Selective Historical Memory
In the City of God podcast of September 16, 2026, Becky Gerritson, Executive Director of Eagle Forum of Alabama, is the guest. Back in 2010 she was running the Watumka Tea Party in Alabama, and had applied for a 501C4. She claims that “Obama’s IRS had been targeting tea party groups, and would not give them their tax-exempt status.”
This was an often-stated claim at that time, and, obviously, it continues to this day. The basic facts are true: the 2013 investigation by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) found that, beginning in 2010, IRS employees used inappropriate criteria to select some applications for extra scrutiny. The criteria specifically included names such as “Tea Party” and “Patriot” and certain conservative policy positions. TIGTA concluded that the criteria were inappropriate because they were based on organizations’ names and policy positions rather than evidence of potentially prohibited political campaign intervention.
But the same investigation found no evidence of White House (or Obama) involvement.
While the basic fact of inappropriate criteria being applied for certain groups is well established, the link to Obama is not justified by any evidence. And I will note that some progressive groups were targeted also.
Ms. Gerritson claims that her organization’s constitutional rights were violated by the DOJ in a lawsuit brought in 2022 and the subpoena included in that lawsuit: “But our president knew right away that this was a bullying tactic. She knew our constitutional rights were being violated. And she said, no, we are not going to give this information over.” She then states: “The judge ruled in our favor.”
It is true that the judge ruled in favor of Eagle Forum on its motion to quash the subpoena.
But not on the constitutional question. The court ruled that this particular subpoena exceeded the permissible scope of discovery and that “the burden of the requested material greatly outweighs any slight relevance it may have.”
Ms. Gerritson leaves the listening audience with the impression that the DOJ violated the constitutional rights of Eagle Forum of Alabama, but the court did not make such a finding. In fact, the court explicitly wrote: “Nothing in this order prohibits the Government from issuing a new subpoena that is far more narrowly tailored.”
Later in the interview, Ms. Gerritson speaks of her more recent efforts to put the Ten Commandments on the walls of public schools. She claims that “The Ten Commandments were foundational to American law” and “It was every day they were talking about these things as they were drafting laws.” Certainly, the Ten Commandments were known and considered, but history records that English common law, Roman law, Christian and Jewish traditions, Enlightenment philosophical thought, natural law traditions, etc. were just as important to the Founders’ considerations of how to form American government and society. The claim to be “foundational” is an extreme simplification of the context.
Then, Ms. Gerritson jumps to a conclusion: “Without that foundation (The Ten Commandments) ... we will lose [our goodness].” “Being good people, even if you’re not a Christian, this is the basis for the way we act. For generations, for decades and hundreds of years, this is in our DNA.”
She claims that the Ten Commandments have made us good, and implies they must always be before us in order to keep us good: “If the trickle-down effect of that is they (students) start reading the Ten Commandments and want to follow them, well, that’s just a huge bonus.”
I have two major problems with this line of thinking:
1. Everyone, Christian or not, would agree that the Ten Commandments prohibit stealing and murder, as well as coveting. American history is rampant with all three of these, from the very first days. Chattel slavery, the taking of Native American lands and wealth (including breaking almost every treaty made), and the violence and forced assimilation inflicted on millions of Native Americans are easy examples. The assertion that the first Americans had “good DNA” seems pretty problematic.
2. Even more concerning are the theological implications of Ms. Gerritson’s claims: Reformed Christians believe in the “total depravity” of every human being. The claim that a person or group of people has “good DNA” would make a graduate of a good Reformed seminary scratch his or her head. And then to state that students reading the Ten Commandments will “want to follow” them ignores the Reformed doctrines of depravity, election, regeneration, faith, and sanctification.
The issues being brought up and discussed are real issues, worthy of public discussion. But as Christians, who believe in and try to follow the Ten Commandments, it is essential that we present facts accurately and with proper nuance.
Christian leaders who desire to influence a large audience have a responsibility to present their audiences with a fair representation of issues and facts so that we are enabled to work together to find our way through these complicated times.
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