LEGISLATIVE UPDATE - WEEK ENDING DECEMBER 3, 2004
HOUSE AND SENATE IN SESSION
THE PRESIDENCY
NEW FACES IN THE CABINET
Since his reelection, President George W. Bush has moved quickly and effectively to form a new Administration that reflects his goals for the next four years. So far he has appointed two Hispanics (one born in Cuba) to top cabinet jobs, as well as making the first appointment of a black woman to be Secretary of State. Liberal Democrats have already labeled the President's choices as "extremists" and have vowed to fight their confirmations. Why? Democrats believe they own America's minorities. Democrat leaders honestly believe that blacks and Hispanics "owe" them. Owe them for what? It was the Democrat Party that fought against civil rights for most of the 19th and 20th centuries. Then, it was Republican President Dwight D. Eisenhower who used federalized national guard troops to integrate the schools in the South in the 1950's. And after all, it was the very first Republican President, Abraham Lincoln, who issued the Emancipation Proclamation. But Democrats hold up President John Kennedy as the single reason all blacks and all Hispanics should always vote for them no matter what they do. When a Democrat president does appoint a black or Hispanic, usually to a lesser post, it is major news. HERE IS REALITY: President George W. Bush does not even see the color of a person's skin. He has not taken into consideration the color or national origin of the individuals he has appointed. Unlike President Bill Clinton before him, President George W. Bush appoints good men and women based on their qualifications and their core beliefs, not on their skin color. It is for this reason the Democrats are willing to fight so hard against President Bush's nominees who are black and Hispanic; they know these are not "affirmative action" appointments, but strong conservative voices. The Democrats have a fear that women like Condoleezza Rice and men like Alberto Gonzales will become role models in their communities, and that even more blacks and Hispanics will turn in their worthless Democrat Party membership cards to associate with a party that actually appreciates them for who they are as individuals, not because of their skin color. The White House has released a statement on the racist comments against the President's nominees.
THE HOUSE
2005 CALENDAR
I still do not have much of a handle on the agenda for the first few months of the 109th Congress, but I did get my hands on the first draft of the calendar for 2005. To view the calendar in PDF format click here. The House, as of today, is scheduled to return on Monday, December 6th for just one day to vote on the Intelligence Bill. There is a huge debate within the Republican Party over provision regarding illegal immigration. Most Republican congressman want a provision to block illegal immigrants from obtaining a driver's license, while business interests want cheap illegal workers to be available. I personally don't believe this issue will be resolved by Monday.
THE SENATE
BOY SCOUTS
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist has stepped forward to protect the Boy Scouts from what has become an annual rite of persecution by the ACLU. The ACLU has a problem with the Boy Scouts' having belief in God as a membership requirement. To force them to remove that requirement and to allow homosexuals to be scout masters, the ACLU has filed dozens of lawsuits against not only the Boy Scouts but against anyone who does business with them. They have forced dozens of cities to refuse public parks and other facilities to the Boy Scouts and last month managed to get the Department of Defense to agree not to be affiliated with the Boy Scouts. Senator Frist has had enough and he has introduced legislation to stop the ACLU persecution of the Scouts. His first attempt at a unanimous vote was blocked by Democrats in the Senate who hate God as much as the ACLU does. When Congress reconvenes in January, Senator Frist will once again offer legislation to protect the Boy Scouts from the ACLU. "To this legislator, the ACLU's continued attacks on the Boy Scouts is starting to become its own form of persecution," said Senator Frist. Senator Frist, a medical doctor, is viewed as a strong favorite for the Republican nomination for the presidency in 2008.
JUDGES
Supreme Court Chief Justice Rehnquist has still not returned to work and has now been absent for five weeks since announcing he had cancer. It appears more and more likely that the first major Senate battle will be over the appointment of a Supreme Court Justice, although I do expect Ted Kennedy to lead a charge against Alberto Gonzales, the nominee for Attorney General. Although Senator Arlen Specter has been forced to sign a statement that he will not aid Democrats in blocking the President's Judicial nominees, I still do not fully trust him in the chairmanship of the Judiciary Committee during such a crucial time for the judicial branch of government.
THE COURTS
MARRIAGE
The Supreme Court refused to hear a case defending traditional marriage brought by my good friend Mathew Staver of the Liberty Counsel. The Court did not rule on its merit, but rather cited its own lack of jurisdiction. In his lawsuit Mathew Staver asked that the Court set aside the decision of the Massachusetts Supreme Court which forced that state's legislature to permit same sex marriage. On the state level, hearings for and against same sex marriage will be held in courts in Louisiana, Oregon and California. The ACLU is involved in the Oregon and Louisiana cases, where they are attempting to overturn constitutional amendments approved by the vast majority of the voters. California State law clearly states that marriage is only between a man and a woman, but liberal and homosexual groups are trying to overturn that as well. Liberals, like those who run the ACLU, honestly believe that most Americans are just sort of dumb and that eventually we will "awake" to the view that same sex marriage and abortion are normal parts of life. In Time Magazine, liberal writer Michelle Cottle stated, "Social conservatives ... cannot escape the world view of the blue staters. Every time they go to the movies or turn on a television or open their child's schoolbooks they're reminded that traditional values ain't what they used to be." This sums up the arrogance of liberals who control the major media and who honestly believe they can use it and the NEA controlled schools to destroy every Judeo-Christian value on which our nation was founded. The one thing they have not planned for .... the nightmare world they will have if they win. As morals and self control decrease, the number of laws and the physical control of the population by an ever expanding police force must increase. In the 1960's a typical policeman carried a club, a six gun and a pair of cuffs; now police departments have tanks. The ultimate cost of liberalism is social anarchy and the result of anarchy is a police state where there is no freedom at all.
CHRISTMAS AT RFC
THE WEST BANK AND CHRISTMAS
We are receiving a lot of orders this Christmas for the handmade olive oil complexion soap made by Christian families on the West Bank who have no other source of income. The men have been separated from their families because of death warrants issued against them by the Palestinian Authority. We still have a few hundred bars of the soap on hand; however, because of security issues in Israel and the West Bank we will not be receiving any more shipments this year. Please order early to insure you receive some your handmade olive oil complexion soap before Christmas. Because of our work in the Holy Land, and also with the defense of the public display of the Ten Commandments in the United States, we are offering the Ten Commandments etched in Jerusalem stone. We also have Christmas ornaments and inspirational ties for men. There are also DVD copies of George W. Bush, Faith in the White House still available. Proceeds from sales at our Internet store assist us in our work both in the United States and internationally. AND: we still have copies of my first book detailing my life in an atheist home before I became a Christian. Our store is located at www.rfcstore.com.
William J. Murray, Chairman
Religious Freedom Coalition, P.O. Box 77511, Washington, DC 20013. Phone: (202) 543-0300
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Religious Freedom Coalition * Copyright - 2004