Maryland

'Religious Freedom' Rallies Barely Conceal Anti-Obama Activism

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Monday, 10/22/2012 4:45 pm

Opponents of contraception access this weekend held “religious freedom” demonstrations across the country to protest the Obama administration’s new rules ensuring contraception coverage in health insurance plans. In one of the rallies last month in Washington D.C. in front of the White House, speakers including Frank Pavone of Priests for Life, Patrick Mahoney of the Christian Defense Coalition and Lila Rose of Live Action denounced the Obama administration for their purportedly “tyrannical” insurance mandate.

The keynote speakers at the White House rally was none other than Father Marcel Guarnizo, whose claim to fame is denying a lesbian parishioner communion at her mother’s funeral and refused to attend the burial ceremony. Fr. Guarnizo said that pro-choice and pro-gay equality politicians are “unfit to rule” and are “not worthy of a democratic vote.” He went on to maintain that American democracy is on the brink of collapse and told attendees to “vote this man out of office in November.”

He also had harsh words for Health and Human Services Sec. Kathleen Sebelius and Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, who championed his state’s marriage equality law, claiming that they are more than unfaithful Catholic “lost sheep” but “wolves who are plotting and working specifically against the common good and the Church.” “Those people need to be castigated publicly by the shepherds of the church,” Guarnizo said.

Also appearing was American Family Association spokesman Bryan Fischer, who warned that legal abortion and gay rights is provoking God’s “judgment and wrath” on America. 

Robertson: Gays and Liberals 'Don't Want Freedom' but 'Want a Dictatorship'

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Thursday, 10/18/2012 12:00 pm

The 700 Club today reported on Gallaudet University’s suspension of their chief diversity officer for signing a petition to put Maryland’s marriage equality law on the ballot. Gay rights advocates, including the leaders of Marylanders for Marriage Equality and Gov. Martin O’Malley have said that they strongly disagreed with Gallaudet’s decision, but host Pat Robertson tried to claim that the university’s move was representative of the entire left and the gay rights movement. “The left wants a dictatorship,” Robertson claimed, “they don’t want freedom.” The anti-gay televangelist argued that “they want a dictatorship where they control, which is what you had in communism, a small group ran the government for their ends and for the ends of their friends, and that’s what the gays want, they want everything now in their favor.” Robertson concluded by saying that “God Almighty has the final vote.”

Watch:

Where does Harry Jackson live now?

Submitted by Peter Montgomery on Monday, 9/17/2012 1:21 pm

A few years ago, anti-gay activist Harry Jackson claimed that he had moved from Maryland into the District of Columbia in order to lead an unsuccessful campaign against marriage equality in the District.  Jackson’s legal residency was the topic of much debate at the time; Jackson signed an affidavit affirming his DC residency.  But now, Jackson is supporting an anti-marriage equality campaign in Maryland.  Will he be eligible to vote against marriage equality in Maryland?  At the Values Voter Summit this past weekend, Jackson bragged that he had ordained and pastored Derek McCoy, who directs the Maryland Marriage Alliance and asked VVS attendees for financial support. Jackson, in a workshop promoting his own campaign to use marriage as a wedge issue against Obama and other Democrats in seven swing states, caught himself when talking about the struggle over marriage in Maryland.  “I live in – have a church in that state,” he said. 

Jackson: 'Envy' Made Ministers Refuse to Work Against Marriage Equality

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Wednesday, 4/11/2012 3:15 pm

Appearing on Trinity Broadcasting Network’s flagship show Praise the Lord yesterday, Bishop Harry Jackson, the anti-gay activist who led unsuccessful efforts to defeat marriage equality legislation in Washington D.C. and Maryland, said that ministers who refused to work on his campaigns did so because they “envied” his success and were resentful that he had God’s favor. Speaking with Perry Stone, Jr., Jackson explained that “enemies, when vanquished, are simply stepping stones to victory, to accomplishment and to notoriety.”

Previously, Jackson blamed the “Queen of Heaven,” a demonic power, for the success of marriage equality bills.

