This week on Faith On Trial: Kamala Harris and Latitia James

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Poll: Most Americans Reject Biden’s Radical Court ‘Reform’ Scheme

by Jorge Gomez

Most Americans oppose President Biden’s radical court “reform” plan, according to a recent Mason-Dixon poll commissioned by First Liberty. The results show that a majority reject proposals to change the U.S. Supreme Court, which include court packing, court purging by ending lifetime tenure and Congress overseeing the Court via a “code of ethics.”

Overall, 52% oppose amending the U.S. Constitution to alter the Supreme Court’s structure.

On court-packing, 59% oppose expanding the size of the Supreme Court. 76% say expanding the court is primarily motivated by political objectives and 64% believe packing the Supreme Court threatens civil liberties.

60% believe giving Congress the power to enforce a “code of ethics” would violate the separation of powers. 57% say this proposal threatens judicial independence.

Americans also appear to see right through the manufactured “ethics” scandals and smear campaigns against individual justices. 63% oppose politically motivated attacks aimed at discrediting and destroying the reputation of justices, with about half (49%) saying this is dangerous to judicial independence.

The far Left is trying to convince Americans that ending life tenure for Supreme Court justices would be a benign and “common sense” reform, when in fact it would be a radical and sweeping change to our judicial system.

They try to disguise this extreme proposal by calling it “term limits.” That’s because polling indicates most Americans favor term limits for elected politicians. But Americans would be wise not to fall for the idea that term limits are good across the board. What might work if applied to politicians would have a very different impact if forced on Supreme Court justices.

First Liberty has explained that Supreme Court term limits are unconstitutional. This is simply court-packing by a different name. When the dangers of the so-called judicial “term limits” proposal are exposed, Americans discern the truth. Close to half (46%) agreed that lifetime appointments for Supreme Court justices are necessary to promote judicial independence. 87% said an independent judiciary is a crucial safeguard of our rights and freedoms. How different might that first number be if they understood that lifetime appointments are necessary for an independent judiciary?

What do these poll results mean for the future of the Supreme Court? First Liberty attorney Hiram Sasser goes into more detail in this week’s First Liberty Live! Watch below:

In the fight to preserve the priceless heritage of the Supreme Court and our nation’s judiciary, the results of this poll are very positive—and they come at an incredibly important time. Radical court “reform” advocates are more emboldened than ever. In their thirst for more power, the radical Left has said “everything is on the table,” and they’re willing to destroy the Supreme Court rather than have it remain outside their control.

But Americans are making it clear that the last thing want in our country right now is a Supreme Court Coup.

That’s been the case throughout the last few years. Polling commissioned by First Liberty in 2021, 2022 and 2023 consistently shows that most Americans oppose expanding the size of the Court, changing its structure or giving Congress power to set rules for judicial ethics.

Americans’ eyes are being opened and they’re seeing the court “reform” scheme for what it really is: a brazen power-grab. They respect the Supreme Court and value our judicial system. They want to uphold the rule of law.

500,000+ Americans signed the Declaration of Judicial Independence saying: NO to court packing, NO to suspect judicial reforms, NO to the Supreme Court Coup.

We need to keep spreading the truth! Will you help us?

Forward this article to your family, friends, neighbors and coworkers. We need to work together to help save the priceless heritage of the U.S. Supreme Court. Everyone needs to know that the Biden administration’s plan for court “reform” is a danger to our country. If this Supreme Court Coup succeeds, it won’t be long before we lose our religious liberty and many of our most cherished freedoms.

Pro-Life group leader slams DNC’s abortion ‘extremism’

Amid the Democratic National Convention and the release of the Democratic Party’s draft platform, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser criticized the party as the “Shout Your Abortion Party.” “The Democratic National Abortion Convention puts the extremism of the Democrats on full display,” she stated.  READ

Democrats For Life raises funds to counter free abortions at DNC

Democrats for Life of America is countering Planned Parenthood’s offer of free abortions near the Democratic National Convention (DNC) this week by sponsoring a diaper drive to help local mothers in need. “The response has been so overwhelming, we’re so excited,” Democrats for Life Executive Director Kristen Day told CatholicVote. Their initial goal was to raise $1,000, but they had raised $3,500 by August 20.  READ

Trump promises to protect kids from ‘trans’ surgeries

Trump on Tuesday vowed to punish doctors who perform attempted sex-change surgeries on children without parental consent. “To protect our children from sexual mutilation, we will make it a felony for any medical professional to perform surgery on a minor without parental consent,” Trump’s prepared remarks stated.  READ

DNC Speakers Quiet On Radical LGBT Policies

By Bill Donohue, Catholic League president 

The 2024 Democratic platform notes, "For generations, LGBTQI+ Americans have summoned the courage to live authentically and proudly, even when it meant putting their lives and livelihoods at risk." 

