Our American Thanksgiving: A Gracious Gift

November 26, 2013 

Our American Thanksgiving: A Gracious Gift

By FRC Senior Fellow Bob Morrison

The first thing we can thank God for this Thanksgiving is that we Americans still have Thanksgiving. This holiday, so bound up with our history and our traditions, is in danger. Most department stores have long since put up their Christmas - correction -- holiday decorations and filled the air with "Yuletide" carols. With more and more national retail chains opening for business on Thanksgiving Day, we have to ask: Will Thanksgiving Day give way to Black Thursday in years to come? Will it be no more than the kickoff for the season of year-end bargain-hunting? Will an unrelenting materialism drive out any time for home and hearth?

One of the great reasons we have so honored the Chick-fil-A company is that they close on Sundays, the Lord's Day. As unusual as this is, even more unusual is the reason the Cathy family has long given its customers for the day of rest: It is so their workers can spend the day with their loved ones. Turning aside from this headlong rush toward secularism, we can celebrate another bounteous harvest with the words of the great New England poet, John Greenleaf Whittier:

Give fools their gold and knaves their power;
Let fortune's bubble rise and fall;
Who sows a field, or trains a flower,
Or plants a tree, is more than all.

In the United States, the origins of Thanksgiving Day are usually traced to the Pilgrim Fathers and their arrival at Plymouth Rock in 1620. These English Protestants sought refuge in Massachusetts so they might practice their religion unharried by royal mandates. The Pilgrims voyaged to the rocky, forbidding coast of New England aboard the tiny sailing ship, Mayflower.

Their Mayflower Compact was the first charter of government by the consent of the governed to be framed for the Pilgrims' "errand into the wilderness." So, from the beginning, religious freedom and self-government were inextricably bound together. The New England town meetings that grew out of the Mayflower Compact were the seedbed of American Independence a century and a half later.

So powerful was the Pilgrim story for much of our history that even two centuries later, the great French writer Alexis de Tocqueville could observe of Plymouth Rock:

This Rock has become an object of veneration in the United States. I have seen bits of it carefully preserved in several towns in the Union. Does this sufficiently show that all human power and greatness is in the soul of man? Here is a stone which the feet of a few outcasts pressed for an instant; and the stone becomes famous; it is treasured by a great nation; its very dust is shared as a relic.

Tocqueville wrote in Democracy in America, (1835) his classic work of political science, that religion is the first of Americans' political institutions. Tocqueville could not say whether Americans were sincere in their Christian faith, for who can see into another man's soul? Yet, this young Catholic genius strongly maintained that he had seen the fruits of that faith. Americans were more capable of self-government, he wrote, because they believed that God gave them the ability, and the right, to manage their own affairs.

We observed on November 19th the 150^th Anniversary of the Gettysburg Address. In this immortal speech, President Abraham Lincoln described the causes of the great Civil War then raging. He said "this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom." Regrettably, some of our leaders have omitted "under God" from their remembrances of the great event.

This is also the 150^th Anniversary of President Lincoln's Thanksgiving Proclamation. Beginning an annual national observance of the day, he wrote in 1863:

Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battlefield; and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom. No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People.

Celebrating the harvest as we do, thankful for the rich bounty of America's farms, rivers, lakes, and seas as we are, we need to remember they are the gracious gifts of the Most High God. If we do this, we may look ahead hopefully to many of Thanksgivings to come.

A Thanksgiving Message

Thanksgiving, unlike some of our other national holidays, is unique to America. Its history traces back to the very beginnings of our country. The autumn feast that was shared between the Wampanoag tribe of Native Americans in 1621 is viewed by most students of American history as our first Thanksgiving. Some, who want so desperately to sanitize our history of all mention of God, deny the celebration had any religious significance. The historical record tells a different story.

 

Edward Winslow, in attendance at that first feast, wrote to a friend in England, "And God be praised, we had a good increase… Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling that so we might after a special manner rejoice together… These things I thought good to let you understand… that you might on our behalf give God thanks who hath dealt so favourably with us."

 

Then over 250 years later, the original intent of thanking God remained the focus of Thanksgiving. As George Washington said in his Thanksgiving Presidential Proclamation:

 

"Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor -- and whereas both Houses of Congress have... requested me to recommend... a day of public thanksgiving and prayer... by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God... Now therefore I do recommend... assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be -- That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks -- for his kind care and protection of the People of this country..."

