A website, called "HR.235 Houses of Worship Free Speech Restoration Act," (
www.hr235.org) includes a list of supporters of the bill, which is dominated by socially conservative religious leaders. Backers include Franklin Graham, Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention, David Keene of the American Conservative Union, Roberta Combs of the Christian Coalition, Sandy Rios of Concerned Women for America, D. James Kennedy, the Rev. Frank Pavone of Priests for Life, right-wing organizer Grover Norquist, James Dobson of Focus on the Family, Gary Bauer of American Values and Pat Robertson's ACLJ.
Some in Congress have taken that website's claim of universal support for the Jones bill to task. In an Oct. 15 letter to his colleagues, Rep. Chet Edwards (D-Texas) challenged the website's claim that "all religions, of all faiths support" the bill.
"This claim of unanimous support by the sponsors of this legislation could not be further from the truth," Edwards wrote. "In fact, most faith traditions in America are actively opposing this legislation and have gone to great lengths to communicate their opposition to the very premise of the bill itself."
Edwards' letter listed several religious groups that had sent letters to Congress opposing the Jones bill, including the General Board of Church & Society of The United Methodist Church, Seventh-day Adventist Church, Presbyterian Church (USA), the Episcopal Church, the Baptist Joint Committee on Public Affairs and the Central Conference of American Rabbis.
In a mid-November letter to U.S. representatives, the Episcopal Policy Network urged the House to defeat the Jones bill.
"Although the bill purports to protect houses of worship,
it actually removes important safeguards that protect our religious liberty," wrote Maureen Shea, director of the church's Office of Government Relations. "Religious leaders have already the ability to speak out on any number of social issues facing society and Congress from their houses of worship. Current law simply limits groups from being both a tax-exempt ministry and a partisan political entity. Further, those houses of worship that wish to participate politically for or against candidate(s) seeking political office can give up their tax-exempt status and participate fully in the election process."
Some House members have also raised concerns about the measure's effect on the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, the 2002 law intended to curb unlimited campaign contributions known as "soft money."
Reps. Christopher Shays (R-Conn.) and Marty Meehan (D-Mass.), who led the fight for the campaign finance bill in the House, issued a letter to their colleagues on Nov. 10 noting that the Jones bill "opens a dangerous loophole for a new form of soft money in elections."
Shays and Meehan, citing a report by the Campaign Legal Center, wrote that H.R. 235 "would turn houses of worship into makeshift campaign ad recording studios, enabling them to broadcast partisan messages delivered during religious services."
The group's report, which is available on its website,
www.campaignlegalcenter.org, states that the Jones bill would "permit certain forms of activity by houses of worship with significant campaign finance implications, particularly the widespread distribution of election-related presentations made during religious services or gatherings, including through television, radio, and other media."