Free Republic

A federal judge in Fort Worth agreed Wednesday with a group of Christian conservatives that Affordable Care Act requirements to cover HIV prevention drugs violate their religious freedom. U.S. District Judge Reed O'Connor also agreed that aspects of the federal government's system for deciding what preventive care is covered by the ACA violates the Constitution. O'Connor's ruling could threaten access to sexual and reproductive health care for more than 150 million working Americans who are on employer-sponsored health care plans. It is likely to be appealed by the federal government. This lawsuit is the latest in a decade of legal...

A newly leaked internal memo from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) shows just how authorities under the Biden administration want to revise the First Amendment and make changes to religious liberty protections under its rights. The leaked memo showed the government’s plans to “sign delegation of authority on the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) and religion clause of the First Amendment” to the Office for Civil Rights (OCR). Oklahoma Republican Sen. James Lankford showed displeasure on these new developments, claiming that it would endanger Americans’ religious liberty protections and disregard the First Amendment. “I am an outspoken...

Former Vice President Mike Pence reiterated at a speech at the Reagan Library on Thursday he did not have the constitutional authority to stop the count of the electoral votes on Jan. 6. “Now there are those in our party who believe that in my position as presiding officer over the joint session that I possess the authority to reject or return electoral votes certified by the states,” Pence said. "The Constitution provides the vice president with no such authority before the joint session of Congress." Some Republicans, including former President Trump, called for Pence to reject electoral votes on...

At a stop in New Hampshire on Thursday night, former Vice President Mike Pence defended his actions on January 6 and, in the process, may well have doomed (or at the very least hamstrung) his chances of emerging as the Republican presidential nominee in 2024. "January 6 was a dark day in the history of the US Capitol," Pence said. "That same day we reconvened the Congress and did our duty. ... You know, President Trump and I have spoken many times since we left office and I don't know if we'll ever see eye to eye on that day."...

The Adorers of the Blood of Christ have returned to court arguing that the existence of a 3-year-old natural gas pipeline through their land in Pennsylvania violates their religious freedom rights guaranteed under a 1993 law. A lawsuit filed by the congregation of women religious in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania is the latest step the order has taken to assert its rights under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, known as RFRA. This time, said Sister Janet McCann, a member of the order's St. Louis-based leadership team, the congregation is seeking a jury trial to...

Adding ‘sexual orientation’ and ‘gender identity’ to the list of protected classes may seem straightforward enough, but the proposed law does more—much more.The statutory language instead provides for an extreme remaking of all aspects of society, destroys the promise of equality for women, and threatens religious liberty and the privacy rights of all Americans, especially children. The proposed law also will upend state and federal protections of the unborn—yes, the Equality Act is about abortion too.Here are the five facts about the Equality Act Americans need to know.1. The Equality Act Is Deceptively SimpleThe statutory language of the Equality Act...

Many of you know that for more than 4 years, I have been one of the leaders of the team representing religious organizations, mostly Catholic (including Bishop David Zubik, Bishop of Pittsburgh’s Catholic Diocese) in his case which was consolidated in the U.S. Supreme Court with the case brought by The Little Sisters of the Poor and cases brought by others, against the government over Obamacare’s “contraception mandate.” A great number of religious groups of all denominations filed “friend of the Court” briefs supporting our position that while contraception is and could be available to all who choose to use...

Indiana scheduled for Tuesday is raising speculation that the presumptive Republican nominee will announce Gov. Mike Pence as his running mate. The Washington Times reported Sunday evening that Pence has a “95 percent probability” of being Trump's choice, according to sources close to the campaign and to the governor. The first-term Indiana governor’s name has surfaced in recent weeks as a contender for the position. Pence tepidly endorsed Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas before the state's May primary, but later backed Trump, praising the chance to "take a new direction" in Washington. "The kind of leadership that I truly do...

Ohio pro-family voters, please ACT on the bills listed below. The folks pushing homosexuality and gender rebellion never seem to quit, which is why we need to be very vigilant about proposed laws and policies. Because what they do is completely revise language with new meanings and total dismissal of the truth. Two words come to mind– the overuse of the word “protect” in proposed homosexual laws. Actually protection is virtually never the goal of such bills, unless their real objective is to be protected from opinions they don’t like. People are protected under many laws already for basic rights...