 

By the days of the Civil War and Abraham Lincoln, the Thanksgiving Proclamation was an admonishment by one of our greatest presidents that we should never forget God:

 

"We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of Heaven. We have been preserved, these many years, in peace and prosperity. We have grown in numbers, wealth and power, as no other nation has ever grown. But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace, and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us; and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us!"

 

We Americans have so much to be grateful for, but the Thanksgiving holiday is meaningless if we forget to Whom we are to be grateful. The first way we can show our gratitude is to respectfully acknowledge that our Creator, as our Founding Fathers said, endowed us with unalienable rights. Another way of showing thankful hearts is honoring the Constitution that has secured our freedom for two hundred and twenty-six years. And a third way is to see Thanksgiving not as a day that comes and goes, but as a day that sets the tone for the entire year. We should celebrate it as a day that restores our hope in the blessings and favor of Almighty God; a day to remember that we, and the great nation we call home, are rooted in a deep reservoir of faith. If we disconnect from our roots, we disconnect from the truths that made us free and strength that made us the greatest nation in all of human history.

 

Let us always be thankful, that we may always be free in His favor, and great in His sight.

For God & Country,

E.W. Jackson

Today's Obamacare Disaster Update

Gary L. Bauer
Campaign for Working Families

Time's Mark Halperin acknowledged in a recent interview that Sarah Palin was right about Obamacare leading to rationing and "death panels." Halperin said, "It's built into the plan. It's not like a guess or like a judgment. That's going to be part of how costs are controlled." 

Obamacare strikes again: Another cancer victim has lost her health insurance coverage BECAUSE OF OBAMACARE.

Obamacare is killing jobs at top U.S. hospitals. The Cleveland Clinic reports that Obamacare is forcing it to cut more than $100 million from its budget.

The December 1st re-launch of Healthcare.gov is just days away. Attempting to head off another round of bad press, an administration spokesman admitted yesterday, "The system will not work perfectly on Dec. 1," adding that users will face "periods of suboptimal performance."

Concerns about the site are so bad that the administration, according to one report, "has opened the door for Americans to circumvent the site altogether." Think about that: Hundreds of millions of your hard-earned tax dollars have been spent to create an Obamacare website that is so bad that the White House is now trying to figure out ways for folks to avoid using it!

Obamacare is struggling at the state level too. The Oregon exchange has signed up exactly 0 people. No, that's not a typo. No one has signed up through the Cover Oregon exchange.

Community outreach efforts to promote Obamacare in New Mexico are falling flat. Not even free food can get people to show up. An event in Bloomfield was cancelled when just seven people signed up. Another seminar in Farmington attracted ten people.

Filibuster Flip-Flops

Gary L. Bauer
American Values

As the saying goes, where you stand depends on where you sit. Years ago, when they were in the minority and were routinely blocking George W. Bush's judicial nominees, liberals were staunch defenders of the Senate's filibuster rules and traditions. When conservatives considered invoking the "nuclear option," the left howled with outrage. Consider these few examples:

Harry Reid in April 2005: "The threat to change Senate rules is a raw abuse of power and will destroy the very checks and balances our Founding Fathers put in place to prevent absolute power by any one branch of government."

Harry Reid in May 2005: "The filibuster is not a scheme and it certainly isn't new. … It's part of the fabric of this institution we call the Senate. …the filibuster has been employed hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of times. It's been employed on legislative matters, it's been employed on procedural matters relating to the president's nominations for Cabinet and sub-Cabinet posts, and it's been used on judges for all those years. …Senators have used the filibuster to stand up to popular presidents, to block legislation, and, yes, even, as I've stated, to stall executive nominees. The roots of the filibuster are found in the Constitution and in our own rules."

Then-Senator Joe Biden in May 2005: "This is the single most significant vote any one of us will cast… This nuclear option is ultimately an example of the arrogance of power. It is a fundamental power grab by the majority party... designed to change the reading of the Constitution…It is nothing more or nothing less."

Then-Senator Obama in April 2005: "Mr. President, I rise today to urge my colleagues to think about the implications of what has been called the nuclear option... [I]f the majority chooses to end the filibuster, if they choose to change the rules and put an end to democratic debate, then the fighting, the bitterness, and the gridlock will only get worse. …

"I fear the partisan atmosphere in Washington will be poisoned to the point where no one will be able to agree on anything. That does not serve anybody's best interest, and it certainly is not what the patriots who founded this democracy had in mind."

Working to Allow Americans to Keep Their Health Plans

Congressman Robert Hurt

Weekly Column 11/18/13

Last week, the House approved legislation to allow Fifth District families to keep their health care policies in 2014.  H.R. 3350, the Keep Your Health Plan Act, passed the House with bipartisan support.

