Silencing Christian Grassroots Groups is Not Lobby Reform

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is trying to silence Christian grassroot organizations with the sponsoring of the Legislative Transparency and Accountability Act of 2007. Senator Reid has slid a crafty section in this new piece of proposed legislation- Section 220.

Section 220 of this bill would require communications from grassroots organizations subject to registration and reporting requirements including reporting directly to the Secretary of the Senate and clerk of the House any time these groups spend money to communicate to their constituents on issues that are before Congress. Groups like Focus on the Family, The America Family Association, the Family Research Council, Vision America, and many more, would be trapped in bureaucratic red tape that would increase their communications costs and result in a weakened effort to let you know what is happening in Washington, D.C.

In addition to these fine Christian organizations being silenced, even your church pastor could be subject to this legislation should he remind your church to contact their senator about pending legislation! It is apparent from speaking with several people in Washington yesterday, that this bill was written to curtail the dramatic affect that grassroots Christian groups have had in reaching Americans from all across the country.

Ironically, this legislation is so unbalanced that is does not affect the labor unions, corporation, 527 groups or others of the big money groups. According to Carrie Gordon Earl, Senior Director of Issue Analysis for Focus on the Family Action, this legislation “afftects folks who, on a regular basis, communicate with the grassroots and pass along information.” Tony Perkins, Director of the Family Research Council added that “this should be called the ‘Silence of the Citizens Act of 2007.”

In the new era of Democrat-lead House and Senate it is imperative that the grassroots be allowed the same consideration and rules as other groups. While lobby reform is needed, squashing Christian grassroot organizations is not the answer.

Join me in helping save our nation’s grassroot Christian organizations! Take a moment and call the Capitol Switchboard today at (202) 224-3121 and ask for your senator’s office.:
• Tell them to do away with Section 220 of S-1, of the Legislative Transparency & Accountability Act of 2007.
• Tell them you want to know what business is happening in your Congress
• Tell them that silencing grassroots organizations does not qualify as lobby reform.