IRS Asks Iowa Pro-Life Group What They Pray About

I was asked today by a reporter if any groups in Iowa were targeted by the IRS.   I didn’t know at the time.  I now have my answer.  The Coalition for Life of Iowa when it was applying for tax-exempt status received a letter from the Internal Revenue Service requesting details about their prayer.

The excerpt of the letter in question…

Please explain how all of your activities, including the prayer meetings held outside of Planned Parenthood, are considered educational as defined under 501(c)(3).  Organizations exempt under 501(c)(3) may present opinions with scientific or medical facts. Please explain in detail the activities at these prayer meetings. Also, please provide the percentage of time your organizations spends on prayer groups as compared with the other activities of the organization.

Wow, wow and wow…. Apparently the folks that wrote this didn’t realize that churches who are also 501(c)(3) organizations (usually) pray a lot and offer opinions all of the time.  So the idea they can only present opinions with “scientific or medical facts” is categorically false.

This on top of the news that the Treasury Department knew about this scandal back in 2012.  Surely they didn’t keep it quiet to shield President Obama did they?

The letter is below after being made public by the Thomas More Society:

Congress Receives Irrefutable Evidence of IRS Harassment of Pro-Life Organizations by Tom Ciesielka