 

Millions of Americans have received notification that their health plans have been canceled as a result of the President’s health care overhaul.  The Administration has acknowledged that their promise that Americans who like their health care plans would be able to keep them has not been fulfilled.  Our office has received thousands of messages pleading that we put an end to this damaging law.  One Fifth District family in Franklin County saw its premium double from $600 to $1,200.  Another Fifth District family in Danville saw its deductible go from $500 to $1,750.

 

The President offered administrative ‘fixes’ to the legislation, which were yet another instance of backtracking because of the unsustainability of his health care law.  These clerical corrections will not reverse the damaging effects of this law in the end.  That is why the House took action last week to free Americans from the expensive premiums brought on by this law for another year.  Not only does the Keep Your Health Plan Act allow Americans to keep their policies, but it also ensures that those who choose to keep their health plans would not face a penalty under the individual mandate.

 

Ultimately, we must work toward full repeal and replacement of the law, but until we are able to achieve this, we must delay its implementation.  I am encouraged by last week’s passage of the Keep Your Health Care Act, as it brings us closer to freeing Americans from the burdensome regulations of the President’s health care law. 

 

If you need any additional information, please visit my website at hurt.house.gov or call my Washington office: (202) 225-4711, Charlottesville office: (434) 973-9631, Danville office: (434) 791-2596, or Farmville office: (434) 395-0120.

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Katt❤️Country ‏@TrucksHorsesDog 24m

Hypocrisy !!@ChristianCalls1: ...Says the woman who takes $100,000,000 vacations on the taxpayer's dime. #tcot pic.twitter.com/x9o3Va0IQy

 

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TECH TEAM ARRIVES TO FIX OBAMACARE

Rep. Robert Hurt Statement Following Vote to Allow Americans to Keep Their Health Plans

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Robert Hurt (R-Virginia) released the following statement after voting in favor of H.R. 3350, the Keep Your Health Plan Act, which passed the House by a vote count of 261-157.

 

"The Keep Your Health Plan Act will provide relief to Americans from the expensive premiums brought on by the President'€™s health care law by providing millions the opportunity to keep their policies in 2014.  This legislation will also ensure that those who choose to keep their health plans would not face a penalty under the individual mandate.  

 

"€œOn September 26, President Obama said, "The first thing you need to know is this: If you already have health care, you don'€™t have to do anything." Then, in October, it was reported that the Obama Administration has known for a number of years that this promise was going to be impossible to keep.

 

"€œMillions of Americans have received notification that their health plans have been cancelled as a result of the President's health care overhaul.  Our office has received thousands of messages pleading that we put an end to this damaging law.  One Fifth District family in Franklin County saw its premium double from $600 to $1,200.  Another Fifth District family in Danville saw its deductible go from $500 to $1,750.

 

"€œThe administrative "fixes"€™ like the one that was announced by the President yesterday will not repair the underlying issues and flaws that make up this damaging law.  In order to stop its devastating effects, we must fully repeal and replace the President's health care law so that patients and doctors are in charge of medical decisions, and not the federal government.  I am encouraged by today'€™s passage of the Keep Your Health Care Act, as it brings us one step closer to freeing Americans from the reins of the President's health care law."

Staff Members from Robert Hurt's Office to Hold Local Office Hours in Fluvanna and Appomattox Counties

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Staff members from Congressman Robert Hurt's (R-Virginia) office will hold Local Office Hours in Fluvanna and Appomattox Counties on Friday, November 15 to meet with constituents who need assistance with federal agencies. For more information, please visit our Local Office Hours Interactive Map.

 

Friday, November 15, 2013

 

9:00 – 11:00 AM

Local Office Hours In Fluvanna County

Fluvanna County Public Library

Conference Room

214 Commons Blvd.

Palmyra, VA

 

1:00 – 3:00 PM
Local Office Hours In Appomattox County
Appomattox County Administration Building
Board Conference Room
153-A Morton Lane
Appomattox, VA

 

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Less Gov. More Fun.™ ‏@LessGovMoreFun 18m

. You can't fix a #Trainwreck. You CAN clean it up and do everything possible to not have another one. #CSPANchat pic.twitter.com/ZaJCoBl4Bw

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"Today almost nobody remembers why we went to Vietnam in the first
place. I do. Here we were, 12,000 miles away, supposedly battling the
spread of communism, while her at home, communist ideals were
infiltrating our society and undermining our way of life right under our
noses.

