When voters went to the polls and elected Donald Trump, they weren’t just picking an American leader — they were choosing an international one. As anyone who’s traveled outside the United States knows, most of the developed world pays more attention to American politics than some of our own citizens do. They understand: Where America goes, others follow.

Unlike Barack Obama, whose idea of diplomacy was international bullying, Donald Trump has taken a decidedly different tact: lead with courage, and empower others to do the same. So when the White House announced its decision to move the Israeli embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, it wasn’t just the right decision — it was an influential one. While Arab nations blasted the U.S. for the move, Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales was emboldened to make his country the first to follow President Trump in recognizing Jerusalem. In 1948, when President Truman recognized the state of Israel, Guatemala followed suit, becoming the second nation to acknowledge the rebirth of the ancient nation.

“For 70 years, we have maintained relations with Israel,” Morales said in late December, “which has always been our ally.” As some people remember, Guatemala was instrumental in persuading other Latin American nations to vote for Israeli sovereignty back in 1947. Many believe that if it weren’t for this Central American country, that resolution could have turned out quite differently. Now, seven decades later, Morales is building on that relationship, informing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — and the world — of his intent to move their own embassy to the undivided capital.

This week, I had the opportunity to congratulate the Guatemalan president in person, as part of a small delegation of evangelicals who were invited to the country to discuss our nations’ shared interest in defending Israel. The small group of evangelical leaders, organized by my friend Mario Bramnick, president of Latino Coalition for Israel, included (among others): former Congresswoman and FRC board member Michele Bachmann, Pastor Ramiro Peña, Senior Pastor, Christ the King Baptist Church, Dr. Jim Garlow, Senior Pastor of Skyline Church, and Lourdes Aguirre, LCI Director.

We had the opportunity not only to meet with President Morales but present him FRC’s Defender of Faith, Family, and Freedom Citation at a special state dinner. We wanted to honor him for standing with Israel but also for aggressively defending the unborn. As part of the trip, we also had extensive meetings with other members of his Cabinet to discuss a number of issues and concerns that we share with his country.

I was very encouraged to learn more about President Morales’ parallel efforts to President Trump in seeking to protect and enhance the religious expression of Guatemala’s citizens. So it’s no wonder that, like the attacks on President Trump, the Left is also attacking President Morales as he sets an example for other world’s leaders in standing up for biblical values.

Originally published here.

Taking America’s Temperature on Obamacare

If Senate leaders were hoping the health care debate would go away, they got some unfortunate news this week. In a new poll, Obamacare continues to top the list of Americans’ concerns, putting the GOP in an interesting bind right before the midterm elections.

Most people agree that Republicans staved off disaster by delivering on tax cuts — but unfortunately for them, that wasn’t the issue that elected them. For eight years, they’ve been promising to undo Obamacare, and if they want to keep their majority, GOP leaders will at least have to prove they’re sincere. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is understandably skittish about the idea, especially after he got burned by his own party in the 11th hour. And certainly, with one less vote in the Senate, the battle would potentially be even more difficult. But that doesn’t mean the GOP shouldn’t try.

House leadership proved it could be done, even with difficult personalities, passing a bill last year that not only toppled Obamacare but ended taxpayers’ forced partnership with Planned Parenthood. And both chambers took another serious step when they killed the individual mandate as part of the tax package. The law is “badly damaged” already, Politico points out. “The Trump administration has killed some of the subsidies, halved the insurance enrollment period, gutted the Obamacare marketing campaign, and rolled out a regulatory red carpet for skimpy new health plans that will change the insurance landscape in ways that are harmful to former President Obama’s signature health care law.”

As grateful as voters are for the slow erosion of the law, most of them are staring down sky-high premiums as of Jan. 1 with fewer choices, taxpayer-funded abortion subsidies, and an unstable market. But the problem isn’t that Congress doesn’t understand; the problem is that they won’t act. Major issues about the law are starting to resurface — which would explain why 29 percent of Americans said health care is more important than any issue, including jobs, immigration, North Korea, taxes, the budget deficit, and more.

