NYC to Clergy: Drop Dead

Police may have arrested a New York City Councilman, but many argue it's the local churches that are being handcuffed. Last Thursday, 20 demonstrators--including pastor-Councilman Fernando Cabrera (D-Bronx)--blocked the entrance to the city's Law Department to protest a new Board of Education rule that bans religious groups from worshipping in public school buildings. Seven of the men who joined the sit-in were arrested, including four clergymen. Cabrera, who started his own church in 1988, has spent a good portion of his term battling religious liberty issues--most recently last September, when the Mayor tried to censor prayers at the city's 9/11 service.

In New York, as in most American communities, the smaller congregations and synagogues rely on public schools for meeting space. Most--if not all--pay a monthly rent to use the facilities for weekend services. But after a long, drawn-out legal battle, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to weigh on an appeals court decision that evicts churches from local schools, leaving 160 pastors scrambling to relocate by February 12. " It's just crazy that they're forcing the churches to leave in six weeks," Cabrera told reporters after he was released. "They should absolutely allow the houses of worship to continue doing what they are doing. It has never negatively affected anyone."

Alliance Defense Fund attorney Jordan Lorence, who represented the Bronx Household of Faith in the suit, says the policy won't force schools in other cities to throw churches out on the street, but if there are members on other school boards who "want to get rid of the churches, this would give them an excuse to do so." "New York City allows anything pertaining to the welfare of the community--that ranges from labor union meetings to Alcoholics Anonymous groups, to filming episodes of 'Law & Order'--to meet in schools." Excluding religious groups is a violation of the Equal Access Act. It also jeopardizes a longstanding cooperation between cities and faith-based groups. If you trace the roots of some of America's largest churches, like California's Saddleback, most of them started in rented schoolrooms. Now, it seems a struggling system like New York City's would rather turn away income than allow for the free exercise of religion.

In the last few weeks, the policy was already having a trickle down affect on other agencies. Taking its cues from the Department of Education, New York City's Housing Authority threatened to void the leases of five churches that use its property. Fortunately, local officials reconsidered after Thursday's protest and have since offered to work through new rent agreements with the pastors. The victory was a partial one, but it should give Councilman Cabrera the momentum he needs to push Resolution 1155. In it, he calls on the legislature to amend the State Education Law "to afford houses of worship maximum access to school property." Unfortunately, this is a byproduct of the hostile environment the Obama administration has created. In this open season on faith, believers are the hunted.

Wizards of Waiver-ly Place

The Obama administration filed its defense of the health care law on the same day officials released the final list of friends they waived from it! How's that for irony? On one hand, the President is lobbying to keep the law, and on the other, he's trying to protect people from the damage it will cause. If the administration is looking to make a compelling case in advance of the March Supreme Court hearing, this isn't it. The documents, which were released "in a classic Friday afternoon news dump," show that labor unions represented one of the largest portions of the 3,914,356 individuals waived nationwide. Members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee say that a whopping 1,625 insurance plans are now exempted from ObamaCare costs, while the rest struggle to adapt to the heavy new regulations.

FRC is doing its best to give Americans a permanent waiver from ObamaCare by filing an amicus brief with the high court in opposition to the law. The brief was coauthored by FRC legal counsel Ken Kluskowski and Professor Nelson Lund of George Mason University School of Law. Twenty-seven members of Congress signed on to our brief, including House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas). Interestingly enough, FRC's brief was cited in the Supreme Court brief filed for the National Federation of Independent Business, an unusual move calling the justices' attention to FRC's brief and making it very likely that the Court will carefully read and consider the arguments we present. As you may remember, our earlier brief was instrumental in U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson's decision to strike down the entire ObamaCare law as unconstitutional. To read our latest brief, click here.

Second Term Builds on First Priorities

Today, I was on hand when Bobby Jindal once again took the oath of office for Governor of Louisiana. Yesterday, at the Governor's invitation, I joined many of the state's prominent pastors for the Inaugural Prayer Service at St. Joseph Cathedral in Baton Rouge. I had the privilege of reading 2 Peter 1:2-10 which establishes a pretty good road map for political success--especially in my home state of Louisiana, which has a history of corruption and scandal. It's amazing to see that in the decade and a half since I've been intimately involved in Louisiana politics, our state has turned the page on its checkered past. Governor Jindal, whom I first met when I was elected to the Louisiana House and he was hired as Secretary of the Department of Health and Hospitals, is bringing integrity and competency to the forefront of Louisiana government. One of his first priorities in this new term is reforming education, giving parents greater control over their children's schooling, whether they learn in public schools, private schools, or at home. The future looks bright for the state, and I look forward to working with Governor Jindal to achieve success.

** The media is viciously attacking Sen. Rick Santorum, but one liberal columnist says they've gone too far in criticizing the family's grieving process. Check out Washington Post reporter Charles Lane's compassionate response in "Rick Santorum's Baby--and Mine."

*** Congratulations to Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow, who had the biggest game of his professional career in yesterday's NFL playoffs. Since his college days, Tim has been a winner on and off the field. We're happy to see him enjoying the same kind of success in the game that he's had as a role model!