"that's exactly what is going on in the political arena. We are off to
Olympia or the other Washington to do political battle against
ever-encroaching tyrannical socialism. Meanwhile, the masses are being
educated by a leftist media, in collusion with a self-serving
socialistic education establishment paid for with our tax dollars. In
essence, we're paying for our own demise."

Douglas Simpson

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The U.S. Government has just passed a new law called:

"The Affordable Boat Act"

It declares that every citizen MUST purchase a new boat, by April 2014.

These "affordable" boats will cost an average of $54,000-$155,000 each.  This does not include taxes, trailers, towing fees, licensing and registration fees, fuel, docking and storage fees, maintenance or repair costs.

This law has been passed, because until now, typically only wealthy and financially responsible people have been able to purchase boats. This new laws ensures that every American can now have a "affordable" boat of their own, because everyone is "entitled" to a new boat. If you purchase your boat before the end of the year, you will receive 4 "free" life jackets; not including monthly usage fees.

In order to make sure everyone purchases an affordable boat, the costs of owning a boat will increase on average of 250-400% per year. This way, wealthy people will pay more for something that other people don't want or can't afford to maintain. But to be fair, people who can't afford to maintain their boat will be regularly fined and children (under the age of 26) can use their parents boats to party on until they turn 27; then must purchase their own boat.

If you already have a boat, you can keep yours (just kidding; no you can't).

If you don't want or don't need a boat, you are required to buy one anyhow.

If you refuse to buy one or can't afford one, you will be regularly fined $800 until you purchase one or face imprisonment.

Failure to use the boat will also result in fines.  People living in the desert; ghettos; inner cities or areas with no access to lakes, rivers or the ocean, are not exempt.  Age, motion sickness, experience, knowledge nor lack of desire are not acceptable excuses for not using your boat.

A government review board (that doesn't know the difference between the port, starboard or stern sides of a boat) will decide everything, including; when, where, how often and for what purposes you can use your boat along with how many people can ride your boat and determine if one is too old or healthy enough to be able to use their boat. They will also decide if your boat has out lived its usefulness or if you must purchase specific accessories,(like a $500 compass) or a newer and more expensive boat. Those that can afford yachts will be required to do so...it's only fair. The government will also decide the name for each boat. Failure to comply with these rules will result in fines and possible imprisonment.

Government officials are exempt from this new law. If they want a boat, they and their families can obtain boats free, at the expense of tax payers.

Unions, bankers and mega companies with large political affiliations ($$$) are also exempt.

I was going to order one Today, but the website was down, I'm sure they will fix it, I will try again tomorrow!

Burned & Sorry

Gary L. Bauer

During an exclusive interview with NBC News last night, Obama did his best to stop the political bleeding he and his fellow Democrats have sustained from the Obamacare debacle.

Reporter Chuck Todd asked Obama about the failed website and whether Healthcare.gov would be ready by the end of the month. Obama suggested it would be, but then added:

"Now that -- you know, having said that -- given that I've been burned already with -- a website -- well, more importantly, the American people have been burned by a website that has been dysfunctional. What we've also been doing is creating a whole other set of tracks. Making sure that people can apply by phone effectively. Making sure that people can apply in person effectively. …"

Notice he first said, "I've been burned." But he quickly corrected himself and mentioned the American people who are the real victims of Obamacare.

Todd also pressed the president about the millions of Americans receiving cancellation letters in spite of his repeated promises that they could keep the insurance they currently have. Obama said: "I am sorry that they -- you know, are finding themselves in this situation, based on assurances they got from me."

What is Obama sorry about?

Is Obama sorry people are paying more? Is he sorry they are losing access to their doctors?

Is he sorry that taxpayers have lost hundreds of millions of their hard-earned dollars on a website that doesn't work? Is he sorry he rammed Obamacare through Congress in the most partisan manner possible, not getting even a single Republican vote?

He didn't say he was sorry for lying to the American people. I don't use the word "lying" lightly, but that is what happened. The White House knew Obama's promise was false.

Rep. John Yarmouth (D-KY) now admits he "cringed" when Obama repeatedly lied to the American people because Yarmouth knew that promise was false.

Republicans warned Obama's promise was false.

But Obama has apologized. So all's forgiven, right? Time to move on.

Obama's "fauxpology" may be enough for Big Media. We'll have to wait and see whether the Obamacare debacle blows over or if the outrage growing across the country continues to gain momentum.

