NEW RIGHT DE-FANGS SENATE ETHICS BILL, YET DANGER
REMAINS
By Rev. Ted Pike
22 Jan 07
Last week massive calling by the religious and political right made
the difference in stripping freedom-threatening legislation from
the Senate's lobby reform bill, S.1. Sec. 220 would have imposed
stifling registration and reporting requirements on small Christian/conservative
grassroots lobbying organizations. These would include many politically
motivated evangelical churches. The fine would be up to $100,000
if they did not satisfy government demands for accountability.
Yet the threat of Sec. 220 remains.
The Legislative Transparency and Accountability
Act of 2007, free
of Sec. 220, now goes from the Senate to the House. Speaker Nancy
Pelosi, confident of Democrat power, will probably attach the wording
of Sec. 220 to the House version. Liberals want this legislation
very badly because it withers grassroots activism from the religious
and conservative right. Fred Wertheimer of Democracy 21 represents
the liberal Jewish activism of Sen. Carl Levin and Joseph Lieberman,
original sponsors of Sec. 220. He publicly expressed dismay at rejection
of Sec. 220 by the Senate but lets Jewish-owned The
Washington Post speak for him on his website (www.democracy21.org):
…It was disappointing that senators voted to strip from the
bill a requirement that lobbyists disclose the costs of grass-roots
efforts to influence lawmakers… The focus now moves to the
House, which…still needs to move on the lobbying changes.
Following that, it's important that the resulting conference be held
quickly to meld the two bills… (The Washington
Post, "Real
Ethics Reform," Jan. 20, 2007)
We should be aware that even if Sec. 220 is not re-attached to
the House bill, Pelosi still has power to handpick the majority of
House conferees who will later, in conference between the House and
Senate, craft the final form of the lobby reform bill. Such liberal
conferees can be counted on to do their best to reattach Sec. 220
and triumph in the end.
Hate Bill: An Even Greater Threat
The federal anti-hate bill, The David Ray
Hate Crimes Prevention Act, H.R. 254, also looms in the House. I was told by Rep. Sheila
Jackson-Lee's office that H.R. 254 will be referred to the House
Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security
as soon as Pelosi appoints its members. This, according to Pelosi's
office, will take place within the next two weeks. Jackson-Lee's
office also told me that since the hate bill passed the House in
the previous Congress a simple vote in the subcommittee on crime
may be all that is necessary to send it to Judiciary and, if approved,
on to a vote of the full House.
How do patriots respond to these frontal assaults on freedom? By
continuing the same tactics in the House that worked so well last
week in the Senate:
- Even if you called previously, call the House member from your
district again. Urge a "no" vote to the hate crimes bill,
H.R. 254, and legislation that restricts grassroots lobbying.
Here's
what to say: "Please don't vote for The
David Ray Hate Crimes Prevention Act, H.R. 254. Hate
laws have taken away free speech in Canada and many European
countries. Also, please take out restrictions on grassroots
lobbyists from the lobby reform bill. Grassroots lobbyists
have no history of abuse. They should be encouraged, not
restricted."
- Make about 12 copies each of the two flyers at www.truthtellers.org, "Anti-Hate
Laws Will Make You a Criminal" and "Lobby Reform Bill:
Attack on Grassroots Freedom." Send them to the House member
from your district plus their influential legislative aides.
These are listed at www.truthtellers.org.
- Come to www.truthtellers.org for the complete list of members of
Congress. Continue a regular program of calling 15 members every
day but especially those in the House of Representatives. The battle
has been won for the moment in the Senate. We must now overwhelm
the House with calls and flyers, prejudicing them against the hate
bill and grassroots-persecuting legislation. This will also encourage
freedom-defending members of Congress to take a stand, confident
their constituency will stand behind them.
The ideal scenario would
be for members of Congress critical of the hate bill to demand congressional
hearings, investigating how similar hate crimes legislation has persecuted
Christians and ended free speech throughout the western world. Broad-ranging
hearings like this have never been held since ADL first submitted their "Hate
Crimes Prevention Act" in 1998. One additional benefit:
Such hearings would dramatically slow down passage of the federal
hate bill.
Everyone who loves freedom must act today! Next week may be
too late. Democrats, intoxicated with power, are trying to quickly
pass as much freedom-stealing legislation as possible. We must
resist them at every turn with a resounding No! Removal of Sec. 220
was another stunning success, proof that when the people speak out
loudly even a hard-of-hearing liberal Congress may bend enough to
give us victory.
Unfortunately, the great majority of Christians and conservatives
remain on the sidelines. Like picnickers on surrounding hills, they
sympathetically watch us fight this great battle in the valley yet
do nothing to help. To all I say:
Abandon any skepticism or fatalism. Get up! Join the fight! Take
action! God is with us, giving another victory against great odds.
If we do our part now, more triumphs will come.
We can still take back America.
For the full story on how ADL has ended free speech in
Canada and intends to do so in America, watch Rev. Ted Pike's gripping
video: Hate Laws: Making Criminals of Christians, showing
free of charge at video.google.com.
TALK SHOW HOSTS: Interview Rev. Ted Pike about the present threats
to freedom in Congress. Call 503-631-3808.
For many more articles about the dangers of hate crimes legislation,
visit www.truthtellers.org.
National Prayer Network, P.O. Box 828, Clackamas,
OR 97015
503-631-3808
