A Permit to Pray in Your Own Home? John Bursch on the Case SCOTUS Just Took

Welcome to the Napa Legal Podcast, where we discuss religious liberty from the perspective of faith-based nonprofits. In this special episode, Napa Legal's Senior Counsel Frank DeVito is joined by John Bursch, Senior Counsel and Vice President of Appellate Advocacy at Alliance Defending Freedom, former Solicitor General of Michigan, and a Napa Legal Good Counselor Project Fellow. John returns as the podcast's first repeat guest for a discussion of two fights that will shape what churches and religious nonprofits are free to say and free to do.First, the litigation over the Johnson Amendment. John explains what pastors and priests can already say from the pulpit, why the government's theory rests on the Supreme Court's decision in Catholic Charities Bureau, and what happens next.Second, Grand v. City of University Heights, which the Supreme Court agreed to hear on June 30. John explains the procedural question the justices will decide in December and why it matters for every American whose religious exercise runs into a zoning code.In this episode, we discuss:0:00 Introduction0:53 John Bursch's background and his work at Alliance Defending Freedom1:55 What is the Johnson Amendment and why it matters2:56 The 1950s origins of the Johnson Amendment3:26 Is 501(c)(3) status a government benefit or a recognition?4:27 Why no one has successfully challenged the Johnson Amendment until now5:27 Obergefell, Verrilli, and the coming fight over tax exemption6:30 The NRB case: plaintiffs, posture, and a change in administrations7:30 The stipulated judgment and the district court's rejection9:31 What the settlement signals to churches right now10:01 What a priest can actually say from the pulpit11:32 Two extremes: churches that go all in and churches that self-censor12:34 The government's theory: unequal burdens on different denominations13:34 The Catholic Charities Bureau problem14:36 Applying Catholic Charities to the next generation of cases15:09 The Anti-Injunction Act and the court's sua sponte dismissal16:41 Why this is a speech case, not a tax case17:42 Is the Anti-Injunction Act jurisdictional or waivable?18:44 What's teed up for the Fifth Circuit and when to expect a decision20:16 Why "boring" procedural doctrine decides religious liberty cases21:16 Grand v. City of University Heights: a permit to pray at home22:46 The cease-and-desist and the call with the mayor23:16 The zoning hearing and the trap inside the permit24:47 A pro se cert petition that got the Supreme Court's attention27:20 Surveillance, spying neighbors, and a city that stopped picking up his trash28:21 Williamson County, exhaustion, and Section 198329:53 What's next in the case|30:23 ConclusionFor more about Napa Legal and our work, visit our website here: https://www.napalegalinstitute.org/For more of the Napa Legal Podcast, visit our site here: https://www.napalegalinstitute.org/the-napa-legal-podcast