Maher Questions Mitt Romney's Church Contributions.
Bill Maher defends his comments during an episode of the show last week where he stated, Mitt Romney's contributions to the Mormons does not really constitute charitable giving. Further pointing out the tax deductable benefits are a cost all US tax payers have to carry.
“When Mitt Romney gets a deduction for giving to charity, the rest of us taxpayers have to cover the loss. Charitable deductions reduce the public coffers by about 60 billion dollars a year… So it is fair to ask what should constitute a charity.”
Maher did not deny the Mormons do charitable things, but pointed out they also spend an enormous amount on advocacy, in effective calling its charitable work perfunctory.
“They provide food during famines and wheelchairs to the lame. But that’s not their main concern. Which is, like any business, growing the business, opening branches, selling more product, putting asses in tabernacles. General Electric plants a tree every now and then, it doesn’t make them Johnny Appleseed.”
It's excellent that this is being exposed on popular TV and it may lead many theists to question exactly where the money they donate goes, I'm sure many are unaware of the scale of the religious lobbying that goes on and the huge amount it costs annually.
Churches, religion are registered as charities in the UK, Maher is right to question exactly what does constitute a charity. A beefburger has to contain a certain amount of beef to be called a beefburger. If in the US it's the same as the UK, the same is not true for charity. At Christmas many cards are sold for reasonable sums of money and whilst, in some cases only directing less than 1% of the recommended retail price to the largely advertised good cause, the card companies and retailers still market the cards as charity Christmas cards. Under trade description legislation, this is at best misleading, at worst fraud.
“When Mitt Romney gets a deduction for giving to charity, the rest of us taxpayers have to cover the loss. Charitable deductions reduce the public coffers by about 60 billion dollars a year… So it is fair to ask what should constitute a charity.”
Maher did not deny the Mormons do charitable things, but pointed out they also spend an enormous amount on advocacy, in effective calling its charitable work perfunctory.
“They provide food during famines and wheelchairs to the lame. But that’s not their main concern. Which is, like any business, growing the business, opening branches, selling more product, putting asses in tabernacles. General Electric plants a tree every now and then, it doesn’t make them Johnny Appleseed.”
It's excellent that this is being exposed on popular TV and it may lead many theists to question exactly where the money they donate goes, I'm sure many are unaware of the scale of the religious lobbying that goes on and the huge amount it costs annually.
Churches, religion are registered as charities in the UK, Maher is right to question exactly what does constitute a charity. A beefburger has to contain a certain amount of beef to be called a beefburger. If in the US it's the same as the UK, the same is not true for charity. At Christmas many cards are sold for reasonable sums of money and whilst, in some cases only directing less than 1% of the recommended retail price to the largely advertised good cause, the card companies and retailers still market the cards as charity Christmas cards. Under trade description legislation, this is at best misleading, at worst fraud.
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