Is it possible to be “too Christian” to care for kids? Some liberals think so. Instead of welcoming the help that charities offer with the adoption and foster parent system, some intolerant states seem intent on walling off their support. While the government struggles to keep up with the demand, faith-based groups have picked up the slack with decades of work connecting needy kids with loving homes.

Unfortunately, that partnership has been a rocky one of late, as some states decide that their beliefs about homosexuality disqualify them as service providers. A few years ago Catholic Charities in D.C. was forced to close its doors on a popular foster care program after an ugly confrontation with the City Council about its decision not to place children with same-sex couples. When the nonprofit refused to change its policy, city officials issued an ultimatum: ignore the Church’s core teachings or wave goodbye to $2 million in foster care funding. Susan Gibbs, a spokesman for the group, explained that Catholic Charities really had no choice. “The city (said) that in order to provide social services, you need to be secular. For us, that’s really a problem.”

Unfortunately, the same scenario has played out in state and local governments from Massachusetts and Illinois to California. Much to the relief of faith-based groups, two conservatives are leading an effort in Congress to put a stop to this brand of religious discrimination with a new bill: the Child Welfare Provider Inclusion Act. Congressman Mike Kelly (R-Pa.) and Sen. Mike Enzi (R-Wy.) are tired of seeing social service groups punished for their moral convictions and want to make sure that these organizations are never in the position of choosing between their faith and freedom to serve. He understands, as we do, that the only victims of this intolerance are children.

“This type of discrimination hurts the families and children who rely on these organizations most of all,"Sen. Enzi pointed out."This legislation will help ensure faith-based providers and individuals can continue to work alongside other agencies and organizations and that adoptive and foster parents have access to the provider of their choice.”

And while the Left may be willing to sacrifice a child’s well-being on the altar of political correctness, Rep. Kelly isn’t. “When it comes to helping kids and making families stronger, all service providers – religious or otherwise – should have a seat at the table. That’s what this bill is about. It is 100 percent inclusive and child-focused. No provider should ever have to forfeit their First Amendment rights…” Is the Left so enslaved to “tolerance” that it’s willing to leave children homeless to make a point? We’ll see. Contact your senators and representative: remind them that discrimination against faith-based organizations prevails; it’s the children who suffer the consequences. For more on the debate, check out the op-ed by FRC’s Leanna Baumer.

Nuke Deal Radioactive, Say Conservatives

While the President goes around Congress, Benjamin Netanyahu went to it. The Prime Minister’s passionate speech on Tuesday kicked off a new sense of urgency over the Iranian nuclear threat, which now leads the pack of priorities for new Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). Although leaders raced home to beat the winter storm, they know it’s nothing compared to the potential nuclear storm awaiting the world if the U.N. Security Council relaxes the leash on Iran’s Hassan Rouhani. Under new legislation just introduced in the Senate, McConnell and other leaders are demanding that Congress have a say in any negotiations over the militant regime.

As Netanyahu explained it, not a single nuclear facility would be demolished under the deal. In exchange for unfreezing more than $7 billion of Iran’s assets, the U.N. is asking for Rouhani’s word that it wouldn’t continue work on its nuclear program. “This regime has been in power for 36 years,” Netanyahu reminded Congress. “And its voracious appetite for aggression grows with each passing year. This deal would only whet Iran’s appetite for more. Would Iran be less aggressive when sanctions are removed and its economy is stronger? If Iran is gobbling up four countries right now while it’s under sanctions, how many more countries will Iran devour when sanctions are lifted? Would Iran fund less terrorism when it has mountains of cash with which to fund more terrorism?”

McConnell’s measure would require the President to bring any deal with Iran to Congress for review – something the White House has been loathe to do on any issue of national importance. “The Iranians need to know – need to know – that congressional sanctions will not be lifted if a bad deal is reached,” McConnell warned.

While liberals complain about the fast pace of the bill, conservatives understand that time is short. According to the latest reports, an agreement with Rouhani’s country is imminent. “There is nothing partisan about the Senate acting to fulfill its constitutional role,” McConnell said from the Senate floor, responding to the criticisms. “I was surprised that some senators made statements objecting to their own legislation… This isn’t complicated.” For more analysis on the Iranian deal, don’t miss the new American Thinker column by FRC’s Ken Blackwell and Bob Morrison, “Netanyahu’s Timely Warning on Iran” and my piece in the Christian Post, “Netanyahu Sounds the Alarm on Nuke Deal Not Unlike Queen Esther in the Bible, but Is America Listening?”

Happy Holidaze, from New York City

In New York City schools, kids are learning Rs: reading, writing, and Ramadan. Thanks to the far-Left priorities of Mayor Bill de Blasio (D), city schools have added two Muslim holidays to the school calendar – a concession that took even Big Apple parents by surprise. While the largest religion in the country fights to even be recognized, “NYC schools will now close for Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha – making (it) the largest school district in the nation to recognize the two holidays on the official school calendar.”

Although families already had the option of taking excused absences for these days, Mayor de Blasio took it upon himself to close school for 1.1 million students in the single largest display of political correctness the district has ever seen. While the city is busy overcompensating the barely 2% of the city’s population, it insists on robbing Christians of the simple acknowledgement of its two biggest holy days: Christmas and Easter. Instead it scrubs the calendar of any reference, replacing them as “winter break” and “spring break.” Public schools may not be religious, officials argue, but they can legally accommodate students to practice their faith. That’s interesting – because most public schools have a serious problem accommodating Christians. This is nothing but exclusion for inclusion’s sake.

The reality is, America wasn’t founded on Muslim principles – but Christian ones. Our identity is rooted in the deep tradition and ideals of the same Bible that schools are so anxious to expel. In New York or anywhere, this should never be about pushing a politically correct agenda. It’s about honoring America’s cultural and Christian heritage. That doesn’t mean ignoring other religions – but it also doesn’t mean surrendering our identity to a small minority either.

This is a publication of the Family Research Council. Mr. Perkins is president of FRC.