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The Religious Right’s Campaign to Strip All Citizens of Religious Freedom

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Turn on any cable news show and you’ll hear conservatives, particularly from the Religious Right, giving long tirades about religious freedom and how the Left is seeking to strip it away from good God-fearing Americans. But if you watch how the Religious Right works in court, you know that it’s actually the other way around.

Religious freedom has been a strongly-held belief in America since the very beginning. All three branches of government have worked hard to preserve the rights of Americans to choose for themselves whether they wished to be Protestant, Jewish, Catholic, or an atheist. It’s a fundamental part of the system that our country built itself on: the right to believe as you will, and to change your mind about it.

Legislative bodies and the courts have centered those rights around the individual—allowing the individual to choose for themselves how they would or would not believe in a god, rather than imbuing an institution with the right to choose for them.

If you were to believe the talking points of conservative punditryland, you might think that the right to believe (or not) as you will is under attack from the Left, and that no-good liberals (particular the gays) are trying to force Americans to accept their wicked ways and deny those good God-fearing citizens their right to worship in peace.

But how is this actually playing out in the courts and in the legislatures?

Hobby Lobby

In the Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby case before the U.S. Supreme Court right now, the owners of the private for-profit corporation Hobby Lobby chain are seeking an exemption from a provision within the Affordable Care Act that requires that the health insurance their employees receive include coverage for birth control methods such as morning after pills and IUDs. Hobby Lobby’s owners, the Green family (who happen to be evangelical Christians) say that they consider such birth control methods to be abortifacients—despite the medical and scientific community pointing out that they are not—and as such their company should be exempted from the Affordable Care Act because providing their employees with insurance coverage for such methods is a violation of their religious freedom.

Mississippi’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act

On April 1 this year (appropriately), the conservative-controlled Mississippi state legislature passed into law the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which was quickly signed into law by Governor Phil Bryant (R). The bill allows businesses to turn away customers and/or employees (such as LGBTQ people) because the owner of the business happens to disagree with them on a religious level.

A similar law was passed just a few months prior by the Arizona legislature, but Governor Jan Brewer had vetoed it after coming under enormous national pressure and media scrutiny.

Whose Rights?

What both of these situations highlight is the concerted effort by the leaders of the Religious Right to fundamentally alter the way religious freedom works. Where in the past it has always been applied to—and designed for—the individual, Christian Right legal organizations such as the Alliance Defending Freedom (formerly known as Alliance Defense Fund of Prop 8 notoriety) are seeking to strip those rights away from you and me, and bestow them upon businesses themselves. Those corporate religious beliefs can then be used to circumvent civil rights laws, if they happen to conflict with the businesses’ newly-bestowed conscience.

What does this mean for us? It won’t just affect LGBTQ people. If the only religious beliefs that matter are what your boss happens to believe, employees across the country will be forced into complying with those beliefs or risk their (and their family’s) livelihood and well being. If a business owner happens to belong to a faith that believes women should always be subservient to men, they could legally be allowed to deny women managerial positions (or not hire them at all). Muslims could refuse to hire Jewish workers, or keep them at lower pay rates than their co-workers. White business owners in the South could use religion as an excuse to deny service to Black customers.

Now, neither the Hobby Lobby case or the Mississippi law go so far as to completely open the floodgates for all of these civil rights abuses on their own, but each are significant cracks in the wall. And once precedent is set, the next exemption is that much easier to create.

If we are going to shore up the foundations of religious freedom, it’s going to take more than just quippy catchphrases. The Religious Right has been enormously successful capturing the dialogue, and painting all outsiders, particularly the LGBTQ community, as the enemies of our rights. We’ve got to help the nation understand that the leaders of the Right are seeking to not only strip the religious freedom of LGBTQ people, but of every citizen—no matter what their beliefs.

