In Which a Largely Atheist Group, the ACLU, Says the ObamaCare Abortifacient Mandate Doesn't Violate Religious Freedom

This is called “running interference.”

The American Civil Liberty Union announced today that President Obama’s decision to mandate coverage for birth control does not violate religious liberty.

The ACLU’s Alicia Gay warns that the “powerful lobbying arm of the Catholic Church” mistakenly claims that the HHS contraception mandate violates their religious liberty.

Individuals who choose not to pay for employees’ contraceptives, the ACLU counters, are forcing their beliefs on their employees.

“The fundamental promise of religious liberty in this country doesn’t create a right to impose those views on others, including ignoring civil rights laws or denying critical health care,” Gay insists.

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Wrong-o. Let’s turn that confusing document written 100 years ago that many on the left find as outdated as Windows 3.1, the Constitution. Its very first amendment states:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…

I realize that some might find that terse language difficult to interpret, but let this non-lawyer take a stab at it. It means Congress can’t pass laws that get in the way of freely practicing one’s faith. It doesn’t say bupkis about “denying health care” that the ACLU’s finest brings up. Not. A. Word. The ACLU can look it up if they don’t wish to take my word for it. It’s on Wikipedia.

In the abortifacient mandate, Congress passed a law that the executive branch is interpreting in a way that Catholic bishops find violates their free exercise of their faith, by forcing them to pay for things that go against their core beliefs. It is the bishops’ job to determine such things, not the ACLU’s. The ACLU isn’t the church. The ACLU in fact tends to hate the church (though it loves it some Islamic terrorists for some reason); that’s written into the organization’s DNA. The ACLU is supposed to exist to defend civil liberties. Going by the plain, terse text of their name, that’s what the C and the L stand for. In this case (and many others), it’s not doing that.

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The ACLU also misses the point, intentionally, here:

Director of Washington Legislative Office Laura Murphy insisted on NBC’s Today Show this morning that individuals could still “practice their religion as they see fit,” by not using birth control.

Wrong-o, again. They’re 0-2. Use isn’t the question; being forced to pay for it, or face hefty government fines, is the point. Secondarily, the fact that the Obama administration has granted O-care waivers to unions, corporations, even whole states, but not the church, is relevant. Surely the ACLU sees the equal protection problems with that? No?

These ACLU wingers aren’t stupid. They know what the Constitution says. They just don’t care.

And they’re setting themselves up to look like fools when the Obama gang finally caves on this. And cave, they are likely to do, as another Democrat has come out slamming the mandate.

These ACLU folks are going to need a hanky to wipe the egg off their faces.

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