Family Research Council, Churches Celebrate Military Freedom Sunday

November 08, 2013

FRC releases video about religious persecution in the U.S. military

WASHINGTON, D.C. - One day before Veterans Day, Family Research Council (FRC) and churches around the country will celebrate Military Freedom Sunday, a day to honor and pray for the men and women serving in the U.S. Armed Forces, who daily risk their lives to defend our lives and rights.

FRC and participating churches will also reflect on the ever-increasing harassment and formal reprimands service members are facing when they exercise their religious beliefs.

On Veterans Day, FRC and 15 other members of the Restore Military Religious Freedom Coalition will run an ad in the Military Times' publications informing service members that religious liberty advocacy groups stand ready to provide legal assistance should they experience a violation of their religious liberty rights.

Of the event FRC President Tony Perkins said:

"On Military Freedom Sunday, we will honor and pray for our troops, especially those who are being discriminated against for living out their faith. More and more service members are facing harassment, demotion, and formal reprimands simply for being Bible-believing Christians. They've been prohibited from sharing their faith, forbidden from praying publicly, and dismissed from duty for refusing to surrender their religious convictions.

"Defending America's freedom shouldn't mean surrendering theirs, especially given that the Constitution they have sworn to uphold guarantees religious liberty as all Americans' 'first freedom,'" concluded Perkins.

In advance of Military Freedom Sunday, FRC released the following video entitled "A Clear and Present Danger," featuring real-life stories of persecution in the military: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-PDR9Gxvvc&list=PLX54JHEGsMzN9E-HL5a5URo264xNGjFvP

To view a bulletin insert created by FRC for this Sunday's event, click here: http://downloads.frc.org/EF/EF13K09.pdf

To read "A Clear and Present Danger," FRC's report on religious persecution in the military, click here: http://www.frc.org/clearpresentdanger

To view the Military Times ad, click here: http://downloads.frc.org/EF/EF13K20.pdf

Fighting For Life

Gary L. Bauer
VISIT AMERICAN VALUES

Yesterday I was on Capitol Hill meeting with pro-life leaders and Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) to discuss his legislation to ban late-term abortions. Today Senator Graham formally introduced the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, which would prohibit abortions performed after 20 weeks of pregnancy.

This is not a controversial issue. A December 2012 Gallup poll found that only 14% of Americans support abortion performed in the last months of pregnancy.

As Senator Graham said, "Science and technology have advanced tremendously since 1973. We now know that an unborn child at the twentieth week of pregnancy can feel pain. In fact, anesthesia is administered directly to unborn children in second trimester fetal surgery."

Yet current law permits an abortionist to dismember an unborn child in the eighth and ninth month of pregnancy.

Similar legislation has already passed the House of Representatives. Senator Graham introduced his bill with 33 co-sponsors. Now Senate Democrat Leader Harry Reid needs to be convinced to permit a vote so we can force this to Obama's desk.


ACTION ITEM: Call your senators at 202-224-3121. Urge them to co-sponsor the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. If they have already done so, thank them for their leadership. If they have not, politely, but firmly, request that they do so.

Rep. Forbes Releases Statement Defending Legislative Prayer in Town of Greece v. Galloway

Washington, D.C. - Today, the Supreme Court of the United States heard oral arguments in Town of Greece v. Galloway, a case challenging the practice of opening government meetings with prayer.  The town of Greece, New York, has a policy allowing anyone who wishes to offer a prayer before their meetings to request to do so; they have even hosted a Bahai leader and a Wiccan Priestess.  Despite the town's highly inclusive prayer policy, the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit departed from Supreme Court precedent and declared the prayer practice unconstitutional.

Congressman J. Randy Forbes issued the following statement:

"Today the Supreme Court considered a vital question: under what circumstances may a legislative body begin its sessions with prayer?  Our nation can trace the time-honored tradition of opening legislative sessions with prayer back to the First Continental Congress.  However, today the Court was asked to make a radical, unwarranted departure from the Constitution.  By asking the Court to uphold the Second Circuit's opinion, the individuals challenging the town's prayer practice asked the Court to dramatically expand the legal test for determining an unconstitutional prayer.

During oral argument, some of the Justices expressed concern over imposing too much government intervention in guiding the composition of prayers.  Justice Scalia noted, "The people who are on the town board or serving in Congress are citizens. . . . It seems to me an imposition upon them to stifle the manner in which they invoke their deity."  The purpose of the Establishment Clause is not to sanitize public life of all vestiges of religion.  Religious freedom is a fundamental human right—a right that is essential to the health and well-being of a democratic society.  The Establishment Clause of the Constitution was designed by the Founding Fathers to prohibit the government from coercing citizens to adhere, or not adhere, to a certain belief; it is not a license to remove all religious references from the public square."