However, it seems the speakers at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) could not summon "the courage" to speak "authentically and proudly" about their full-throated endorsement of the most radical LGBT policies ever implemented. They appear to be unwilling to put their political "lives and livelihoods at risk." Even taking a fleeting second to explain who the "+" people are appears to have been too much for them. 

No, rather than defending the record of the Biden-Harris administration, the DNC featured a stealth campaign to obfuscate the barbarism and depravity at the heart of the policies promoted over the last four years. Instead, the DNC has chosen to put a "joyful" and moderate spin on their agenda in hopes of appealing to normal voters in the swing-states. 

While the Democrats might lack the fortitude to highlight their "accomplishments" on these issues, here is just a brief summary of what the Biden-Harris administration has done: 

·         On the first day of the Biden-Harris administration, it implemented an executive order allowing boys into the girls restrooms and locker rooms and to compete in girls sports.

·         The Biden-Harris administration has rolled back religious liberty protections for medical providers compelling them to provide "gender affirming care."

·         The Biden-Harris administration has routinely championed the Equality Act. This act would effectively gut religious liberty protections and eviscerate women's sports and other legal protections. It would compel Catholic Hospitals to provide "gender affirming care."

·         The Biden-Harris administration adopted a rule that if foster parents refused to support "gender affirming care" they would have their children taken from them.

·         The Biden-Harris administration regularly condemned states like Florida, Texas, and Tennessee for defending parental rights and protecting children from mutilation in the name of "gender affirming care."

·         The Biden-Harris administration sought an appeal to mandate that Catholic doctors and hospitals would have to provide "gender-transition" surgeries. 

You would not have heard any mention of these policies from the DNC speakers. There were platitudes about children "being who they are and loving who they love" as Michelle Obama put it, or Barack Obama's insistence "that true freedom gives each of us the right to make decisions about our own life,...what our family looks like,...[and] who we marry...." 

The DNC speakers were happy to go on about "book banning." Vice presidential nominee Tim Walz, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, and Secretary Pete Buttigieg were happy to mention this. Of course, they left out that the books are not being banned, but instead, parents are calling on education officials to keep books out of schools that are not age-appropriate (they feature graphic sexual content). 

But what makes this political expedience even more outrageous is for the past four years we have been told by the Biden-Harris administration that "trans" kids are facing a crisis in this country. To drive this point home, they have turned to Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services Rachel Levine, a man who pretends to be a woman. Levine has assured us that "Gender-affirming care is medical care. It is mental health care. It is suicide prevention care. It improves quality of life, and it saves lives." If what he says is true, why would the DNC not give him a prominent platform to highlight this? 

We at the Catholic League have the courage these speakers lack. This is why we have a billboard calling for the end of gender transitioning just outside of the United Center. Additionally, we have been running 30 radio ads on WLS 890 AM, one of the most prominent radio stations in Chicago. The radical LGBT agenda seeks to upend our nation, and the promotion of gender affirming care for minors is child abuse. This is a critical issue that we will never walk away from. The American people need to be leveled with, but the DNC speakers won't do that.

Schumer’s Revenge on the Court

Pro-life victory in Arizona

The Supreme Court of Arizona has allowed voter information packets to use the language “unborn human person” in describing abortion, overturning the Superior Court’s July ruling. The Wednesday ruling concerned a pamphlet distributed to voters that described the pro-abortion amendment slated to appear on Arizona’s November ballot. READ

RFK: Democratic party no longer the Kennedy party

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. this week stated that the Democratic Party of today is no longer the party of his uncle, President John F. Kennedy. “Harris’s Party,” he argued, is a party of war, of corporate influence, and of censorship. READ

This week on Faith On Trial: Physician-assisted suicide; Massachusetts re-defines "family"

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Pro-Life organization slams U.S. Army for calling it a terrorist group

LifeNws.com -- On Thursday, the National Right to Life Committee, Inc. (NRLC) issued requests for records relating to the Army’s designation of it as a “terrorist group” during a training event at Fort Liberty, North Carolina, on July 10, 2024. Shockingly, the training event included a slide listing National Right to Life under the bold, all-caps heading, “TERRORIST GROUPS,” as well as bullet points listing examples such as “Pro Life” and “Oppose Row [sic] v Wade.” Were these baseless and sweeping vilifications of NRLC and pro-life people in general not appalling enough, the slide also mentioned peaceful pro-life activities, such as sidewalk counseling.

In a scathing indictment, Representative Jim Banks (R-IN), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Military Personnel, together with numerous Republican colleagues, sent a letter to Christine Wormuth, Secretary of the Army, demanding answers about who vetted these training materials, whether this was an official Army policy, and whether Secretary Wormuth would commit to actions ensuring such outrageous “terrorist” classification of pro-life groups like NRLC and its members would not occur again.