Jackson: Sometimes envy takes hold of people, and they see you prospering and they see something that they don’t like, sometimes there are other dynamics that begin to cause them to really want to see you fail.

Stone: It’s amazing.

Jackson: It’s crazy. Not too long ago we were in a major, ground level battle, it was over the issue of marriage in the state of Maryland and Washington D.C., without getting into all those details there were people who said, ‘well if Jackson was leading it I don’t want anything to do with it.’

Stone: Were they ministers?

Jackson: They were ministers, and you’re saying, ‘wait a minute, I thought we were for the Word, I thought we were working together,’ but because there was an issue of envy that was stuck way down in their craw, so sometimes when these open doors open then enemies are revealed.

…

Jackson: When you go through the door, when you rise up, God has got a unique group of people who will be there for you. But you got to discern who they are. Secret enemies will come forward, I thank God every time I see an enemy, and I believe then God will also give His people who will help us.

Stone: What’s the purpose of an enemy? Is there ever a positive purpose for an enemy?

Jackson: Goliath was a great example, in that enemies, when vanquished, are simply stepping stones to victory, to accomplishment and to notoriety.

Stone: Praise God!

Harry Jackson Embarks on Campaign to Repeal Marriage Equality in Maryland

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Wednesday, 2/29/2012 11:45 am

After failing in his campaign to overturn marriage equality in Washington D.C., Bishop Harry Jackson is now leading an effort to repeal a bill legalizing same-sex marriage in Maryland that will be signed into law tomorrow. We last saw Jackson raising money for the Maryland Marriage Alliance at “A Gathering of Eagles,” where he led the congregation in spiritual warfare against the demonic Queen of Heaven, who he said was responsible for gay rights and “perversion.”

In an interview with the Christian Post yesterday, Jackson baselessly claimed that Washington D.C. public schools are teaching “children – young children – to explore and examine the differences in heterosexuality, homosexuality and transgender lifestyles,” lamenting, “To say that it's okay for Heather to have two mommies is not biblical.” He also said that activists trying to repeal marriage equality are “not trying to impose our views on others” but said gay rights advocates “are trying to impose their agenda on us.”

“It is an oxy-moron,” Jackson said about same-sex marriage, “Two people of the same sex who marry and try to indoctrinate children into that lifestyle does nothing to strengthen marriage or families.” He also predicted victory in a potential referendum on marriage equality, maintaining that marriage equality supporters “are overplaying their hands and only harming our culture.”

CP: I want to start out by asking in light of Maryland's recent debate and upcoming legalization of same-sex marriage, tell me why you are willing to take such a pronounced and visible stand to defend marriage?

Jackson: First, we as people of faith are not trying to impose our views on others. We are simply using God's Word, given to us by the scriptures, to stand up for what is right. Instead, those who are advocating for what they call "marriage" that does not involve a man and a woman, are trying to impose their agenda on us.

The reality is, if you change the definition of marriage, you change the definition of the family, then you change what is taught in schools – that it's okay for Heather to have two mommies – and exploring your "sexual awareness" as a young child is acceptable; and it's not.

CP: Can you expand on how families will be impacted when same-sex marriages are legalized?

Jackson: Yes, let's use Washington, D.C. as an example. It's encouraged in public schools to teach children – young children – to explore and examine the differences in heterosexuality, homosexuality and transgender lifestyles. Now you and I both know that children should not be encouraged to examine these types of issues, especially in public schools. To say that it's okay for Heather to have two mommies is not biblical.

…

CP: Supporters of same-sex marriage say one of their primary goals is to educate the public that gay marriage does in fact strengthen families. How do you respond to that comment?

Jackson: It is an oxy-moron. Two people of the same sex who marry and try to indoctrinate children into that lifestyle does nothing to strengthen marriage or families. Again, it only attempts to redefine what marriage is and what a family should be. A mother and a father best raise children. There are factors in our society that interrupt that process and that is unfortunate, but gay marriage will not strengthen marriage.

…

CP: Do you believe the efforts to repeal same-sex marriage in Maryland will be successful?