The Court is expected to issue a decision in the spring.  Congressman Forbes, along with Congressman Steve Scalise, led eighty-five Members of Congress in an amicus curiae brief in support of the town's legislative prayer practice.  Congressman Forbes is the Founder and Co-Chair of the Congressional Prayer Caucus, a bipartisan group of 100 Members of Congress who are committed to defending America's heritage of religious freedom.

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Family Research Council to Host Family Policy Lecture on the Effects of Divorce on Society

November 06, 2013

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today the Family Research Council (FRC) will host marriage experts Dr. Hilary Towers, Beverly Willett, and Mike McManus in a discussion panel at noon Eastern to discuss how divorce is devastating American families. The webcast lecture is entitled "Devastation: Why Divorce Must Decline forAmericato Prosper."

Dr. Hilary Towers is a developmental psychologist with a background in behavioral genetic research and marriage and parenting relationships. Towers currently writes about marriage and spousal abandonment, especially how these issues are treated within the Catholic Church. Her recent publications include "A Guide to Saving Marriage," and "Newt Gingrich, the Catholic Church, and Spousal Abandonment."

Beverly Willett is a non-fiction writer, attorney, and co-founder and co-chair of the Coalition for Divorce Reform (divorcereform.us). She served as a member of the Kansas Marriage Consultation Working Group, and provided advice on the Second Chances Act. Her articles and op-eds have appeared in many newspapers and magazines including The New York Times, Newsweek, The Huffington Post, The Daily Beast, Salon, National Review Online, Family Circle and Woman's Day.

Mike McManus is a co-chair of Marriage Savers (marriagesavers.org). A Duke University graduate, McManus became TIME magazine's youngest correspondent in 1963. Since 1981, he has written a weekly syndicated column, Ethics & Religion. McManus wrote "Marriage Savers: Helping Your Friends and Family Avoid Divorce," and in 2008 co-authored with his wife "Living Together: Myths, Risks and Answers."

Towers, Willett and McManus will address the role divorce plays in poverty, lower educational outcomes, and increased delinquency in children.

WHO: Dr. Hilary Towers, developmental psychologist; Beverly Willet, co-founder and co-chair of the Coalition for Divorce Reform; Mike McManus, co-chair of Marriage Savers

WHAT: Family Policy Lecture entitled "Devastation: Why Divorce Must Decline for America to Prosper"

WHERE: Online: http://www.frc.org/eventregistration/devastation-why-divorce-must-decline-for-america-to-prosper; In Person: Family Research Council Media Center, 801 G Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001

WHEN: 12 p.m. Eastern, TODAY, November 6, 2013

FRC Commends Speaker Boehner for Opposing ENDA Legislation as Burden on Employers

November 04, 2013

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Family Research Council (FRC) commended House Speaker John Boehner today after he announced his opposition to the so-called "Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 2013" (ENDA), S. 815, a bill that mandates special rights based on sexual orientation and gender identity. The Speaker's spokesman was quoted saying "the Speaker believes this legislation will increase frivolous litigation and cost American jobs, especially small business jobs." Businesses would be forced to comply (or face penalties), regardless of the impact on their organizations.

Family Research Council Action (FRC Action) will score the legislation in its annual vote scorecard.

FRC President Tony Perkins released the following statement:

"We commend Speaker Boehner for opposing ENDA because of the costly lawsuits that burden businesses in an already struggling economy.

"The law creates a new federal mandate on businesses based on sexuality and does not allow businesses the choice of taking those things into consideration when they think it is appropriate. For examples, businesses, including daycares and public schools, will be ordered to comply (or face penalties), regardless of the impact on their organization.

"ENDA not only adds more costs to businesses but tells them how they can and cannot practice the faith of their owners and managers. Under ENDA, employers can be held liable for workplace environment complaints, which will make them inclined to silence employees who express a religious belief or opinion that isn't deemed as accommodating to perceived or changing gender identity. ENDA encourages discrimination against anyone with a different moral viewpoint.

"We urge the U.S. Senate to reject ENDA because it threatens the free market, undermines employers' rights, and violates the free exercise of religion," concluded Perkins.

Download Family Research Council's new publication, "The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA): A Threat to Free Markets and Freedom of Conscience and Religion."