Now, seeking further answers, the Bopp Law Firm, PC, headed by James Bopp, Jr., general counsel for NRLC, has used the federal Freedom of Information Act, commonly known as “FOIA,” to seek further information about this “terrorist” designation on NRLC’s behalf.

The firm sent FOIA request letters to five entities up the military chain of command, from Fort Liberty itself up to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, seeking documents (including electronic documents, such as email communications) pertaining to this training in particular or to any Army policy or decision that targets pro-life people, activities, or beliefs.

FOIA requires the release of a broad range of records possessed by government agencies such as the Army. Accordingly, FOIA requests such as these are an essential tool in uncovering the government official or agency from which this targeting originated and to hold those responsible to account.

“This is a despicable slander against NRLC. That those tasked with defending the freedoms of the American people should use their power to smear peaceful advocacy groups as terrorists is dangerous and outrageous. This is precisely the opposite of how our Founders intended for federal power to be used,” said Attorney Bopp.

“It is stunning that training tools used by the U.S. Army vilified a well-recognized, peaceful pro-life group such as National Right to Life,” Carol Tobias, president of NRLC. “The U.S. Army needs to answer why its training materials lied about the nature of pro-life work in general and specifically about National Right to Life.”

A copy of the FOIA request sent to Fort Liberty can be obtained here.

Wisconsin diocese takes religious battle to Supreme Court

Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Superior, Wisconsin has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a prior decision of the state Supreme Court that declared the organization to be “non religious.” The August 9 appeal came after the state Court ruled the Catholic non-profit could not opt out of the state’s unemployment compensation program to join a “better” program offered by Wisconsin’s Catholic bishops.  READ

Eucharistic revival calls Catholics to ‘Tear on Mission’

The National Eucharistic Revival has called for participation in the historic evangelization effort “Year on Mission” and offered new resources for those who wish to get involved. The Year on Mission is a call to action for all Catholics, whether experienced evangelists or those new to sharing their faith. READ

Appeals Court Upholds Religious School’s Employment Freedom

RICHMOND, VA – The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals recently ruled in favor of the Diocese of Charlotte, North Carolina, protecting the freedom of religious schools to employ schoolteachers who will uphold their religious beliefs. In Billard v. Diocese of Charlotte, the Court overturned a lower court ruling on May 8, 2024, and reaffirmed Charlotte Catholic High School’s (CCHS) religious freedom as a result of a lawsuit by a former high school teacher who was fired after he entered into a same-sex relationship that conflicted with the school’s beliefs about marriage and sexuality. Lonnie Billard sued the school in 2017 for sex discrimination under Title VII after he was fired. The former teacher taught English and Drama at CCHS for 12 years before retiring and transferring to a substitute role. As a teacher, he previously signed a contract agreeing to uphold teachings of the Catholic Church. But in 2015, he entered into a same-sex marriage in violation of Catholic teaching and made public statements on social media advocating against Church teaching. When the school chose not to continue employing him as a substitute teacher, he sued the school and the Diocese of Charlotte for asking their teachers to support the school’s religious mission. The Diocese of Charlotte, represented by The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty and Troutman Pepper, has operated Catholic schools across western North Carolina for more than 50 years.

 

 

In its ruling, the Fourth Circuit stated the First Amendment requires civil courts are “bound to stay out of employment disputes involving ministers – those holding certain important positions with churches and other religious institutions.” The Court found that Billard was a minister because Charlotte Catholic requires its teachers to “model and promote Catholic faith and morals” and he played a “vital role” in advancing the school’s religious mission -- even if he taught secular subjects such as English and drama. CCHS expects its teachers to begin each class with a short prayer, led either by the teacher or the students, though it does not dictate the content of the prayer. It requires its teachers to accompany students to all-school Mass, where they play a ‘supervisory,’ though not specifically religious, role.” The Diocese states its own mission: “We, the people of God in the Diocese of Charlotte, fortified in the Father, redeemed in the Son, empowered in the Spirit, are called to grow ever more perfectly into a community of praise, worship, and witness. We seek to become ever more enthusiastically a leaven of service and a sign of peace through love in Piedmont and Western North Carolina.”  The school’s motto, inscribed at its entrance, reads: “The soul of education is the education of the soul.”  The Fourth Circuit’s jurisdiction includes North Carolina, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and South Carolina.  Liberty Counsel Founder and Chairman Mat Staver said, “This commonsense ruling by the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals protects a fundamental religious liberty of faith-based organizations to employ people who align with their mission. The ministerial exception allows religious institutions to decide who to employ to represent the organization.”

Shocking video exposes Planned Plarenthood execs

A newly resurfaced undercover video shows Planned Parenthood executives talking about avoiding illegal partial birth abortions by tearing late-term babies up before extracting them, harvesting their organs, and selling their parts. The Center for Medical Progress said this week that Planned Parenthood asked then California Attorney General Kamala Harris to seize the video. Officials then raided the home of CMP president David Daleiden and confiscated evidence. READ

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