Free Republic

Cortney wrote about the sudden passing of Bre Payton, who was a regular fixture on Fox News and a staff writer for The Federalist. She was only 26. According to reports, she succumbed to the flu (H1N1) and possibly meningitis. Her friend Morgan Murtaugh found her unresponsive last Thursday in San Diego; Payton was in California guest hosting a show on One America News Network.I only met Bre a couple of times, but she was always a class act, very kind, and respected by many. She was talented, smart, and the Federalist was lucky to have her. She was prolific...

Aaron and Melissa Klein ordered not to talk publicly about their faith. I don’t know if you’ve followed the case of Sweet Cakes by Melissa. This is the now-closed bakery in Oregon that has become a target of state officials because its Christian owners declined to bake a cake for a lesbian wedding. Not only has the business been forced to close, the state has fined the Kleins $135,000. But it gets worse. Much worse. Now that state has responded to a radio interview the Kleins gave by ordering them to no longer talk publicly about why their faith compels...

Oregon Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian finalized a preliminary ruling today ordering Aaron and Melissa Klein, the bakers who refused to make a cake for a same-sex wedding, to pay $135,000 in emotional damages to the couple they denied service. “This case is not about a wedding cake or a marriage,” Avakian wrote. “It is about a business’s refusal to serve someone because of their sexual orientation. Under Oregon law, that is illegal.” In the ruling, Avakian placed an effective gag order on the Kleins, ordering them to “cease and desist” from speaking publicly about not wanting to bake cakes for...