Most of the media have never given a damn about the Clinton (LAWYER), Obama (LAWYER) or Biden (LAWYER) corruption, which is massive. JACK HELLNER
There it is. That's the issue. To begin, you have the corrupt family Biden. They've been scamming us and our system well for almost fifty years. The man is supposedly worth over 250 million dollars. How is this possible on his salary? It's not. So where did his wealth come from? Not from being a brilliant businessman. DAVID PRENTICE
Victorious Democrats would also end congressional investigations into the Hillary-Deep State-DNC-Russian-Clinton Foundation collusion and corruption. All the players in these massive, sordid affairs will be deemed “too big to jail” – and too closely tied to the Democratic Party to be investigated further. Paul Driessen
Hillary and her campaign aides have long been involved with Russia for reasons of personal gain. Clinton herself got $145 million in donations to the Clinton Foundation for allowing Russia to take over twenty percent of all uranium production in the U.S. Her campaign chairman, John Podesta, is reaping the financial benefits of being on the board of a Russian company, Joule, which he did not disclose. PATRICIA McCARTHY
There’s also the little problem of Hillary’s incredible corruption (making her and Biden birds of a feather). And of course, the fact that Hillary’s unsecure server damaged national security in a way that would have seen an ordinary, politically unconnected person spend the rest of her life in prison—which, not coincidentally, is where Papa Joe belongs for using his debauched son Hunter as the bagman for decades of anti-American corruption. ANDREA WIDBURG
HOW MANY OF THESE PIGS ARE GAMER LAWYERS?
“Protect and enrich.” This is a perfect encapsulation of the Clinton (LAWYERS-2) Foundation and the (LAWYERS-2) Obama book and television deals. Then there is the Biden (LAWYERS-3) family corruption, followed closely behind by similar abuses of power and office by the (LAWYER) Warren and Sanders families, as Peter Schweizer described in his recent book “Profiles in Corruption.” These names just scratch the surface of government corruption (YOU CAN ADD LAWYER KAMALA HARRIS AND LAWYER CHUCK SCHUMER TO THE PATHEION OF DEMOCRAT BRIBES SUCKING CORRUPT LAWYER POLITICIANS!). BRIAN C JOONDEPH
How Raphael Warnock Dodges Income Taxes
Warnock doesn't pay income taxes on a $90K ‘parsonage allowance’ from Atlanta church
Sen. Raphael Warnock (D., Ga.) has an unusual financial arrangement with an outside employer that allowed him to avoid income taxes on $89,000 in outside salary last year, according to tax experts.
Warnock, who works as the senior pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, said the church paid him $89,000 last year as a "parsonage allowance"—as opposed to regular outside income, which is subject to strict limitations for senators under federal law. Lawmakers are not allowed to receive more than $29,895 in outside income.
The news raises questions about whether Warnock is taking a tax break that’s unavailable to the vast majority of Americans. Republicans say Warnock wants to raise taxes, pointing to his vote for a spending package in August that some analysts claim would increase taxes on low- and middle-income earners. The senator has also faced criticism for his outside financial arrangements from his opponent, Republican Herschel Walker. The Walker campaign has slammed Warnock for doubling his annual salary since taking office, raking in $120,000 from the Ebenezer Baptist Church and over $240,000 for a book deal.
Tax experts said the Internal Revenue Service created the modern "parsonage allowance" provision in the 1950s as a tax break for religious leaders, who historically lived in tax-exempt church-owned parsonages but now often rent or own their own homes. The provision allows pastors and other clergy members to deduct their estimated annual housing expenses—including mortgage payments, lawn care, furniture, and pool maintenance—from their income taxes.
Warnock’s campaign declined to comment on whether he paid income taxes on his housing allowance.
Some legal experts also questioned the Senate Ethics Committee’s decision to approve the arrangement, saying it appears to violate federal law that prohibits members of Congress from receiving more than $29,895 in outside income. Warnock’s campaign suggested that the "parsonage allowance" wasn’t subject to the same cap as regular income, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, which first reported on the arrangement last month.
"Sen. Warnock's arrangement appears to be an abuse of both the parsonage allowance provisions of the tax code and Senate ethics rules," Charlie Spies, a Republican campaign finance attorney with Dickinson Wright, told the Washington Free Beacon. "The parsonage exception in Sec. 107(2) is targeted for those who are pastors, not boondoggles for politicians."
Tax experts told the Free Beacon qualified clergy members are allowed to designate up to 100 percent of their salaries as tax-free under the parsonage exemption. Although clergy members need written acknowledgment from their church to participate, religious institutions have no say over the percentage the clergy requests and don’t provide oversight into how the employee spends this money, according to experts. Instead, participating clergy members are supposed to be regulated by the IRS.
While many pastors claim less than 40 percent of their salary as a parsonage allowance, one forensic accountant said he has seen some who take upwards of 70 or 80 percent—an amount he said was "bordering on abusive."
Warnock’s parsonage allowance adds up to nearly 75 percent of his income from the Ebenezer Baptist Church, which breaks down to about $7,400-per-month in housing expenses.
