Columnist.
If Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. were alive to see his monument in Washington, D.C., it would probably give him great pride to see his likeness standing at the foot of the Tidal Basin, facing the Jefferson Memorial. No two men could be more perfectly situated than our nation's visionary on religious liberty and the man who used that freedom to champion a revolution of human dignity. Long before his memorial looked toward Jefferson, Dr. King lived his life in line with the democratic ideals of the third president. They were two great leaders, living in two very different times — but their dreams were both firmly rooted in the freedom of faith. So it's somewhat fitting that this year we celebrate Religious Freedom Day on the same date we remember one of the most influential ministers in American history.
As the Senate continues to hold hearings on President-elect Trump's cabinet nominees, Senate Democrats reveal their priorities. Among yesterday's hearings were hearings on General James "Mad Dog" Mattis (USMC, Ret.) for Secretary of Defense (DOD), and Ben Carson for Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Mattis's hearing spanned the issues of military readiness, threats to U.S. security, including discussions about the threat Russia poses to U.S. interests and threat to NATO given its military presence in the Baltics and role in the Middle East. The former Marine Corps general spoke about — as we have — the importance of the military's focus being on military readiness. He said, "My concern is on the readiness of the force to fight and to make certain it's at the top of its game."
President Obama has been unwilling — and soon, unable — to undo his policy blunders like Obamacare, but Congress is giving his successor a chance to try. In the wee hours of this morning, the Senate took the first step of a journey that Republicans have been on for the last seven years: the repeal of Obamacare and the defunding of Planned Parenthood. For all of the question marks heading into last night's marathon session, Senate Majority Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) delivered on his biggest promise — to pass a budget resolution that would clear the decks for rolling back Obama's worst atrocities.
Celebrating Christmas may be a luxury that other Americans take for granted — but Congressman Chris Smith (R-N.J.) doesn't. And over the December holiday, he flew to the cradle of the Christian faith to offer comfort to the survivors of ISIS's war on the church. It was a sobering visit, as a once-thriving population now lives in fear of the slaughter that's taken so many of their Iraqi brothers and sisters.
Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) is used to sitting in on Judiciary Committee hearings. He's just not used to being the subject of them. That all changed today, when the longtime member was on the opposite side of the table of his colleagues to discuss his confirmation as U.S. Attorney General. For Sessions, it was the first real opportunity he's had to defend himself against the ridiculous attacks of the Left about his record in Alabama. Alleging decades-old racism, liberals have gone on the warpath against the southern leader, much to the frustration of a chorus of African Americans (including Democrats) who've worked with Sessions and have nothing but respect for his record. FRC's Ken Blackwell was just one of the leaders who voiced his frustrations against what he calls a liberal "lynching" of the former state attorney general.
After eight years of fundamentally transforming America, most liberals aren't exactly thrilled to see it transformed back. Desperate to keep their legacy of lawlessness alive, the Left is taking the surest path to protecting their "progress:" fighting the leaders who would unravel it and return law and order to America. With the New Year came a new intensity to knock down any cabinet nominees of President-elect Donald Trump's who pose a threat to President Obama's radical gains.
Supporting Planned Parenthood isn't just the wrong decision — it could be politically costly! Some Senate Democrats are about to learn that lesson the hard way, Susan B. Anthony List warns in a new report about voters' feelings on the abortion giant. In six states where Senate liberals are on shaky ground in 2018, the news isn't exactly promising for longtime Planned Parenthood allies. "A majority of voters in Florida, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, and Wisconsin said they would be less likely to support their senator if he or she voted to fund Planned Parenthood over women's health clinics that do not perform abortions," the survey found.
After four years, Mike Pence is back on the Hill — but not as a congressman from Indiana. The new vice president-elect returned to his old stomping ground this week, as he starts paving the road for his boss's first major act: gutting Obamacare and defunding Planned Parenthood. Long after the rest of Congress had adjourned for Christmas, Republicans were busy at work, mapping out an alternative to President Obama's biggest failure.
If you were surprised by the media's exaggerated (and incorrect) reports of the demise of the political influence of conservative Christians, then you'll be happy to see Pew Research Center's latest poll. According to the report, the Christian faith isn't as rare on Capitol Hill as the media and those on the Left would have you to believe. A whopping 91 percent of the 115th Congress describe themselves as Christians, which is higher than the general population — and almost the same number as when these stats were first collected in 1961. Of the 293 Republicans who kicked off the new session this week, all but two are Christians (the others are Jewish).
