Elimination of Mortgage, Charitable Deductions May Harm Middle Class
A suggestion by some Democrats that eliminating tax deductions for mortgage interest and charitable contributions could be part of a fiscal cliff deal is raising the specter of significant harm for the middle class, according to some experts.
And they are saying the church is at risk as well.
Some believe that President Obama may support eliminating these deductions despite repeated assertions during his campaign that he plans to protect the middle class.
The Tax Policy Center argues that households earning more than $250,000 (defined as wealthy by the Obama administration) realize an annual tax savings of around $5,460 from taking advantage of […]
Why ‘Powerful’ People Engage in Affairs and the Tools They Employ
Note: This post is longer than most but there is much to cover.
Yesterday I received a call from a reporter in Nashville wanting my thoughts on why powerful people engage in inappropriate relationships. Having fallen into that trap myself when I was a State legislator, I had some experience with the issue.
Over the past few years the list of inappropriate relationships that have been exposed nationally include former South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford, former New York Gov. Elliott Spitzer, Sens. John Edwards, David Vitter, and John Ensign, Congressmen Anthony Weiner and David Wu, and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Now former CIA […]
Why Romney is Likely to Win and With Evangelicals At His Side
I was preparing to write a post on this topic but in my daily reading on Friday I came across two articles by Jay Cost and David and Nancy French that say it all. The bottom line is that I believe not only will Mitt Romney win the presidency, but he will do it with the overwhelming support of evangelical voters.
This first article is from Jay Cost of The Weekly Standard. Jay is an excellent writer and even mentions another favorite of mine, Sean Trende from Real Clear Politics.
Cost believes that a Romney victory will come because of two […]
Two Insightful Op-Ed’s from Charles Krauthammer & Penny Nance
Like most journalist, in addition to writing each day I spend an inordinate amount of time reading op-ed’s and news articles. This morning I ran across two that sum up the election on different fronts.
The first one is by noted Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer. He offers a concise look at what Obama wants to do in the areas of healthcare, education and energy in a second term. I wish every undecided voter would read it (assuming there are any undecided voters out there).
You can read Krauthammer’s article here.
The second column is by Penny Nance who is the CEO […]
Who Is Nate Silver and Why Should You Care About Him?
Nate Silver might not be a household name, but he is receiving much attention this election season given his astoundingly accurate prediction in the 2008 election.
Silver, who began his career calculating political statistics blogging for the Daily Kos and now is blogging for The New York Times, accurately predicted the winner of 49 of the 50 states in 2008. So it’s no wonder pundits are eager to see Silver’s election forecast this year.
His predictions for this election come with some surprises, including that the 2008 voter make-up – strongly non-white and young – will again come out to the polls […]
Should Pastors, Religious Leaders Endorse Political Candidates and Is It Legal?
One of the more common strategies any candidate or campaign seeks to employ is to use the endorsement of high profile individuals who are willing to lend their name and personal support to a candidate with the intention of influencing others to do the same. But the issue gets a bit sticky when those endorsing are connected to a church or a major religious organization.
But perhaps before answering whether they should, the first question to ask is can they legally endorse political candidates?
Under the 501 (c) (3) section of the Internal Revenue Service Code, it states that churches may engage […]