By Rand Paul
Obama acts as though we no longer have a Constitution
Independent voices from the TWT Communities
The Obama administration on Friday rolled out a revised rule that gives religious institutions the option to divorce themselves from a mandate in the president's health care law that requires insurance plans to cover contraception for their employees.
President Obama's mandate that most private companies provide health insurance plans that cover the costs of contraceptives has met with considerable headwinds in the legal system, where nine of the 14 federal courts to rule so far have sided with employers who say the mandate violates their beliefs and infringes on their religious liberties.
A law forcing Montgomery County women's centers to tell patrons if they don't have a doctor on staff is set to be heard by a federal appellate court on Thursday as attorneys weigh the need for accurate abortion information against constitutional rights of free speech.
The Obama administration is claiming that a dedicated Christian publisher of Bibles and ministry material is insufficiently religious to qualify for an exemption to the contraception mandate in the president's health-care overhaul.
The Newland family didn't spend 50 years building a business here for the plaudits, but when a Denver City Council member moved to recognize them with an anniversary proclamation, the clan was flattered. So it came as a disappointment last week when the Newlands learned that the council decided to cancel the honor, especially when they found out the reason: Their successful legal challenge against the Obama health care reform's birth control, sterilization and abortion mandates.
A Coast Guard officer is suing his agency and the Homeland Security Department for a religious exemption from a requirement to take the hepatitis A vaccination, which uses cells that the lawsuit says are derived from abortions.
He said the lawsuits will continue and likely pick up by August if the exemption is not broadened to cover all religious employers.
"We haven't had to file anything new, because nothing has really changed," said Matt Bowman, senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defending Freedom, which is representing several religious nonprofits and religiously devout corporate owners who have sued over the mandate.