It may be a new year, but there's nothing new about the concerns surrounding the State Department's liberal activism. While Americans were busy unwrapping presents, conservatives were tearing into something else: Obama's record on social issues. After eight years of watching the State Department operate as a global base for abortion and sexual activism, most Republicans are ready to get back to the real business of diplomacy. That's a tough job under normal circumstances, but after two terms of President Obama, the Trump team will have its hands full.
If there's one thing Republicans are anxious to wrap up this Christmas, it's a health care plan. While Congress is officially adjourned for the holidays, the GOP is still in town working fast and furiously to craft a replacement for Obamacare that will help the new president hit the ground running. House Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady (R-Texas) said the party was more than willing to work overtime so that the new administration and the American people have a "health care plan that is dramatically different than Obamacare."
Democrats and Republicans may not agree on much, but they agree on this: American needs to do more to stop the persecution of believers around the world. It's a bipartisan cause — and this week, it got a bipartisan boost, as members on both sides of the aisle came together to pass a piece of legislation that is especially meaningful this time of year: the Frank Wolf International Religious Freedom Act.
Twice this month, Planned Parenthood has been referred for prosecution in the baby body parts scandal that has engulfed the nation's largest abortion provider. On December 2nd, the House Select Investigative Panel on Infant Lives referred Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast for prosecution after concluding the committee had ample evidence of "potential criminal activity."
May old acquaintance be forgot — especially if that old acquaintance is Planned Parenthood! That's exactly how pro-lifers are hoping to ring in the New Year — by cashing out of their forced partnership with the country's largest abortion business. That's the fright before Christmas for Cecile Richards's group, which is already in full panic mode about the incoming Trump administration and what it means for their lucrative, half-billion dollar deal with the government. After sinking unprecedented capital into Hillary Clinton's failed election bid, the group is scrambling to cope with the election aftermath no one saw coming.
Donald Trump put a lot of names in the pipeline to head the State Department, but few have fueled more controversy than ExxonMobil CEO and Chairman Rex Tillerson. The oil mogul, who's spent his more than 40 years with the company, is one of the many names floated for the most-watched nomination of the new administration.
If there's anything the liberal media despises more than typing "President-elect" before Donald Trump's name, it's having to acknowledge the political influence of evangelicals. There's no hiding their impact now — not after they helped propel Trump to the biggest election upset in modern history. For years, the press has tried to fake a death certificate for the religious right, insisting right up to last month that the bloc was either extinct or too fractured by Trump to reverse America's political and cultural backslide. Headlines like The Washington Post's "This Is the Last Spastic Breath from the Religious Right before its Overdue Death" fed this false narrative right up to Election Day.
Shoppers can cross one company off their naughty list this Christmas: Macy's! The department store is proving that it has some wise men of its own with the store's recent decision to stop supporting Planned Parenthood. The news came as a huge victory — and relief — to pro-lifers who were paying careful attention to the list of the group's biggest corporate backers.
Next week, Congress will have just settled down for a long winter's nap. And based on the headlines, they'll need it. The first order of business for the new Congress is a doozy: repealing Obamacare. With just days before the Hill recesses for Christmas, the GOP is making plans to advance President-elect Trump's top agenda items right out of the gate in January. For leaders like Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), it's a repeal seven years in the making. And despite what Democrats throw at them, the GOP is more than ready to tackle the biggest failure of President Obama's two terms.
Donald Trump isn't the only one hiring this week. So are House conservatives, who just gave the party a huge boost by tapping longtime FRC friend and supporter, Congressman Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) to head up the influential Freedom Caucus. Mark, who takes over for another good friend and stalwart, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), has been a rising star in the Republican Party since his election just four years ago. A successful businessman in his own right, he saw the need for principled leadership in Congress after years of involvement with FRC, running for the seat in North Carolina's 11th District where he won in a very crowded primary.
If there's anyone busier than Santa, it's Congress. With just a handful of days left before members jingle their way home for Christmas, most leaders are scrambling to put a bow on the 114th Session. Hill offices are hoping to crank through a pile of unfinished business before Friday, when the House and Senate hope to adjourn. Before then, the to-do list is a diverse basket of priorities from funding the government to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
