Voters Have a Birthday Wish for ObamaCare: Repeal!
Lots of things improve with age. ObamaCare is not one of them. When the President's signature law turns three on Saturday, there will be plenty of people ruing the day Congress gave its blessing to the government's colossal overreach. Since 2010, the young law has been littered with broken promises--the gravest of which is still triggering lawsuits in courts across America.
As part of this mammoth 2,700-page mistake, the President who promised to "honor conscience" somehow invented the leeway to violate everyone else's. Using his militant pro-abortion stance as its guide, the administration ordered every American, regardless of their moral beliefs, to provide life-ending drugs as part of their insurance plans--or pay crippling fines. And despite a series of HHS statements to the contrary, there's been absolutely no real attempt to protect those who object. Three years later, the abortion-contraception-sterilization mandate is so rigid that even a Bible publisher isn't exempt! Even now, it stands as one of--if not the--greatest violations of religious liberty in American history.
Earlier this week, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) reiterated their rejection of the "compromise" offered earlier this winter by the administration to faith-based groups and employers. "The identity of the person or group having the religious freedom objection should not matter; what should matter instead," they insist, "is whether the person or group faces government coercion to violate conscience... Religious freedom is for all who face this threat, not just some."
Unfortunately for Americans, the law's greatest cost won't be its $2.5 trillion price tag--but the cost in human life, since the law makes taxpayers unwilling accomplices in the abortion of unborn children. Under rules finalized by HHS, anyone enrolled with an insurance company that covers abortion will be reaching into their own pockets to help pay for it. As long as ObamaCare is celebrating birthdays, plenty of innocent babies won't.
Leading up to the third anniversary, both parties had their own way of marking the occasion. The House GOP Doctors Caucus held a press conference, calling for a full repeal. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) celebrated Wednesday with "Americans who have been positively affected by the reforms"--which was probably a pretty small party. Because unless you're a fan of higher taxes, expensive insurance, subpar care, moral coersion, government regulation, smaller paychecks, fewer jobs, reduced hours, federal debt, and pricey takeout food, there's not a whole lot to love about this law. The best present Congress could give the country is defunding the law--before it turns four.
Fox Hunting for Real Consensus
Regardless of how people feel about marriage, a new Fox poll shows that most Americans agree: the states should be the ones defining it. Fifty-three percent said that marriage should be decided by the people, not the courts. Of the 1,000 adults the news outlet surveyed, the results on redefining marriage hold true to a series of polls conducted in the last few weeks: 49% of voters favor it, 46% oppose.
The most significant difference in the Fox poll is that support among the younger generation--aged 18-29--is significantly lower than the Washington Post and even Pew Research found. Unlike the Post's shocker that 81% of the next generation supports same-sex "marriage," (a result helped along by the leading questions it asked), 62% agreed with counterfeit marriage in the Fox poll--a 20-point swing from what the Post publicized. And while it's still a significant obstacle for the marriage movement, it seems a little more realistic than suggesting that eight out of every 10 young adults would intentionally deny children a mom and a dad.
If you know a young person--or any person--struggling to answer the challenges on marriage, check out the new booklet by FRC, Alliance Defending Freedom, The Heritage Foundation, and National Organization for Marriage. It takes the debate one question at a time and gives readers the information they need to stand up--and speak out--for truth.
The Tenn Commandments
The fact that the University of Tennessee is even hosting something called "Sex Week" is pitiful--but at least now, the school won't be using state funds to pay directly for it. When the events kick off on April 5, Tennessee leaders made sure that tax dollars wouldn't be financing the confirmed lesbian bondage expert, a drag show, or the golden condom scavenger hunt. When word broke that the UT administration planned to use $11,145 in state funding, Republican state Rep. Bill Dunn and Sen. Stacey Campfield stepped in and drew the line. When the two called for an investigation of the university's budget, UT System President relented. "The university is accountable to the General Assembly, the Governor, and the people of Tennessee for the use of state tax dollars."
Unfortunately for UT families, the university is also accountable to parents, who didn't send their children to school to get this kind of education. Let's hope more moms and dads will be spurred on by the courage of their state leaders and demand better for their students!
FRC in the News!
It's been a busy week for FRC's media team! Heading into next week's Supreme Court arguments on marriage, my profile was part of a feature piece in USA Today on the movement's leaders. Click here to see the story. On Sunday, I'll have an opportunity to explain why the justices should uphold marriage on CBS's "Face the Nation." Tune in at 10:30 a.m. (ET) or check your local listings for the show times in your area. Peter Sprigg, who's been busy posting research and analysis on the marriage cases, also published an op-ed on CNN.com about the dangers of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act--and then took on three liberals by himself in a great CNN interview on same-sex "marriage," which you can watch below.
