In a court filing submitted on Monday, July 7, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced that it was changing a rule affecting churches — who, going forward, will be able to make political endorsements in the public without endangering their tax-exempt status.

"Ours is not a blue or red diocese, but a purple one, and above all, a Christian one." 2 News Oklahoma's Braden Bates shares what led to the 70-year-old rule change.

By interpreting political discussions during worship as private conversations, the IRS creates a loophole that will lead to organizations seeking tax breaks in exchange for political support and introduce hidden sources of money into elections.

Comparing it to a family discussion, the Internal Revenue Service agreed on Monday that pastors and other religious leaders can endorse political candidates to their congregation without threatening their tax-exempt status under a decades-old legislation called the Johnson Amendment.

Two East Texas churches, Sand Springs Church in Athens and First Baptist Church Waskom, were among the plaintiffs in the argument.

The IRS says pastors who endorse political candidates from the pulpit should not have to risk losing their tax-exempt status.

The Internal Revenue Service's recent declaration that it will not prohibit churches and pastors from endorsing political candidates has drawn praise from both progressive and conservative Christians,

House Speaker Mike Johnson spoke about tax cuts in the "Big, Beautiful Bill" during an interview on "FOX News Sunday." "What we did in this bill is we made permanent the 2017 Trump tax cuts, and that was geared for lower- and middle-class Americans,