As we mark Good Friday and Passover this year, Americans’ religious freedom has become palpably dearer. Religious expression is enduring a season of scorn from public and private sources alike. The most blatant abuse has come from the Obamacare Health and Human Services mandate that religious employers provide insurance coverage for abortion drugs and contraception, even if it conflicts with their beliefs. Then there’s the New York City policy prohibiting churches from meeting in vacant public school buildings on weekends—despite the fact that other groups are allowed to do so. …
A new Gallup poll finds that a majority of Americans are very or moderately religious, a statistic that bodes well for individual well-being and the health of civil society. The study found that four in 10 Americans believe that religion plays an important role in their daily lives and frequently attend religious services. In total, over two-thirds of Americans remain moderately or very religious, meaning they consider religion at least somewhat important or regularly attend worship services. Regular religious observance can have a positive impact on adolescent behavior, teen academic …
Two years ago today, President Barack Obama signed into law Obamacare, a 2,700-page bill that will radically alter America’s health care system and wreak havoc on medical costs, quality of care, and fundamental rights in ways that are beyond the scope of our imagination. Much of what was contained in Obamacare was hatched behind closed doors where not even the slightest ray of light could find its way in. Even the men and women in Congress who were entrusted to represent the people cast their votes blindly, not knowing what …
Last week, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) submitted a final rulemaking on the state health insurance exchanges that created yet another accounting shell game, one that could force private citizens to pay for coverage of elective abortions. Beginning in 2014, individuals forced to purchase health insurance under Obamacare’s individual mandate will look to state exchanges to purchase qualified health plans and avoid federal fines. For millions of low- and middle-income individuals and families, the federal government will provide “affordability tax credits” to cover the costs of participating …
Pope Benedict XVI will visit the communist island of Cuba next week. But while there, the Catholic leader has no plans to visit Cuban dissidents who are fighting for freedom from the Castro regime. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), born to Cuban immigrants, told us in an exclusive interview Wednesday that the pope should make time to see dissidents. Rubio was at Heritage to promote freedom in Cuba, particularly as it relates to technology and Internet access. >> Watch video from the event, “Cuba Needs a (Technological) Revolution” The event, cosponsored …
Friday afternoon announcements from the Obama Administration are the norm when the news is going to be controversial. In a late afternoon info dump yesterday, officials at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) laid out further details on its so-called “accommodation” to the Obamacare anti-conscience mandate. HHS released an advance notice of proposed rulemaking, soliciting comments (due 90 days after publication in the Federal Register on March 21) on its intended policy for religious employers who are not exempted from the anti-conscience mandate. As predicted, the suggested compromise …
This week, The Heritage Foundation’s Rob Bluey obtained a four-page strategy memo that outlines a White House-coordinated campaign to force an unwilling public to accept Obamacare. Once again, all the strategies by the Administration and its liberal allies involve how better to message this hated law as the anniversary of its passage approaches and the Supreme Court hears oral arguments on its constitutionality. If only the Administration put this much effort into lowering the price of gas or creating jobs. The memo identifies the White House’s target audience — seniors, women, and young adults …
Journalists and pundits are chalking up President Obama’s plummeting approval rating to the high cost of gasoline. No doubt that’s having an impact. But there’s another important factor to consider: Obama’s decision to trample on the religious liberty of Americans. Since the Department of Health and Human Services announced its anti-conscience mandate in late January, President Obama has faced withering criticism over the decision and his so-called “accommodation.” Two years after the passage of Obamacare, it served as a wake-up call for Americans who care about the Constitution, irrespective of …
Call it what you want — a circus, a sideshow, or just plain old political rhetoric — but for the past week America has watched the media elite and some in Washington bend over backward to turn attention away from an issue that is fundamental to the future of this country: Obamacare’s attack on individual liberty. While those who favor its mandates may think they have changed the debate and quelled opposition, they are sorely mistaken. It all stems from a decision by the Obama Administration to mandate that religious …
Yesterday, President Barack Obama ended his months-long press conference drought and faced the White House press corps. Unfortunately for the American people, questions on some of the biggest issues facing the country remain unanswered. The 100-ton elephant in the room that wasn’t discussed? The economy. Though the President would like to revel in the country’s recent spate of moderate economic growth, all is not well in America. More than 8 percent of Americans remain unemployed — nearly 13 million in total. What’s more, only 63.7 percent of adult Americans are active …