Eric Ethington has been specializing in political messaging, communications strategy, and public relations for more than a decade. Originally hailing from Salt Lake City, he now works in Boston for a social justice think tank. Eric’s writing, advocacy work, and research have been featured on MSNBC, CNN, Fox News, CNBC, the New York Times, The Telegraph, and The Public Eye magazine. He’s worked as a radio host, pundit, blogger, activist and electoral campaign strategist. He also writes at NuanceStillMatters.com 

Follow Author Eric Ethington on Twitter @EricEthington

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Greene Mocked for Weather Control Claim as NC Lawmaker Pleads for Conspiracy ‘Junk’ to End

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“Friends can I ask a small favor?” North Carolina Republican state Senator Kevin Corbin’s Facebook post began Thursday afternoon. “Will you all help STOP this conspiracy theory junk that is floating all over Facebook and the internet about the floods in WNC,” he wrote, referring to Hurricane Helene-hit western North Carolina.

Senator Corbin listed some examples of the conspiracy theories he and his fellow lawmakers are battling as they try to bring help to the people they represent: “FEMA is stealing money from donations, body bags ordered but government has denied, bodies not being buried, government is controlling the weather from Antarctica, government is trying to get lithium from WNC, stacks of bodies left at hospitals, and on and on and on.”

“PLEASE help stop this junk. It is just a distraction to people trying to do their job.”

In the middle of Corbin’s post, one conspiracy theory stood out: “government is controlling the weather.”

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That echoes a claim U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) made just hours later, Thursday night on social media:

“Yes they can control the weather. It’s ridiculous for anyone to lie and say it can’t be done.”

Exactly 12 hours after she posted that falsehood, it’s been been viewed 4.6 million times—not including all the screenshots that are flying around social media.

Congresswoman Greene is being widely derided and mocked.

National security expert, NSA contractor, and former Republican U.S. Rep. Denver Riggleman of Virginia blasted Greene.

“This person is in Congress,” he wrote on social media. “This ignorance, this lunacy, is why we have a government teetering and lurching. Her stupidity is a disease. She’s not alone either. Who do we blame? Well, folks.. we blame disinfo ecosystems— like here on X and we blame… voters. Mass idiocy. Stupid votes count.”

He added: “It’s dangerous how dumb she is.”

Some suggested Greene was merely referring to cloud seeding, attempts to increase rainfall, which date back to the 1940’s.

Riggleman disputed those suggestions: “She’s not thinking of cloud seeding— she is a QAnon adherent who also believes in direct prophecy and 9/11 conspiracies.”

Indeed, in 2021, just weeks after she was sworn in, Media Matters reported on Greene’s conspiracy theory-fueled history: “Marjorie Taylor Greene penned conspiracy theory that a laser beam from space started deadly 2018 California wildfire.”

“In November 2018, California was hit with the worst wildfire in the state’s history. At the time, future Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) wrote a bizarre Facebook post that echoed QAnon conspiracy theorists and falsely claimed that the real and hidden culprit behind the disaster was a laser from space triggered by some nefarious group of people,” the report reads.

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“Greene’s post, which hasn’t previously been reported, is just the latest example to be unearthed of her embracing conspiracy theories about tragedies during her time as a right-wing commentator. In addition to being a QAnon supporter, Greene has pushed conspiracy theories about 9/11, the Parkland and Sandy Hook school shootings, the Las Vegas shooting, and the murder of Democratic staffer Seth Richamong others.”

“Greene also has a history of pushing anti-Muslim and anti-Semitic remarks,” Media Matters wrote before noting, “CNN’s Em Steck and Andrew Kaczynski recently reported that on her Facebook page, ‘Greene repeatedly indicated support for executing prominent Democratic politicians in 2018 and 2019 before being elected to Congress.'”

Some, including Newsweek on Friday, suggested Greene was referring to Democrats when she ambiguously wrote, “they can control the weather,” but others insisted she was referring to Jews.

U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) served up this response:

Gun violence prevention activist Shannon Watts added, “Reminder: This is a conspiracy theory based in anti-Semitism alleging that Jewish people have the technology to manipulate the weather and cause freak storms that wreak havoc on the world.”