PJ Media published the Every Single One series in 2011. The series documented the Obama administration’s hiring of radical lawyers to fill the career ranks in the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. Every single one of the new attorney hires were radical leftists or partisans . Since 2011, the situation has only gotten worse. Much worse. The Civil Rights Division exercises enormous power over the everyday lives of Americans: they are involved in employment, education, housing, religious liberty, abortion, prisons, policing, and much, much more. The radical beliefs of these radical lawyers have turned into radical administration policies....

Reps. Joe Kennedy III (D-Mass.) and Bobby Scott (D-Va.) introduced the Do No Harm Act Wednesday, which would amend the 1993 Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) to specify that religious exceptions should not apply to “protections against discrimination or the promotion of equal opportunity” and “access to, information about, referrals for, provision of, or coverage for, any health care item or service.” The legislation is intended to “clarify that no one can seek religious exemption from laws guaranteeing fundamental civil and legal rights.”

Oklahoma introduces measure to impeach Obama over bathroom rights By Heide Brandes OKLAHOMA CITY Oklahoma's Republican-dominated legislature has filed a measure calling for President Barack Obama's impeachment over his administration's recommendations on accommodating transgender students, saying he overstepped his constitutional authority. Lawmakers in the socially conservative state are also expected to take up a measure as early as Friday that would allow students to claim a religious right to have separate but equal bathrooms and changing facilities to segregate them from transgender students. The bill introduced on Thursday night could force schools into costly construction, which would be difficult for...

The Justice Department determined that North Carolina’s bathroom policy -using the bathroom that matches your biological sex- is in violation of federal civil rights law. Reports speculate the feds might try to restrict funding to North Carolina or pursue legal action if they don’t change the policy, though the Justice Department hasn’t commented either way. North Carolina State House Speaker Tim Moore has made it clear, he will not be intimidated.

Less than a week after proclaiming to Indiana voters that he would vote for Ted Cruz in his state's primary — a tepid endorsement that featured high praise for Donald Trump — Indiana Gov. Mike Pence has made it official: He is all in for the presumptive Republican nominee. “I’m fully supportive of our presumptive nominee, and I do think Donald Trump will do well in the State of Indiana,” Pence told reporters, according to Indianapolis' Fox affiliate. “I’m going to campaign hard for the Republican nominee because Indiana needs a partner in the White House.”

"Pencing" Slang Dictionary Defintion....Effort to ride 2 skateboards at the same time

John Kasich on Friday was pressed by a man in California to answer whether or not he believed people are born gay. "Do you believe that some people are born gay?" asked Kelly Bryan, 62, of San Francisco, who attended the Commonwealth Club of California event where Kasich was the featured guest. He later described himself as a Democrat who plans to vote for Hillary Clinton. "Please respond without prayer being an answer." Kasich first tried to dodge an answer. "I'm not gonna get into all the analysis of this or that, I'm not gonna do that," he said. As...

Donald Trump supporters are a generally happy bunch... The Cruz campaign in Indiana is in a state of collapse and freefall. By the end of the weekend you can expect the narrative to shift, and the campaign will be pointing fingers toward California (June 7th) because their impending defeat is looming ever more dangerous. Before getting to a recent poll, lets take a look at the current landscape. Senator Ted Cruz and Carly Fiorina spoke at a campaign rally in South Bend Indiana. In a venue capable of holding more than 2,000 only a few hundred showed up... That’s the...

Indiana Gov. Mike Pence endorsed Ted Cruz Friday, just days before a primary that could make or break the Texas senator's chances of halting Donald Trump's march to the Republican presidential nomination. But Pence was quick to praise Trump, too, and encouraged Hoosier voters to "make up their own minds." "I'm not against anybody, but I will be voting for Ted Cruz in the Republican primary," Pence said in an interview with WIBC's Greg Garrison. He praised Cruz's "knowledge of the Constitution" and his willingness to "take on the leadership" of his own party.

Indiana Governor PENCE was just on WIBC, saying he is NOT ENDORSING anyone in the Republican Primary, but he’ll be voting for Cruz himself. THIS IS QUITE SIGNIFICANT, given today's Media Diatribes.

Indiana Gov. Mike Pence delivered a lukewarm endorsement of Ted Cruz on an Indiana radio show Friday morning where he strongly praised Donald Trump for giving "a voice to the frustration of millions of working Americans." He also said he was "grateful" for Trump bringing attention to Carrier outsourcing. Pence's remarks on WIBC-FM: