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Federal cash for faith-based charities is a dangerous "deal with the devil"

(from the Libertarian Party Feb. 6, 2001)

WASHINGTON, DC -- President George W. Bush's proposal to direct federal funds to faith-based organizations could destroy many of the virtues that make religious groups so successful at fighting poverty, the Libertarian Party warned today.

"Religious groups will be making a deal with the devil if they accept the 30 pieces of silver from the federal government," said Steve Dasbach, the party's national director. "Accepting federal funds will
put religious groups at the mercy of government bureaucrats, make them
more dependent on government handouts, and politicize what should be
very personal religious decisions.

"Jesus Christ wasn't a government bureaucrat -- and the religious groups that have been inspired by his ministry shouldn't become government bureaucrats, either. And the same is true for Jews, Muslims, and every other religious faith that may be tempted by this
proposal."

This week, President Bush outlined a controversial plan to enhance the ability of religious groups to help those in need. Under the plan, religious groups would be able to compete for government
contracts to fund charitable activities that help the poor, the elderly, and the homeless, provide child care, or assist drug addicts and AIDS patients.

The plan would also make it easier for individuals to contribute their own money to faith-based groups by boosting tax
credits for charitable donations, changing tax law to make charitable donations more easily deductible for most people, and allowing charitable contributions from IRAs without penalty.

While Libertarians have no problem with the second part of the plan -- and would, in fact, argue for 100% tax-deductibility for all charitable contributions -- direct government funding of religious groups is a dangerous idea, said Dasbach. Such a program could...

* Make religious groups dependent on the government. For example, Catholic Charities USA, which gets 65% of its $2.3 billion budget from the federal government, already has a large, professional lobbying staff in Washington, DC working to protect its federal funding.

"Religious groups run a real risk of becoming just another subsidized industry, more concerned about wining and dining their Sugar Daddy Congressmen than feeding and sheltering the poor," said Dasbach.

* Ensnare religious groups in smothering government regulations.

"The danger is that lean, nimble, and effective religious groups will become as slow and inefficient as the government agencies they are trying to replace," said Dasbach. "The poor won't be helped by the bureaucrats from OSHA, EPA, EEOC, HUD, and HHS who swoop in to make sure religious groups conform to all the picayune regulations that are always attached to government money."

* Destroy the moral benefits of charity.

"Private charity works not only because it helps the poor, but because it helps the person providing the charity," said Dasbach. "A voluntary contribution is an expression of the Biblical directive to
'Love thy neighbor as thyself.' Voluntary contributions teach moral lessons, forge bonds, and build communities. Coercive taxation does none of those things.

"And if you don't believe it, just ask yourself: How do you feel after you've written a check to your favorite charity -- and how do you feel after you've written a check to the IRS? That's the difference between the compassion of voluntary charity and the coercion of tax-funded government programs."

For all those reasons, Congress should pass any proposal to make it easier for individuals to donate their own money to religious groups -- but reject any proposal to allow government bureaucrats to hand out tax money to those same religious groups, said Dasbach.

"Politicians should draw inspiration from the Bible," he said. "Allow individuals to render unto the Lord what is the Lord's. But Congress should not render more unto Caesar what is not Caesar's."