Keep Calling!
As you know, the Senate is currently considering legislation to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act and codify same-sex marriage in federal law. The so-called “Respect for Marriage Act” is a tremendous threat to religious liberty, but for whatever ill-conceived reasons, 12 Republicans voted to advance the bill.
Democrats claim that their bill respects religious liberty. It does not. Over the weekend, Reverend Franklin Graham warned that the Respect for Marriage Act “is dangerous legislation that would be used against individuals, churches, and organizations who honor traditional marriage.”
We have been urging men and women of faith to call your senators and demand that they protect religious liberty. I am pleased to report that your efforts are making a difference!
Senators Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) and Dan Sullivan (R-AK) have announced that they will support an amendment by Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) to guarantee that individuals, small businesses and faith-based organizations are protected from lawsuits and government harassment.
That’s a good start, but the battle is far from over. We need at least one more senator to oppose the Respect for Marriage Act unless it includes the Lee religious liberty amendment.
ACTION ITEM: Another vote is expected to take place sometime this afternoon. Here are the senators most likely to “see the light” if we “turn up the heat.”
Sen. Roy Blunt (MO)
Sen. Richard Burr (NC)
Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (WV)
Sen. Joni Ernst (IA)
Sen. Thom Tillis (NC)
Sen. Todd Young (IN)
If these senators represent you, please call the Capitol Hill Switchboard now at 202-224-3121 and ask for their office. Tell the aide who answers that your senator must vote to protect religious liberty. Tell them to oppose the Respect for Marriage Act unless the Lee Amendment is included in the bill.
Silencing Speech; Threatening Faith
Immediately after the Club Q shooting in Colorado Springs, there was an all-out nationwide effort by the LGBTQ+ lobby, the left-wing media and their political allies to demonize anyone who has been resisting the radical demands of that movement.
The left claimed that if you were a parent who complained to the school board or Gov. Ron DeSantis, who got laws passed and regulations changed to protect children from graphic information about homosexuality and the radical trans ideology in the early years of education, then you caused the shooting at the bar.
The goal was twofold – to break down resistance to this radical ideology that increasingly targets children and to make people fearful of utilizing their First Amendment right of free speech.
There is still no evidence that this was a hate crime, as the left defines it. In fact, the shooter’s attorneys say that the gunman identifies as "non-binary," uses "they/them" pronouns and that his title is not “Mr.” but “Mx.”
We know the shooter was not a regular church goer. He certainly does not fit the profile of a Fox News viewer or a fan of conservative talk radio. His father was a porn actor with a criminal history and a drug addiction. The alleged shooter himself has a history of mental instability.
There is no evidence that conservative Christian opposition to the LGBTQ agenda in any way motivated the shooter. But the rhetoric of that group and its supporters in and out of government has in fact stoked hate crimes against Christians and churches.
There are reports of incidents around the country, the most notable being vandalism at the Focus on the Family headquarters in Colorado Springs on Thanksgiving day.
Meanwhile, there was a similar death toll from a shooting in Virginia, but that story quickly disappeared from the headlines because it didn’t fit the left-wing narrative about who is evil in America. The shooter was a black man who said he felt “led by Satan.”
In fact, a fascination with Satanism is a common trait among school shooters. Perhaps Christians should argue that the left’s war on faith and its constant mocking of God is creating or motivating these people who go out and target us.
The vandals who targeted Focus on the Family quoted a Bible verse about the devil masquerading as an angel of light. That’s ironic. These same people regularly tell us that the Bible and our “morality” have no place in the public square. But now they’re quoting chapter and verse?! (Inaccurately!)
One of the ladies on The View last week suggested that if Jesus were here today, he would be leading a gay pride parade. The Presbyterian Church (USA) has launched a movement to “queer the Bible.” Trinity College Chapel at the University of Cambridge recently hosted a sermon where the speaker claimed that Jesus was transgender.
Some churches are even embracing drag queens – again aimed at influencing children.
In every urban area, you will find churches flying a gay pride flag. One church I pass every day flies the gay pride flag, but I can’t recall ever seeing the American flag flying at that church.
But the churches flying the gay pride flag are quickly discovering that they must do more than just “welcome” everyone. They must enshrine LGBTQ demands in the church and rewrite the Bible – demands that drive many more people away. The Methodist Church is literally unraveling over demands of LGBTQ radicals.
Chaos In Communist China
As someone who has fought against the brutal Chinese communist regime for decades now, it has been extraordinary to watch the protests taking place in multiple Chinese cities. Here’s why these protests are relevant.
After half of Joe Biden’s first term, we are still dangerously dependent on communist China for far too many important products. Administrations of both parties – George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama – outsourced our manufacturing base to communist China, including the production of vital materials.
When the COVID pandemic began, we didn’t have enough personal protection equipment. Most of it was made in communist China and Beijing started hoarding it.
Right now, we are facing a shortage of amoxicillin, an incredibly important antibiotic. But even before the pandemic, experts were warning that we were too dependent on communist China for our vital medicines. The overwhelming majority of prescription drugs are either made in China or China controls the supply chain of their active ingredients.
There is no indication that the Biden Administration is doing anything about this.
And while the courageous Chinese demonstrators are chanting some very provocative statements, the Biden White House and State Department have said virtually nothing about the protests.
While communist China routinely tries to stoke racial division in America, Biden is refusing to speak up strongly now in defense of freedom for the Chinese people.
And while Biden can’t find his voice, I have noticed that Chinese individuals in the United States are speaking up.
They are pointing to the protests and saying to us, “This is why I left communist China, and why I keep warning against similar oppressive tactics here, like the censorship of speech, the use of technology to track us and the use of so-called ‘emergencies’ to limit rights.”