Rep. Blackburn: Obamacare’s illegal fee on faith

By Lisa Correnti | March 12, 2012

Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) penned a recent op-ed in the Washington Examiner in which she states the Obama administration’s decision to disregard the religious freedom of faith-based institutions by mandating contraception coverage, is basically saying that freedom of religion shouldn’t be free anymore. Rep. Blackburn also writes that HHS Secretary Sebelius didn’t find it necessary to consult with the Justice department as to the constitutionality of the directive. Here is an excerpt:

 

What is this really about? It’s about imposing a fee on faith. It’s about laying the groundwork for more government. This administration is effectively saying that freedom of religion shouldn’t be free anymore.

We’ve come to the point where freedom of conscience is no longer an essential right afforded to the American people as our Founding Fathers intended.

What’s worse? Sebelius won’t even pretend the Constitution matters in this debate. During a hearing last week, I asked her if she ever sought a Department of Justice opinion on the mandate’s constitutionality. She admitted that she never even asked.

Translation: She thinks she can dictate everything from the top down. But Thomas Jefferson would have disagreed. He said in 1809 that, “no provision in our Constitution ought to be dearer to man than that which protects the rights of conscience against the enterprises of the civil authority.”

Democrats have overreached in trying to make this an issue about access to contraception — which it is not — out of desperation. They are employing the politics of fear because they know the effect of the new mandate is that it will force religions to pay fines for freely practicing their faith and living the Gospel outside the brick walls of their respective churches.

 

 

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