Jackson: Yes, I do. To use a phrase from Muhammad Ali, "We float like a butterfly, but sting like a bee." But I must say that the opposing side has waged a brilliant public relations campaign. They want the public to believe the debate about gay marriage is only a religious battle, but it's not.

We are 31 for 31 on gay marriage when it's been put before the voters of different states. They are trying to press the issue in different states hoping to advance their cause with the Supreme Court. Still, when people examine what marriage is and should be, they tend to vote overwhelming against gay marriage.

But let me say this to conclude. I feel our opponents have become so aggressive on this issue, that they are overplaying their hands and only harming our culture. Yes, they may win a battle or two here and there but our side will prevail in the long run.

FRC Furious with Cheney for Supporting Marriage Equality

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Friday, 2/24/2012 10:50 am

Family Research Council senior fellow Robert Morrison yesterday chided former Vice President Dick Cheney for his support of marriage equality, particularly his role in garnering Republican support for the bill in Maryland. Morrison bragged that he didn’t respond to media inquiries at the 2000 GOP convention in Philadelphia to goad him into criticize Cheney, even though FRC president Tony Perkins attacked the Cheney family after Mary had a child with her partner. He also said that just because Cheney has an openly gay daughter, that is no reason he should support equal rights for gays and lesbians. He even called on Cheney to follow in the footsteps of Ben Franklin, who supported the American Revolution even though his son was a prominent loyalist who fled to Great Britain after the war. “In this great cultural clash,” Morrison lamented, “Dick Cheney has enlisted with the forces of dissolution”:

Consider this thought experiment. Twin brothers announced on a TV talk show that they were gay. Under the laws proposed, can they marry? If not, why not? They’ve certainly had a “committed relationship” since before they were born. What constitutional principle could you invoke to say these twins cannot marry each other? And if these twin brothers may marry, why not a twin brother and sister?

Dick Cheney probably never met Mae West. For younger readers unfamiliar with one of Hollywood’s original blond bombshells, I’ll simply say: sailors in World War II called their large life jackets Mae Wests. (This is a family blog, after all.)

Mae West famously said: “Marriage is a great institution, but I’m not ready for an institution.” How strange that Mae West had a better understanding of civil marriage than a former Vice President of the United States, a man who was twice elected to national office by pro-family voters.

…

In 2000, Dick Cheney might have considered Philadelphia’s most famous son, Benjamin Franklin. Franklin’s own son was the royal Governor of New Jersey. It was a patronage job Ben had secured for him. When his son remained loyal to the Crown, Benjamin Franklin did not refuse to sign the Declaration of Independence citing a “personal situation.” That’s one of the many reasons why we remember Ben Franklin with admiration and respect.

Dick Cheney is said to be worth hundreds of millions. His family may not suffer the devastation that comes from the breakdown of marriage. But in his recent book, Coming Apart, Charles Murray shows how the loss of marriage for the white working class in America has already had catastrophic consequences. If we seek the reason behind the great disparities in wealth that the Occupy crowd is howling about, we need look no further than the collapse of marriage. In this great cultural clash, Dick Cheney has enlisted with the forces of dissolution.

Right Wing Leftovers

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Monday, 10/17/2011 5:33 pm

Are VVS Organizers Trying To Hide Fischer's Involvement?

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Wednesday, 9/28/2011 2:47 pm

Last month, we asked why Bryan Fischer was not being pictured among the confirmed and invited leaders to the upcoming Values Voter Summit.

Fischer has been a featured speaker for each of the last two years at the event and has always been prominently featured on the speaker's list in years past.  And considering that his employer, The American Family Association, is a co-sponsor of the event, it seemed rather unlikely that Fischer had been dropped, despite his long record of unmitigated bigotry.

