Bullying Christians may be a favorite strategy of the Left — but it’s not necessarily an effective one. Chip and Joanna Gaines of HGTV’s popular show “Fixer Upper” may be sending that message without ever opening their mouths! In what can only be described as a politically motivated witch hunt, BuzzFeed posted a non-story about how the fan-favorites attend a church where it’s apparently news that the pastor preaches straight out of the Bible. In her hit piece (disguised as journalism), author Kate Aurthur implies that Chip and Joanna may be hateful people for attending a church that has the nerve to believe what Scripture says! “So are the Gaineses against same-sex marriage? And would they ever feature a same-sex couple on the show, as have HGTV’s "House Hunters” and “Property Brothers”? Emails to Brock Murphy, the public relations director at their company, Magnolia, were not returned.“

Not surprisingly, Aurthur’s piece got instant attention — not much of it good. BuzzFeed readers are angry that the site is trying to destroy a couple that many consider the best duo on HGTV. "This is the dumbest story I have ever heard,” one reader commented. “It’s like a witch hunt for their beliefs, to try and stir the oil from a pot into the flames of the stove. This kind of article is exactly what is wrong with the media.” Others fired back that this was a made-up controversy, designed to tear down good people. “You are inciting a wave of negative attention on this couple for something that indirectly links to them,” another reader said. “That’s not journalism, it’s petty…”

Even The Washington Post, hardly an ally of Christian conservatives, piled on, posting an op-ed from gay columnist Brandon Ambrosino called, “BuzzFeed’s Hit Piece on Chip and Joanna Gaines Is Dangerous.” In it, he talks about the important message of the election, which is that “gotcha” stories like this only reinforce people’s negative opinion of the press.

“[This story] validates everything that President-elect Donald Trump’s supporters have been saying about the media: that some journalists — specifically younger ones at popular digital publications — will tell stories in certain deceitful, manipulative ways to take down conservatives. (And really, I can’t for the life of me imagine any other intention of the Gaines story.)… The old strategy of journalists shaming ‘hicks’ is not going to work anymore,” he wrote.

And, he goes on, “BuzzFeed can’t argue that the same-sex-marriage issue is ethically settled, because it isn’t for a sizable population of our country and our world. It is no longer okay — indeed, it never was — to write cutesy articles shaming religious people as homophobic for simply being one of the many millions of Americans in 2016 who attend a religious congregation that does not support same-sex marriage. That is not a good move for activism or journalism.”

It most certainly isn’t settled, based on the latest polling from Wilson Perkins Allen, which puts the support for natural marriage at 53 percent almost a year and a half after the Supreme Court tried to redefine it. Only 37 percent support the view that BuzzFeed seems to imply is the prevailing one. As for Chip and Joanna, most people agree with Amrbosino, who argues, “I do not think these conservatives should be shamed or mocked. I do not think they should be fired. And I certainly do not think they should be the butt of a popular BuzzFeed article.”

Interestingly enough, the person who may be the real target of BuzzFeed is the couple’s pastor, Jimmy Seibert. His post-Obergefell message, preached nearly 18 months ago (video here), is the main subject of the article. What was alarming to the Left about his message? He preached the Bible in an age when some churches don’t have the courage to be a moral voice in the cultural darkness. Pastors who act boldly are seen as a threat — and for good reason. When churches have the courage to preach the truth, people will be challenged to live it — and that scares the devil out of the Left. There are a lot of pastors like Jimmy Seibert, but many more are needed. My commitment has been and will remain to stand with those who stand for truth. You can help me by signing our note of appreciation to Pastor Seibert. Join us in thanking him for being an unwavering witness for Christ!

Also, to hear from Chip and Joanna themselves, click on the video below. I think it will help a lot of people know not only them but their hearts better.

Originally published here.

Antsy Nancy Fends off Leadership Challenge

There are two kinds of people who don’t lose their jobs after failing at them: weathermen and Democratic leadership. Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) proved that [Wednesday] after being reelected to her post as House Minority Leader despite presiding over what can only be described as an epic failure for her party on Election Day. After 14 years in leadership, the margin of victory for the San Francisco liberal wasn’t nearly what it used to be, but it was enough to catapult Pelosi to a familiar perch over a deeply divided caucus.

