In Washington State, grandma didn’t get run over by a reindeer — but her rights sure did! At the Providence Place senior living center, this year’s crackdown on Christmas is so severe it makes the Grinch look like an amateur. There are bans on carols, trees, mangers — and don’t even try to say “Merry Christmas!” The message from management is simple: if you want to celebrate the season, move somewhere else.

Like a lot of residents, one woman worried that she’d lose her apartment just for taping cards to the door. So, she contacted an attorney. Now, if Providence Place wants to send seniors packing, they’ll have to go through Alliance Defending Freedom to do it. In a letter to Timothy Zariczny, ADF tells the Catholic nonprofit that it ought to read the law before it goes around ruining people’s holiday. As Blake Meadows points out, the Establishment Clause is misunderstood enough as it is. But even so, it’s a policy for government speakers — not private ones. And because Providence Place isn’t a government-controlled entity, the complex isn’t bound by it.

For the last several weeks, building managers had been insisting the complex had to censor Christmas because it “accepts funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development [HUD].” But that’s exactly why it can celebrate Christmas! “Americans don’t lose their constitutionally protected freedom to say ‘Merry Christmas’ or otherwise express their faith just because they live in a facility that accepts government money,” said ADF Senior Counsel Matt Sharp. “No HUD rule requires senior living centers that accept federal resources to deny their residents the ability to celebrate Christmas with religious songs and symbols.”

In fact, ADF points out, HUD has been explicitly supportive of religious expression over the years. The agency has said before that it “continues to strongly support and respect the display of all religious symbols on properties receiving HUD assistance.” But it gets better. “We discourage anyone from interfering in the free exercise of religion and prohibiting residents from celebrating the joys of the season,” the agency warned. That was 2007. And you can bet that HUD’s current secretary, Dr. Ben Carson, would just as fiercely defend religious freedom — especially under a boss who insisted, “We’re saying Merry Christmas again!”

Obviously, if Providence Place were truly concerned about the separation of church and state, it wouldn’t have singled out Christmas for punishment. But that’s exactly what managers did. One of the reasons residents were so upset is because the building allowed a menorah in the common space. When people asked why, employees insisted it was a “cultural symbol,” not a religious one.

Under this administration, freedom is for everyone. That’s why President Trump issued his executive order on religious liberty in the first place. These are exactly the anti-faith attacks his policy was meant to prevent! It’s also why leaders like Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.) make a special effort to push back against the war on faith with congressional resolutions about the sanctity of Christmas.

As ADF says, “The right thing to do, out of respect for the senior citizens — many of whom fought or saw their spouses fight in wars to defend our nation and the freedoms upon which it is built — …[is to] do away with this terrible policy.” Like the White House, they understand that the government’s role isn’t to be Christmas cops or menorah monitors. In fact, for the past two Decembers, this administration’s focus has been about turning the page on eight years of sanitized celebrating. If the president is saying “Merry Christmas” again, then Providence Place should be too!

Originally published here.

Shop — in the Name of Love!

You may not know what to buy for your family, but do you know where to buy? Thanks to our friends at 2nd Vote, you can shop for presents this Christmas without undermining your values in the process. Make your list, but check this one twice!

With the holiday season making up 30 percent of most stores’ revenue, make sure you know where your dollars are going! You can find out how popular companies stack up on marriage, gun rights, abortion, religious liberty, and more with 2nd Vote’s new Christmas Shopping Guide. Americans are expected to spend almost $885 billion on Christmas gifts this year, so Christians have a big opportunity to reward stores that support their beliefs.

A lot of people know that Planned Parenthood rakes in the taxpayer dollars every year. Unfortunately, we don’t have much say in that, but we do have a say in the almost $325 million that comes to the abortion group from corporations’ support. Do you know who they are? Dr. David Black, the president of 2nd Vote, does — and he joined me on Monday night’s “Washington Watch” to talk about that and what else shoppers should know this Christmas.

“The idea is that the first vote is at the ballot box. The second vote is the dollar you spend every day. We have researchers who [look] at corporations’ financial filings and [nonprofits’] filings that are… promoting against our Judeo-Christian values. So we dig deep into [their] backgrounds, CEO’s public statements, where they have been on issues such as transgender bathrooms or same-sex marriage. And we compile all of this information [into] a five-point scale. A ‘1’ is as far to the liberal side as you can be, and a ‘5’ would be strongly Judeo-Christian values. A ‘3’ is neutral.”

Of course, most Americans would be thrilled if companies stayed neutral. They want stores to sell products — not politics! But some CEOs just can’t seem to help themselves. “Levi Jeans is as about as bad as you can get,” Dr. Black said when I asked him who was on the “naughty list.” They score a ‘1’ on everything. They’ve been extremely socially active against Judeo-Christian values. But we have the Home Depot, which has scored a 1.9. Bath and Body Works is at a 1.9. Victoria’s Secret is [the same]. Nike, which has been in the news about the [national anthem controversy], but separately, they’re very bad actors. We have Target, Nordstrom’s… Starbucks, of course, is awful.“

If you’re stuffing your stockings — or stuffing your face! — make sure you’ve downloaded the 2nd Vote app. You’ll find all of the places where you can spend with a clear conscience! (That’s good news for people who like Ace Hardware, Peet’s Coffee, In-and-Out Burger, Overstock, Bed, Bath, and Beyond, and more!) Then, head over to the 2nd Vote website for gift ideas.

Originally published here.

This is a publication of the Family Research Council. Tony Perkins’ Washington Update is written with the aid of FRC Action senior writers.