The Values Voter Summit is being held next week and Rick Perry, Michele Bachmann, Mitt Romney, Herman Cain, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum are all pictured on the confirmed speaker list, as are dozens of other GOP and Religious Right leaders ... but Fischer is nowhere to be found:

But just because he is not listed on the speakers page, that doesn't mean that Fischer won't be speaking, because the event schedule has him listed as speaking directly after Mitt Romney on Saturday:

9:00 a.m. - Noon

MORNING PLENARY SESSION - Regency Ballroom

- Representative Ron Paul (R-Texas), Republican Presidential Candidate*

- Dr. Bill Bennett, Host, Morning in America*

- Governor Mitt Romney, Republican Presidential Candidate*

- Bryan Fischer, Director of Issues Analysis, American Family Association*

Straight Talk on Gay "Marriage"

- Moderator: Tom McClusky, Senior Vice President, FRC Action
- Daniel Avila, J.D., Policy Advisor for Marriage and Family , U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops*
- Brian Brown, Executive Director, National Organization for Marriage
- Derek McCoy, President, Maryland Family Alliance*
- David Tyree, Former Wide Receiver, New York Giants

- General William Boykin (Ret.), Former Commander, Delta Force*

The asterisk by Fischer's name indicates that he is a confirmed speaker, so why are event organizers seemingly trying to conceal his participation?

Jackson: Prophets Coming To The Halls Of Congress

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Wednesday, 8/3/2011 4:14 pm

Harry Jackson, the anti-gay preacher and face of the Religious Right’s efforts to stop marriage equality in Washington D.C. and Maryland, appeared on Trinity Broadcasting Network’s flagship show Praise The Lord where host Phil Munsey lauded the right-wing preacher as a “Prophet of God.” During the interview, Jackson predicted that a “great awakening” and “reformation” is coming to America “when those who are saved begin to prophesy in the halls of Congress and the legislatures.”

Jackson discussed his belief in the radical “Seven Mountains” dominionist ideology, which calls for fundamentalist Christians to identify specific individuals to take power in the seven cultural mountains of society: business, media, education, arts and entertainment, family, religion and the church, and government. Jackson said that God was going to raise up such figures, saying God is “gonna raise up some disciples, like the guy that went to the great Apostle Paul when he was basically the Osama bin Laden of his day.”

Watch:

Right Wing Leftovers

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Thursday, 5/26/2011 5:34 pm
  • Looks like Sarah Palin will be launching a "hey, please pay attention to me" bus tour.

  • Rep. Eric Cantor is the latest Republican to sign on to Ralph Reed's Faith and Freedom Coalition conference.

  • Focus on the Family looks at how marriage equality was defeated in Maryland.

  • John Stamos will be joining The Beach Boys for the second annual Terri Schiavo Life & Hope Concert. Sounds exciting.

  • The AFA loves Herman Cain so I wonder how long it will be before they remove this Elijah Friedeman post from their blog.

  • Finally, I am looking forward to seeing how Bill Donohue responds to this.  I am sure he will blame "the gays."

Fischer: Beating of Transgender Woman "Proves That We Are Right"

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Monday, 4/25/2011 5:06 pm

Last week, a transgender woman was violently beaten at a McDonald's in Baltimore, MD.

Bryan Fischer talked about the assault on his radio program today and I am sure you will be shocked to learn that not once did he utter a single word of condemnation, but rather used it as justification for the AFA's opposition to "bathroom bills":

The victim appeared to be a woman. In the video, it looked like a woman [with] long hair. But at one point in the fracas, her wig is pulled off and you still think its a woman, looks like a woman, and she's beaten to within an inch of her life, she winds up in convulsions on the floor.

And then we discover now that it was a guy all the time, it's not a woman at all. It's a transgendered woman, which means he's a man, he's a male. He's a male in every single cell his DNA. Every single cell of his body, every strand of his DNA in his entire body is male. He's not a woman, he's not a transgendered woman, he's not a transgendered female, he is a man. And here's the deal: apparently he was getting ready to go into, or had been in, the ladies' restroom.

And remember, Maryland came within one vote - I don't know if you knew this - Maryland came within one vote of passing a law this last session that would have provided special protections for transgendered people, people who think they're in the wrong body.