Ohio’s Tim Ryan (D), who, like most House members (and Americans), is frustrated by the direction of the Democratic Party, urged his colleagues to listen to voters and take the House in a new direction. “Under our current leadership,” Ryan wrote in a pitch to his colleagues, “Democrats have been reduced to our smallest congressional minority since 1929.” Like a lot of people, he thinks the San Francisco values that have characterized Pelosi’s tenure aren’t resonating with the rest of America. “We need someone who can go into these congressional districts and talk to those voters, those blue-collar voters, who should be voting blue.”

In the end, Pelosi fended off the opposition, but not before its 63 members sent an unmistakable message. Rep. Kurt Schrader (D-Ore.), co-chairman of the Blue Dog Coalition, hopes leaders will finally come to grips with the fact that Democrats “need a farm team that’s not just the socialist side of our party.” Meanwhile, if the president’s party is content to stay irrelevant and out of touch, the GOP couldn’t be happier. Pelosi’s majority counterpart, Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), was blunt that her reelection “helps from so many different perspectives,” he told The Daily Caller. “I don’t want to get into the Democrat’s race, but yeah, a lot of people on the Republican side were rooting for her.” National Republican Congressional Committee, which actually issued a tongue-in-cheek endorsement of Pelosi last month, tweeted: “Congrats @NancyPelosi! There’s no one we would rather have leading @HouseDemocrats! #StandWithNancy #ThanksHouseDems.”

As frustrated Democrats like Rep. Collin Peterson (Minn.) know, staying the course on an extreme (and unpopular) social agenda only guarantees a more permanent conservative majority. After the election, he lashed out at leadership for clinging to a radical agenda that Americans have tasted and rejected. He blamed “his party’s stances on the deficit, gay rights, abortion, and the Second Amendment for turning off voters…”

“The party’s not going to change on those issues, so people out there are not going to vote for Democrats,” he vented. “You might get some marginal difference, but we’ve become an urban party.”

Of course, people on both sides of the aisle warned of this back in July, when Democrats passed the most extreme pro-abortion platform in the history of the party. Kristen Day, head of Democrats for Life, was blunt that “[a]pproving this platform in Orlando will be the final nail in the coffin of ‘safe, legal, and rare’ and will usher in an era of unsafe abortion paid for with taxpayer funds during all nine months.” Several party liberals, including President Obama, at least paid lip service to the fact that taxpayers shouldn’t be forced to foot the bill for the destruction of innocent life. Now, for the first time, Americans had a candidate for president openly lobbying for it — and it cost her.

Originally published here.

Governor Edwards: An LA Dodger of the Law

Government contracts available: Christians need not apply! That’s the unofficial motto of Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards (D), who’s taken it upon himself to exclude people of faith from partnerships with the state. In an executive order eerily similar to Barack Obama’s, Louisiana’s liberal governor decreed that any company or organization that wants to contract with the state government has to first adopt special privileges for people who identify as LGBT — including the unsafe (and unpopular!) policies on gender-free bathrooms and showers. Essentially, he gave applicants a choice: surrender their beliefs to partner with the government or make themselves ineligible by operating according to their faith.

Fortunately for Louisiana, Attorney General Jeff Landry saw the move for what it was: an attack on the First Amendment rights of Louisiana citizens. No free country — least of all America — should punish faith-based contractors for exercising their constitutional freedoms in hiring and firing. So Landry rejected dozens of state legal contracts, prompting Gov. Edwards to sue Landry in state court. A judge sided with Landry in October, stating that the governor cannot force the attorney general to approve legal contracts.

But that wasn’t the end. This week, a second case was heard — this time a lawsuit brought against Edwards by Landry on the issue of executive overreach. The case, heard Tuesday by 19th Judicial District Court Judge Todd Hernandez, was a testy one (and nine hours long), as the state’s top officials duked it out over the fundamental principle of religious liberty. Elizabeth Murrill, solicitor general for Landry, told the court the governor’s directive “makes law. And that is an unconstitutional act.” Landry himself has been very clear, “I will not cower to executive overreach; rather, I will continue to defend our Constitution and the will of the people.”

Governor Edwards, meanwhile, insists that the attorney general is “is on the wrong side of the law and the wrong side of history on this issue,” which is laughable since he’s the one trying to sidestep the legislative process by issuing an executive order in the first place! Let Governor Edwards know you’re fed up with his lawlessness. Tell him it’s time for the Left to stop penalizing people of faith! No one should be required to choose between doing business with the state or violating their conscience.

Originally published here.

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