Posted on 12/08/2020 10:19:06 AM PST by TedMartin
President-Elect Joe Biden’s pick for secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, concerns religious conservatives fighting to protect their First Amendment free speech and religious liberty rights.
They are wary of Becerra because he defended the anti-free speech California law (AB 775), struck down by the Supreme Court, that forced pro-life care centers to promote state-sponsored abortions.
They are also alarmed over comments he made before the state Assembly three years ago when he said religious liberty is only for “individuals” not “institutions.”
California Family Council President Jonathan Keller had this to say about the nomination. “On November 7, Joe Biden claimed victory in the presidential race, saying ‘we must stop treating our opponents as our enemy.’ But his nomination of Becerra raises grave concerns,” Keller said.
Rebuked by Supreme Court
“The Secretary of HHS is one of the most important positions in the federal government. But Mr. Becerra is a radical ideologue who rejects First Amendment protections for religious organizations, even earning a rebuke from the U.S. Supreme Court. It’s hard to see how nominating such an activist is consistent with Mr. Biden’s pledge to be a president for all Americans.”
Becerra made his views on religious liberty known in response to questions from Assemblyman James Gallagher during his confirmation hearing for California Attorney General on January 10, 2017.
Gallagher asked Becerra what he thought about AB 775 and another proposed bill, SB 1146, which would have forced religious universities to change their housing policies and moral behavior codes to avoid punishment.
Called churches constitutional ‘bootstrappers’
“On religious protections, the protection for religion is for the individual,” Becerra explained. “I think it is important to distinguish between protections that you are affording to the individual to exercise his or her religion freely, versus protections you are giving to some institution or entity who is essentially bootstrapping the first amendment protections on behalf of somebody else.”
Gallagher took great exception to Becerra’s statement saying it reflected a “fundamental misunderstanding of the freedom of religion and freedom of association.” Gallagher expressed his objections on the floor of the State Assembly when he explained why he opposed Becerra’s nomination as California’s next Attorney General.
“The freedom of religion and the First Amendment applies just as much to the mosque as it does to the Muslim; it applies just as much to the gurdwara as it does to the Sikh; it applies just as much to the church as it does to the Christian,” Gallagher said. “It applies just as much to religious non-profits, universities, and places of education. Their religious rights need to be protected just as much.” Watch the full Gallagher/Becerra exchange here.
I don’t believe churches should be tax exempt, or tithes and offerings for that matter.
And if you are affected by the new and improved standard deduction, it is greater than any amount of money on average that people donate or contribute to organizations and other Ministries throughout a given tax year.
Any money donated to these organizations that is not tax-exempt is a pure gift because no ulterior motive is involved behind the contribution.
How many divisions do the Little Sisters of the Poor have?
lib•er•ty lĭb′ər-tē
n. The condition of being free from oppressive restriction or control by a government or other power.
Religious believers and institutions need to tell the likes of Becerra and the government, if need be, to go to hell. Fight them in the courts. Fight them through civil disobedience. Never give in. God is God. The government isn’t.
He resigned and fled out west where he found safe haven with Jerry Brown who appointed him AG of CA. He never turned in his server to the FBI. He is a comprimised traitorous POS who should be at GITMO.
https://dailycaller.com/2017/12/11/becerra-tried-to-block-server-admin-over-red-flags-but-logins-continued-with-muted-reaction/ https://www.mediaite.com/online/ex-dem-it-staffer-reportedly-had-secret-server-that-routed-data-from-house-democrats/
I wonder if Xavier Becerra will have a job opening for the Awan Brothers once he is confirmed.
Glad to realize that you are not the real life arbiter of how pure my gifts are.
In the meantime, there is a life long mandatory obligation hanging over my head concerning the support of the local public school system, even though I have never been personally associated with it.
Live and let live, baby.
ICYMI I was referring strictly to monetary contributions. But one doesn’t necessarily go without the other, for instance at community outreach churches the people who seem to be the biggest contributors are never there for the days that the volunteers are really needed.
Paying there in their way into heaven... I think that happenes quite a bit more than is realized and it’s so weird because they talk about that exact thing in scriptures.
How do I or anyone else know that they’re the biggest contributors...? They brag about it.
“In the meantime, there is a life long mandatory obligation hanging over my head concerning the support of the local public school system, even though I have never been personally associated with it.”
Through taxes you mean? Which never have been tax deuctable? Unfortunately taxes are not 501 c 3. But I hear you.
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