So if that law had passed, then this man would have had every legal right to go into the ladies' restroom, even if there are young teenage girls present and nobody would have stopped him. In fact, if McDonald's had tried to keep him, as a man, from going into the ladies' restroom, if that law had passed McDonald's is the one who would have got in trouble. They would have gotten sued, a potential franchise ending lawsuit.

That's why we always call these things "bathroom bills" and this proves that we are right. This exactly shows you the hazard of these bathroom bills. You give special privileges to people based on deviant sexuality, you're going to get in all kinds of trouble and all traditional norms of respect, privacy, civility, those are going to be completely shredded.

Right Wing Leftovers

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Thursday, 4/21/2011 5:32 pm
  • Texas Governor Rick Perry has issued a proclamation urging residents to pray for rain.

  • Read through this and tell me exactly where Ralph Reed "takes on the liberal media."

  • FRC is mobilizing activists to urge the Supreme Court to accept the case of Davenport v. American Atheists.

  • Speaking of FRC, Peter Sprigg is upset with proposed curriculum in Maryland that doesn't show gays as perverted miserable freaks.

  • Know how the Religious Right is always going on about European countries are shutting down the rights of Christians?

  • Finally, the quote of the day from Ken Hutcherson: "The Babylonian empire failed, the Persian Empire failed, the Greek Empire failed, and the Roman Empire was dispersed when the people failed to remember what made them great. The common denominator for the failure of all these world powers was the breakdown of the family." Really?  I'd really like to see some documentation for this claim.

Right Wing Round-Up

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Friday, 4/8/2011 5:40 pm

Garlow: African Americans Have Saved Us From The "Bondage and Enslavement" of Gay Marriage

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Tuesday, 3/29/2011 12:18 pm

As we mentioned yesterday, James Dobson had an all-star team of Religious Right leaders on his radio program for a two-day discussion on the importance of protecting traditional marriage, featuring Bishop Harry Jackson, Dr. Jim Garlow, Dr. Ken Hutcherson, Gary Bauer & Tony Perkins.

On today's broadcast, Garlow recounted a revelation he had while sitting in Jackson's church in Maryland regarding the role African Americans have played in saving this nation from the "bondage and enslavement" of gay marriage:

Isn't it interesting that the African Americans that were brought here against their will, coercively, in bondage, in chains, in a horrific experience called slavery. They were forced here and they end up being in state by state, many cases, what has saved us from the bondage and enslavement that would come upon us if gay marriage actually passed in a state. California being a prime example where the African Americans saved us from the bondage we would have faced.

Camenker and LaBarbera Say Christians Can't Support "Evil" Marriage Equality

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Friday, 3/25/2011 3:36 pm

Brian Camenker of MassResistance joined Peter LaBarbera to brag about his work in Maryland, where a marriage equality bill in the House of Delegates was pulled off the floor after it lacked the votes to pass. Camenker laughed at Christian delegates who backed the bill, and said calling marriage equality “civil rights” is “complete nonsense and idiocy.”

Listen:

Camenker: That’s something that really surprised, continues to surprise me Pete, is the complete nonsense and idiocy that these guys will believe. Some of these arguments from the gay marriage side were just so stupid, you know the “civil rights” argument for instance it was just I mean, how could anybody believe this nonsense? And they were just marching right in step; the cold water of anger from their constituents, boy that had an effect.

LaBarbera: You said “watching Bible-believing legislators repeat the “civil rights” platitudes was unbelievable,” so they’re being deluged with propaganda.

Camenker: Yeah, there was one guy in the Washington Post, one of the legislators, who said yes “I’m a Church-going, Bible-believing Christian, but I’m not going to let my religion interfere with my vote for civil rights.”

LaBarbera: “I’m not going to let my Christianity interfere with my pursuit of an evil agenda!” Oh brother.