The senator owns a home in Atlanta that was recently appraised at around $1 million, according to property records. In addition to mortgage payments, the parsonage allowance can be used to cover any housing-related costs, including security, landscaping, and home furnishings.
Gil Rothenberg, the former chief of the Department of Justice tax division’s appellate section, told the Free Beacon the parsonage allowance was intended to "even the scales" between wealthy churches and poorer ones, which can’t always afford to provide a well-maintained home for their ministers.
But he said there have also been past cases where religious leaders have abused the system. In 2002, Rothenberg represented the government in a legal dispute with Rick Warren, a megachurch pastor who had claimed $80,000 of his salary as a "parsonage allowance"—an amount that the IRS claimed exceeded the value of his housing. The case prompted Congress to update the law, capping the parsonage allowance at the fair rental value of the home, plus furnishings and maintenance.
"The kinds of cases that got to me when I was at DOJ were basically the really abusive ones," said Rothenberg. "I don’t know how many other ministers are basically padding their parsonage allowance. Nobody knows. You hope that the CPA, or whoever is doing their taxes, is doing it correctly."
While churches note that the provision is crucial for many clergy members, who often don’t earn large salaries, the rule has also been controversial. Critics have accused some clergy members of taking advantage of the exemption, using it to pay for lavish vacation homes and other luxuries.
Peter Reilly, a certified public accountant who has written about parsonage allowances, said Warnock’s allowance "seems like a lot, but it’s not crazy" in comparison with others he has seen.
"Some of the parsonage [allowances] can tend to be enormous," he told the Free Beacon. "Some of the televangelists, it’s millions."
How Raphael Warnock Doubled His Income Since Joining the Senate
Warnock made over half a million dollars in 2021—from book deals, outside employers, and speaking fees
Sen. Raphael Warnock (D., Ga.) more than doubled his income since joining the Senate last year, with most of his half-a-million-dollar haul coming from outside employers and book deals, according to his financial disclosure records.
Warnock disclosed a total income of $532,781 in 2021, a significant bump from the $221,602 he earned in the year before his election. Less than half of his income last year came from his Senate salary, which was $164,816. Ebenezer Baptist Church paid him an additional $120,964, including a $7,417-per-month housing allowance. Penguin Random House also paid him $243,750 as an advance on his memoir that was published in June, and he received $5,750 in speaking fees.
Warnock’s spike in earnings comes two years after he accused his predecessor, former Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler, of "us[ing] the people’s seat to enrich yourself." The income is likely to feed the perception that holding public office is a means to enrichment given how many lawmakers find a way to leverage their positions—over time—into multimillion-dollar fortunes. Warnock's 100 percent income increase shows how quickly that can happen, as he's doubled his take-home pay in just two years.
Warnock has already drawn public scrutiny for some of his unusual financial arrangements. While senators are prohibited from accepting more than $29,000 in outside income, Warnock raked in $120,000 last year from Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta—but dodged the income cap by taking most of that money as a "housing allowance." He was also hit with election finance complaints in July for using campaign funds to fight personal lawsuits that predated his run for office.
Herschel Walker, the Republican challenging Warnock in the competitive Senate race, slammed the Democrat over his outside work, claiming he "only cares about making a better life for himself, not the people of Georgia."
"Raphael Warnock cares more about himself than the people of Georgia. He has been trying to cash in on his job since day one," a Walker spokesman told the Washington Free Beacon. "Warnock is always looking for another chance to use his position to make more money and misuse campaign funds."
Warnock’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
Warnock was able to avoid ethics rules that prohibit lawmakers from earning over 15 percent of their income from outside employers through a unique financial agreement with the Ebenezer Baptist Church. His campaign said $89,000 of his salary from Ebenezer Baptist Church was a "personal parsonage allowance" to pay for his housing, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Warnock’s home in Atlanta is worth around $1 million, the AJC reported.
Republicans also filed a Federal Elections Commission complaint against Warnock in July, alleging that he violated the law by using his campaign funds to pay unrelated legal fees. Warnock’s campaign paid lawyers who are representing him in a lawsuit stemming from his time as pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church.
"Because the conduct that gave rise to the lawsuit occurred long before Warnock was a candidate for federal office, the conduct had nothing to do with Warnock’s now-status as a candidate and officeholder," said the complaint filed by the National Republican Senatorial Committee.
Last February, Warnock’s ex-wife Oulèye Ndoye filed a custody suit against him claiming that he left her "financially strapped" by saddling her with unpaid childcare expenses even as his "income has substantially increased."
Warnock’s significant growth in earnings is notable after he accused his 2020 opponent Loeffler, a multimillionaire, of being out-of-touch with Georgia voters, where the median housing income is $61,000. During the campaign, he also claimed Loeffler profited as a senator by selling off millions in stocks after attending a confidential COVID briefing.
"I’m okay with the fact that she wants to make money, I just think you shouldn’t use the people’s seat to enrich yourself," said Warnock during a debate. "You ought to use the people’s seat to represent the people."
Warnock is locked in a tight race against Walker for the seat, which could determine party control of the U.S. Senate next year.
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