European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - March 3, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 10 Colum its the stars and stripes Friday March 3,1989 Andrew j. Glass need for ethics Law simply can t be ignored soon after moving into the while House. Ronald Reagan ordered a picture of Calvin Coolidge his Sci turn re publican forebear Hung in the White House Cabinet room. The political line age however May run More closely to George be sure there s a certain gusto in he Bush White House thai does t Square with the dreamlike qualities of the Coolidge and Reagan eras. As Coo Lite go and Reagan before him Bush seems in Drift toward a Don t worry do Happy administration. Such an approach he feels perhaps with some justification suits today s National mood bet Ter than the do Goodison of a Michael Dukakis. historical link Between Bush and cooler dec works Busl if you equate Rea Gan s tenure with that of Coolidge s predecessor Warren a Harding from the Day he look office Bush has stressed he need for government that adheres to the highest ethical standards one that ministers to a Kinder gentler nation. That evokes Coolidge s efforts in the mid 1920s to eradicate the Slench created by he scandals of the Harding administration. Although Bush like coot dec seems com milled to preserving the nation s underlying economic and political status quo he s also striving to put some space Between himself and Reagan on the Ethi Cal from. His chief too has been a Spe Cial commission on governmental ethics Reform headed by Malcolm Wilkey and former attorney general Griffin Bell both of them former Federal judges. That panel is soon Neely to urge Congress to ban in All three branches of government the odious practice of Hon or aria Washington a version of pay for As matters stand House rules bar members from allowing anyone to pick up the Tab for a business meal in excess of s3 5. The Senate which sports somewhat grander culinary1 airs sets its. Limit at $50. Fiut House members cart earn up to 30 James j. Kilpatrick percent of their salaries amounting in most cases to upwards of $26,850 a year in so called Honor aria. The Senate s rules Are much the same. / baldly that could mean eating break fast with the executive committee of say the a Fiona Gizmo association a cd Pirig along with your Bacon and eggs a Check for several thousand dollars and ing up la he Capitol and casting your decisive vote against the Gizmo Reform acl.,. Lawyers Call Hal the appearance of a conflict of interest. Less delicately we could Call it Monkey business. In this town appearances count. Not Long ago i invited Dennis r. Patrick chairman of the Federal communications commission to attend the upcoming annual Gridiron club spoof by fellow newspaper journalists of officials they cover regularly including president ii Sli and other bigwigs. Commissioner. Patrick sent word that he could t come because other branches of our company run broadcast and Cable properties which the acc regulates. Our rules Are stricter than those of the while House an acc Rne primly. Yet Tiik rules arc All too a when it comes to some Well known columnists Media heavies who can command upward of $25,000 for an appearance before a Gizmo group. It s not far nothing Hal the press is often called the fourth Branch of govenis Mcnol. At the very least readers arc entitled to know about any cozy relationships with Gizmo dealers when they read a report about the perilous state of gizmos. Ethics legislation faces a somewhat shaky future even if president Bush put the full weight of his office behind it. Many lawmakers arc about their recent loss of a big pay raise even some hypocrites among them who said that icy did t deserve it yet Momen Tum grows for action. On this one the status quo May have to yield. Religious fax exemptions threatened by ruling Justice Antonin so a i a culled Ita judicial demolition project and a More accurate description could not be devised in its decision of feb. 21 in the Texas monthly Case the super Csc court played havoc with 200 years of Law governing the taxation of Church activities. The consequences of this stunning decision cannot Yel be fully gauged. By Clear implication the age old exemptions granted to the real property of religious institutions May now be in jeopardy. Real world demolitions typically leave Clouds of dust behind and this Case leaves a metaphorical Mountain of debris that Willhi ivc lob sorted out in years to come. These were the facts prior to october 19s4. Texas exempted virtually and mag Aidna subscriptions from its sales lax. Then the Broad exemption was repealed but an exemption was retained for periodicals that arc published or distributed by a religious Faith and hat consist wholly of writings promulgating the teaching of the Faith and books that consist wholly of writing sacred to a religious the tews monthly a general interest Magazine paid sales lanes of$l49,000 in 1983 under protest and Ihen sued for a refund. The Magazine contended thai the exemption for religious periodicals violated the first amendment s ban upon Laws favouring an establishment of religion. A trial court agreed but a Texas appellate court reversed. The Magazine Hen appealed to the us. Supreme court and won Texas monthly will get its Money Bac the High court not Only demolished Prece dents it blew itself to pieces Aiso. Justice William Brennita announced the court s judgment holding the co emotion unconstitutional but Brennan could per Suade Only Thurgood Marshall and John Paul Stevens to join his opinion. Justice Byron White concurred in the judgment but on Enid rely different grounds. Justice Harry Blackmun also concurred in the judgment but his reasoning could not be seen through the fog of his opinion. Justice Sandra Day o Connor joined Black Mun. Justice Scalia wrote a scathing dissent in which Justice Anthony Kennedy and chief Justice William Rich Nuisl joined. Out of such compound fractures is the Law left limping. This much is Clear a stale May not constitutionally single out Church books and publications and exempt them from a sates lax. Thai holding in in self demolishes statutory tax exemptions in at least 13 surmised thai Many other Stales voluntarily have not collected a lax on the religious Lilora Iurco apically offered for Sale in Church Foyers. But As Scalia pointed out Brennan s opinion also affects All kinds of Church transactions Federal Law exempts ministers from paying lax on the rental value of he rec tories hey occupy. At least 45 slates Grant specific exemptions in other areas most of the 45 exempt real property taxation on Church buildings parsonage and the like. Alabama exempts libraries of ministers of the California and Idaho exempt meals served by a religious institution. Georgia South Dakota and Washington exempt a tax on sacramental wine. Virginia of Missouri charge no tax on Church owned Auto mobiles. Mississippi exempts from its amusement tax those programs consisting entirely of gospel singing and not generally mixed with hillbilly or popular Brennan s wrecking Ball badly damaged the land Mark Case of Walz a tax commissioner in thai Caw decided in 1970, the court approved Ney York City a tax exemption for religious properties used solely for religious Brennan also knocked great gaping notes in two other cases Murdock 1943 and Follett 1944holding that License taxes May not be imposed upon persons Selling tracts or bibles door to door. The bit Lirly divided court seems not to know what in heaven to do with cases involving a conflict Between the establishment clause and the free exercise clause. At least three justices absolutely oppose any special privilege for religion. Three other justices tend to tolerate a nodding acquaintance Between Church and state. The other three arc now Here and now there at this term the constitutionality of a Christmas creche May depend upon the Square Root of the distance be tween the creche and the local of the court s Ihrck Way division in the Texas monthly Case Brennan s opinion will have limited value As a priced Cal. Even so the decision will encourage atheists and other non churchgoers to leap into litigation. If Church treasurers arc not nervous they ought to be. I unreal pm synd Calb the opinions expressed to in columns and cartoons on his Page represent Hose of the authors and jut in no Way o be considered As representing the views of the stars and stripes or the United Stolon government