Regardless of who Congresswoman Greene was referring to, her promotion of yet another dangerous conspiracy theory at a time when people in the area of the country she claims to be fighting for are calling for level heads stands out.

U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI), appearing to respond to Greene’s tweet (which he had just retweeted) wrote: “Spreading lies during natural disasters is a special kind of evil. Don’t do it, don’t indulge it, don’t excuse it.”

Overnight, NBC News reported: “At least 215 people are known to have died as a result of the destruction wrought by Hurricane Helene since it made landfall in Florida a week ago.”

“More than half of the deaths were in North Carolina, where several feet of fast-moving water destroyed entire communities,” the report adds. “Hundreds are still missing, and officials have reported difficulties in identifying some of the dead.”

Senator Corbin, in his Facebook post, also stressed the need for an end to what he described as “intentional distractions.”

“Folks, this is a catastrophic event of which this country has never known. It is the largest crisis event in the history of N.C. The state is working non-stop,” he wrote. “DOT has deployed workers from all over the state. Duke power has 10,000 workers on this. FEMA is here. The National Guard is here in large numbers.”

“Government will play a role in this cleanup,” he promised. “We are going to make sure the state chips in some massive money. But Government is not the total solution. YES, there are a lot of neighbors helping neighbors and that’s good and the way it should be. Please don’t let these crazy stories consume you or have you continually contact your elected officials to see if they are true. I just talked to one Senator that has had 15 calls TODAY about why we don’t stop …….. ‘fill in the blank.’ 98% chance it’s not true and if it is a problem, somebody is aware and on it and not waiting for a post to go thru 10,000 people to be addressed. Thanks for listening but I’ve been working on this 12 hours a day since it started and I’m growing a bit weary of intentional distractions from the main job …. which is to help our citizens in need.”

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‘Wowza’: Economists Thrilled With ‘Huge’ Jobs Report and Wages Outpacing Prices

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The September jobs report is a stunning confirmation of just how “strong” and “resilient” the U.S economy is, according to economic experts who are celebrating Friday morning.

“US economy smashes expectations with 254,000 jobs added in September,” The Financial Times reports, “far outstripping expectations.”

“Wowza: HUGE jobs report,” exclaimed Professor of economics Justin Wolfers, a senior fellow at Brookings and a frequent guest on cable news. “This economic expansion that is motoring along.”

“This is a great September jobs report,” declared The Washington Post’s Heather Long. “The ‘soft landing’ is still on track.”

The New York Times’ economic reporter, Talmon Joseph Smith, summed up the news:

Economists had expected 140,000 to 159,000 new jobs. The unemployment rate fell to 4.1%, continuing the Biden administration’s historic record of producing and maintaining unemployment at five-decade lows.

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“Average hourly earnings grew 0.4% last month, and are now up 4.0% over the year. There’s no question that wages are running ahead of prices, and people are seeing meaningful real wage gains,” he added. Wolfers says he’s “been relentlessly optimistic about the economy for the past couple of years, and it’s felt lonely at times during the drumbeat of ‘recession’ talk, but it’s also been a pretty great place to be. If you were looking for what a soft landing looks like, this is it.”

Bloomberg News adds, “Unemployment for major ethnic groups — Black, White, Hispanic — fell, while the Asian unemployment rate held steady.”

President Biden, who worked with the dockworkers union to bring an extraordinarily fast end to their strike that ended after just three days this week, took a victory lap.

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“Today, we received good news for American workers and families with more than 250,000 new jobs in September and unemployment back down at 4.1%,” President Biden said in a statement. “With today’s report, we’ve created 16 million jobs, unemployment remains low, and wages are growing faster than prices. Under my Administration, unemployment has been the lowest in 50 years, a record 19 million new businesses have been created, and inflation and interest rates are falling. And we’re seeing the power of collective bargaining to lift up workers’ wages—including the progress made by dockworkers on record wages with carriers, and port operators and the reopening of East Coast and Gulf ports.”