 

Tea Party Leader: African Americans Can’t Be Christian And Support Obama

Submitted by Brian Tashman on Wednesday, 3/23/2011 10:45 am

Ron Miller is the president of the Tea Party group Regular Folks United, and a former Republican candidate for Congress and the Maryland state senate. Miller, who is a black former staffer with the Bush Administration, adamantly defends Tea Party activists from charges of racism, blaming Obama for his “open display of condescension toward ordinary Americans.” But while Miller deplores charges of racism against members of the Tea Party, he claims that African Americans only support Obama because he is black. He told the American Family Association’s OneNewsNow that anyone who backs Obama cannot be Christian, and black Obama voters “place their blackness ahead of Christ”:

"As I tell some of my friends who don't understand why a race that has such a strong faith-based foundation could then support a man who obviously goes against many of the things that are taught in that faith -- I say, well, that's because whether they admit it or not, they place their blackness ahead of Christ," Miller says.

"And I think that you're going to find that whatever someone puts first in their lives influences everything else that follows. And unfortunately I think it doesn't matter that he hasn't done this or that or the other -- 'he's one of us.'"

Miller says that while the "us versus them" sentiment is still overwhelming, he hopes that enough blacks will be disenchanted with the president to drive down his support at least a bit among minority voters.

Right Wing Leftovers

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Monday, 3/14/2011 5:38 pm
  • Rep. Michele  Bachmann has "a pattern of getting facts wrong"? You don't say.

  • VA Gov. Bob McDonnell takes a brave "no truce on social issues" stance. Truly courageous.

  • NOM hails the church for standing up and stopping marriage equality in Maryland.

  • The saga of Joseph Maraachli is a story that the Religious Right has been focused on but to which nobody else has really been paying attention.  Perhaps that will change now that Maraachli is being moved to a hospital in the US.

  • It seems that some conservatives are growing increasingly uncomfortable with Sarah Palin's role as the face of the movement.

Harry Jackson Credits The Black Church With Stopping Marriage Equlity In Maryland

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Monday, 3/14/2011 11:21 am

Last week, an effort to pass marriage equality legislation in Maryland failed and Bishop Harry Jackson was invited on to CBN News to explain what happened, where he declared that the Black Church had risen up and warned African American legislators they had better not listen to Democratic Party leaders who see them "as lemmings who are willing to just march off to your death" because there would be a price to pay when they returned to their communities.  Jackson went on to warn that they would now set about trying to remove legislators who support marriage equality from office and "stop gay marriage in its tracks":

Right Wing Round-Up

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Friday, 3/11/2011 6:44 pm
  • Equality Matters: Maryland's Marriage Equality Bill Sent Back To Committee, Reportedly Delayed Till Next Year.

  • Tim Murphy @ Mother Jones: Birther Bill Author: What's a Long-Form Birth Certificate?

  • Towleroad: Leading Anti-Gay Utah State Senator Chris Buttars is Retiring.

  • Joe.My.God: Corruption Bust: New York Post Outs Anti-Gay Sen. Carl Kruger And Boyfriend.

  • Media Matters: Wash. Times Gives Platform To Anti-Choice Extremist Randall Terry.

  • Igor Volsky @ Wonk Room: Iowa Kingmaker Vander Plaats Still Comparing Gay Marriage To Polygamy, Incest.

  • Brian Beutler @ TPM: New Hampshire Republican Won't Apologize For Saying 'Defective' People Should Die In Siberia.

Right Wing Leftovers

Submitted by Kyle Mantyla on Thursday, 3/10/2011 6:31 pm
  • Just because Donald Trump claims to be serious about running for president doesn't mean the rest of us have to take is seriously.

  • David Brody is not happy with the way the Associated Press reported his interview with Newt Gingrich.

  • The Duggars are coming to Focus on the Family.

  • Speaking of Focus on the Family, they want to know how local candidates feel about pornography, gays and abortion.

  • Finally, the quote of the day from FRC's latest prayer update: "Pray that the bill to legalize same-sex 'marriage' will be defeated in the Maryland House. May Maryland be the Gettysburg in the war to overthrown marriage, and be followed by judicial decisions, legislative and citizen action that uphold DOMA, California's Marriage Amendment (Proposition 8) and protect traditional, Biblical marriage in every state."
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