We Will NEVER Give Up Our First Freedom!

A very special message from catholicvote.org:

Columnist Mollie Hemingway said it perfectly today: “If religious liberty is the wrong hill to die on in America, then there is no such thing as the right hill to die on.” The events in Indiana, and now Arkansas have us thinking…  If any candidate for elective office cannot stand for the basic right to religious freedom, they forfeit the support of Catholic voters. Period.  Republican, Democrat, anyone.  Today Arkansas Republican Asa Hutchinson followed Indiana governor Mike Pence in calling for “clarifications” and revisions to a simple law once supported almost unanimously by Republicans and Democrats. This despite outright lies about what these laws say and do.  In both cases it was Big Business bullies who used lies and distortions to pressure these Republican politicians. Apple's CEO slammed Indiana for its new law and Arkansas-based Walmart publicly denounced a bill recently approved by lawmakers in Little Rock.  Don’t be fooled. The Religious Freedom Restoration Act does NOT legalize discrimination. Anyone that says so is misinformed or lying.  The federal version of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act was signed by President Clinton and had the unanimous approval of the U.S. House and lopsided 97-3 support in the United States Senate. Did rampant discrimination ensue? Of course not. Because that’s not what the Religious Freedom Restoration Act is about.  So the question is: since when do we give up on the Bill of Rights when one of the rights becomes “controversial”?  Of course the answer is: NEVER! It's precisely when these precious freedoms are under attack when real leaders are called to rise up and defend them!  The Founders of our country called it our First Freedom for a reason. And it was no accident that they placed religious freedom as the very first provision of the First Amendment – before freedom of assembly or even free speech!  Mark my words, this will be the rallying cry of the liberal left in 2016. I can see the questions already: Do you support "bigotry"?  Makes you wonder if 2016 hopefuls will crack under pressure.  We need to make crystal clear where we stand. Religious liberty is a God-given right which cannot be compromised.  This is where I need your feedback.  Do you agree that Catholics should tell the GOP that any candidate who refuses to defend this precious liberty deserves to lose, and will lose the support of Catholic voters?  Hillary Clinton is already in the pocket of big business in favor of crushing minority rights. The question is: will GOP hopefuls have the courage to stand up to the media lies, big business bullies and the billion dollar anti-marriage LGBT special interests?  CatholicVote.org is ready to hold the line.  Polls show the public is still on our side when they know the truth.  Are you ready to stand with us?  P.S. On this the eve of the anniversary of the death of St. John Paul II, we are reminded of his emphatic defense of our right to religious liberty. He declared it a duty to “safeguard the fundamental right to freedom of religion and freedom of conscience, as the cornerstones of the structure of human rights and the foundation of every truly free society.”  He warned: “No one is permitted to suppress those rights by using coercive power...”