Biden also took a swipe at Republicans.

“Congress should pass our plan to build millions of new homes, expand prescription drug price caps, empower workers and protect the right to organize, and cut taxes for hardworking families. Congressional Republicans have a different plan—more giant tax cuts for billionaires and big corporations, ending the Affordable Care Act, undermining workers by cutting overtime and making it harder to organize, and imposing a national sales tax that would raise costs by nearly $4,000 per year. While they put billionaires first, we’ll keep fighting to grow the middle class.”

See the social media posts above or at this link.

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Democrats Call for Trump-Appointed Scandal-Ridden Inspector General to Be Ousted

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Two House Democratic Ranking Members are calling for the removal of the Dept. of Homeland Security Inspector General Joseph Cuffari, appointed by Donald Trump in 2019, accusing him of lying to Congress, misleading Congress, blatantly abusing his powers, and wasting millions in taxpayer dollars.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, Ranking Member of the Committee on Oversight and Accountability, and Ranking Member Bennie G. Thompson, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, in a statement following the release of a damning independent report say “Inspector General Cuffari’s extensive and shocking record of misconduct and obstruction is evidence that he has seriously compromised the public’s trust and is plainly not fit to serve in a position that requires him to guard the public interest and act beyond reproach.”

“Cuffari’s unprecedented misconduct in office has been underscored and exacerbated by his persistent and repeated obstruction of oversight efforts. Not only did he fail to fully and meaningfully comply with our investigation—he actively worked to undermine and thwart it.” They call his actions “an outrageous affront and embarrassment to the inspector general community and have undermined the reputation of the entire DHS Office of Inspector General.”

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The Project On Government Oversight (POGO), a nonpartisan independent watchdog, on Wednesday released a report alleging Cuffari “waged a years-long campaign to derail and discredit investigations into allegations of his misconduct, which include claims he retaliated against whistleblowers.”

The independent report from the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE) did not cite Cuffari’s actions in deleted texts scandal, but as NCRM reported in 2022, Cuffari appeared to have waited seven months to notify Congress of the missing text messages from the day before and day of the January 6, 2021 insurrection.

That means that four months after the January 6 insurrection the Dept. of Homeland Security knew Secret Service agents’ text messages, from the day before and day of the attack on the U.S. Capitol, were missing and did not inform Congress or the National Archives, which is required by law to retain those records.

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The deleted Secret Service texts were not the only missing data at DHS.

“Text messages for President Donald Trump’s acting homeland security secretary Chad Wolf and acting deputy secretary Ken Cuccinelli are missing for a key period leading up to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol,” The Washington Post reported in July 2022.

Cuffari also reportedly “declined to pursue investigations into Secret Service during Trump administration,” The Washington Post reported in 2021, and “blocked investigations proposed by career staff … to scrutinize the agency’s handling of the George Floyd protests in Lafayette Square and the spread of the coronavirus in its ranks.”

“Hundreds of Secret Service officers were either infected with the coronavirus or had to quarantine after potential exposure … as Trump continued to travel and hold campaign events during the pandemic.”

The White House says the report is “concerning, but Politico reports Republicans are circling the wagons around Cuffari.

“Firing Cuffari could spark outrage from Capitol Hill Republicans, who have praised him for investigating DHS’s trouble vetting people evacuated from Afghanistan and its inability to monitor all unaccompanied migrant children released from federal custody after traveling to the United States,” Politico reports. “As CIGIE’s investigation into Cuffari has unfolded, congressional Republicans have rallied around him, suggesting he is being targeted as punishment for criticizing the administration. In an occasionally contentious July hearing, House Oversight Republicans pressed the head of CIGIE on how his office handles investigations into inspectors general and raised concerns about the Cuffari probe.”

In 2023 Cuffari testified before Congress he had deleted text messages from his government-issued cell phone which he also stated he did not use for personal reasons. He alleged the texts he deleted were not considered government records.

Watch the video below or at this link.

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