Okay, that’s about as alarmist as I’m willing to get, especially on short notice.
Still, this article caught my attention:
A minister said she was shaken by a call from a state Republican Party staffer who challenged her church’s planned discussion of Social Security.
The Rev. Lisa Doege said the caller told her that holding the program could even endanger First Unitarian Church’s tax-exempt status.
More below.
Okay, so Doege says it wasn’t a threat:
“I would not use the word ‘threat,’ ” Doege said. “It shook me a little.”
No threat was intended, said state Rep. Luke Messer, executive director of the Indiana Republican Party.
…
The purpose of the state party’s call was to offer a speaker who could represent the Republican viewpoint on Social Security and point out that a tax-exempt church should not be involved in partisan activities, Messer said.
Messer, a legislator from Shelbyville, said no threat to the church was intended and no effort was made to prevent Ghilarducci from speaking.
Damn these tantalizing news feeders!
Oh well. Speculate anyway.
