Columnist.
With help from the U.S. Supreme Court, America may finally be turning a page on the racial politics that have haunted our last 50 years. With the slimmest of majorities, five of the nine justices agreed to void a portion of the 1965 Voting Rights Act that inserted the federal government into state election decisions. To help protect African Americans from voting discrimination in the mid-60s, Congress passed -- and President Lyndon Johnson signed -- a law that gave Washington broad oversight in mostly Southern states, where racial prejudice was more prevalent. Under this Act, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Arizona, Alaska, and cities in six other states needed permission from the federal government (specifically the Justice Department or a panel of federal judges) to alter their voting rules.
Everything's bigger in Texas -- including the state's abortion restrictions. If leaders can beat the clock before their legislative session expires, there's a strong chance that Governor Rick Perry (R) will have the opportunity to sign off on one of the strongest pro-life laws in America. A sleep-deprived Texas House worked through the night, putting in a grueling 15 hours of debate until Republicans finally closed the amendment process and forced a vote on a measure that would outlaw abortions at the five-month mark, when babies feel pain.
The school may have turned off his microphone, but Remington Reimer still got the last word. Two weeks after Joshua High School made headlines for interrupting the Valedictorian's speech, the superintendent is finally showing some remorse. The story spread like wildfire on June 6, when Remington decided to add to his "pre-approved remarks" and talk about his relationship with Jesus instead. "[M]ost importantly," Reimer told his class, "I want to thank God for giving up his only Son for us to an excruciating death on a cross, so His blood would cover all our shortcomings and provide for us a way to heaven in accepting His grace." Most of the audience missed the rest of Remington's speech, but that didn't matter. In the next few days, the media's coverage only amplified the message the school had tried to censor. "We are fortunate," he said, "to live in a country where we can express our beliefs -- where our mics won't be turned off, as I have been threatened to be... I will not have my freedom of speech taken away from me. And I urge you to do the same."
President Obama was nine months into his first term when he won the Nobel Peace Prize -- but most Americans have spent the last 44 wondering why. The latest example comes from comments the President made while he was attending the G8 Summit. Irelandgot its first taste of The Great Divider on Monday in a speech the President delivered to 2,000 young people in Belfast. There, in one of the tensest regions of the world, President Obama sowed even more dissention by suggesting that religious schools are somehow to blame forNorthern Ireland's ancient conflicts.
It was anything but business as usual on the House floor yesterday, as the two parties bitterly fought over a bill to ban abortion after 20 weeks. Emotions were raw from the opening gavel, when Democrats objected to Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) managing the debate on a bill that they called "stupid" (Rep. Charlie Dent, D-Pa.), "offensive" (Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla.), "cowardly," (Rep. Louise Slaughter, D-N.Y.), "cruel," (Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y.), "blatantly unconstitutional," "borne of ignorance," and an "insult to the intelligence of women."
Josh Duggar has been impressing audiences for his most of his adult life as part of the popular TV show, "19 Kids and Counting." Now, FRC Action is proud to announce that Josh will have another audience: Capitol Hill. Yesterday on "Washington Watch with Tony Perkins," we broke the news that Josh and Anna moved to Washington, D.C. to join FRC Action as its new Executive Director. As head of our action arm, the Arkansas native will bring his pro-life and pro-family passions to the political arena, where he will help expand FRCA's reach as a premier conservative advocacy group.
In the midst of so many crises, it's comforting to know that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is focused on what matters: genderless bathrooms. Unfortunately, that's just one effect of a sweeping proposal that could destroy personal freedom in the American workplace. On Flag Day, Reid saluted the rainbow flag instead of Old Glory, becoming the 50th cosponsor of the Senate's latest Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), one of the most anti-business policies this Congress will consider.
