that would allow religious groups such as the Little Sister of the Poor to deny their employees insurance coverage for services that they oppose on religious grounds, such as birth-control pills.

Instead, the order prevents the IRS from expanding its restrictions on political activity by religious groups.

According to NBC, Trump's executive order called "Promoting Free Speech and Religious Liberty" relaxes enforcement of the Johnson Amendment, which forbids tax-exempt organizations such as churches from engaging in political speech and activities. Whether by executive order or through backroom deals, it's clear that the Trump administration and Congressional leadership are using religion as a wedge to further divide the country and permit discrimination.

They also argue that Trump does not have the power to overturn the law.

A spokesperson for the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa told KCCI, "President Trump's executive order is unsafe and ill-advised for the government's interest and for houses of worship".