In December, several GOP senators met to talk about picking up their repeal efforts where they left off. “I think we’re all going to say that we ripped the heart out of Obamacare with the individual mandate,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) told reporters before the Christmas recess. “It’s pretty hard to rip the heart out of it and not replace it.”

Lately, though, it’s difficult to find GOP senators with the stomach to try. A Washington Post article pushed back on the notion that Republicans were ready to mount another attack. Liberal Republicans like Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) waved away the concerns of her state, which has some of the highest premiums in America, arguing, “I don’t think we should be spending time trying to repeal and replace Obamacare.” Half of all GOP voters think she’s wrong — Senate leaders would be wise to listen to them now rather than in November when it is too late!

Originally published here.

Gender Unicorns: Coming Soon to a Classroom Near You…

What is an X-rated, gay sex columnist doing in a California elementary school? Ask the San Ramon Valley Unified School District. In a stunning move, officials at the Rancho Romero Elementary School made a “gender unicorn” bulletin board and peppered it with quotes from disgusting and disgraced LGBTQ activist Dan Savage. But if administrators thought no one would notice, they were wrong.

Parents flooded the school with complaints, so many, Fox News’s Todd Starnes explained, that administrators had no choice but to take the offensive statements down. “For him to be a role model for four-year-olds to 11-year-olds is utterly disgusting,” an anonymous parent told Todd Starnes Radio Show. Savage, whose “anti-bullying” videos were a favorite of President Obama’s and Hollywood, turned out to be the biggest bully of all. When he had a platform, Savage used it to humiliate students and curse faith. At one high school assembly, his tirade was so vicious and vulgar that it reduced some girls to tears.

Apart from being offensive, Savage’s message is also ineffective. Just last year, researchers like Professor Russell Toomey found that “Cognitive-based strategies, such as [Dan Savage’s] ‘It Gets Better’ approach, were associated with poorer adjustment and less likelihood of high school attainment.” In fact, he went on, “Our findings question the ‘It Gets Better’ narrative that’s been given to LGBT youth. Asking youth to accept negative experiences as the only coping strategy potentially exacerbates stress.”

Either way, as California parents told Todd, “He’s not someone you want to put up at an elementary school.” Of course, Savage and company aren’t always so blatant about their agenda. One of the subtle ways they’ve been getting their message in front of little kids is with their “gender unicorn,” one of the prominent features of Rancho Romero’s display. “A unicorn — an object loved by little children — was used to lure them to the bulletin board,” the parent said. “It felt like it was a creepy way to lure a child over to the board and confuse them about gender.” Fortunately, moms and dads in the district were paying attention.

Maybe that’s because they feel more empowered to do something about it. President Trump certainly hasn’t been shy about calling the Left’s absurdity what it is. And that may also be reflected in the latest surveys. For the first time in the last few years, Americans are starting to voice their concerns about the saturation of the LGBT agenda in schools, the medical profession, and public.

The Harris Poll sent shock waves through the radical Left this week when it found that Americans were actually more uncomfortable with the in-your-face behavior of people who identify as gay or transgender than before. In other words, the acceptance for that agenda isn’t actually growing, leftists fear, but regressing in a post-Obergefell world. People who said they were “somewhat” uncomfortable or uncomfortable grew in the following situations:

• Learning my child has a lesson on LGBTQ history in school (up to 37 percent from 34);

• Finding out that my child has an LGBTQ teacher (up to 31 percent from 28 percent);

• Learning a family member is LGBTQ (up to 30 percent from 27 percent);

• Seeing a co-workers same-sex wedding picture (up to 27 percent from 25 percent);

• Watching a same-sex couple hold hands (up to 31 percent from 29 percent).

Of course, the Left is pinning this setback on conservatives’ growing intolerance. But it could also be that administrations like Donald Trump’s are giving Americans the courage to talk openly about their feelings and values again. Now that Christians don’t have to fear the same government punishment that they did under Barack Obama, fewer probably feel the need to repress or self-censor their beliefs. That doesn’t mean people are becoming more intolerant, but it may mean — finally — that America is move back toward being a culture that welcomes debate. If so, we may have the president to thank.

Originally published here.

---

This is a publication of the Family Research Council.