DADT

Herman Cain returned to Bryan Fischer's radio program last week where he reiterated his statement that, if elected president, he would not appoint any Muslims.  As he explained to Fischer, "the Constitution does not have room for Shariah law" and every Muslims believes in Shariah law, therefore they cannot work in his administration.

Fischer and Cain then bonded over the fact that every time they tell the truth, people accuse them of being bigots:

Bishop E.W. Jackson, the head of STAND for America (Staying True to America’s National Destiny), is filing paperwork to run for Virginia’s open seat in the US Senate and will face former Senator George Allen and numerous tea party activists in the contested Republican primary. Jackson has likened Democrats to slaveholders and called them the “coalition of the godless,” and has said his mission in politics is to convince African Americans to leave the Democratic Party and join the tea party. As an ally of far-right activists like Rick Scarborough and Janet Porter, it is no wonder that Jackson is also militantly anti-gay, arguing that the “repeal of the ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell’ law is a disaster of historic proportions and it must be reinstated.”

The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports:

Bishop Earl W. Jackson Sr. of Chesapeake has announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination, taking on former governor George Allen and tea party candidate Jamie Radtke.

"He is running for the United States Senate to restore fiscal sanity, constitutionally limited government, and to fight for a sound energy policy that will allow Virginia to mine its coal and drill for its offshore oil," said a release from Jackson's campaign.

…

Jackson, founder of Exodus Faith Ministries International, was among the keynote speakers last October at the Virginia Tea Party Patriots Convention at the Greater Richmond Convention Center.

Jackson brought the crowd to its feet with a rousing address that criticized congressional Republicans for being "complacent" and Democrats for being "arrogant."

Jackson, who is African-American, said the tea party is not racist, nor hateful, but welcomes anyone who values the Constitution.

With the Pentagon expecting to complete its training on the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell by mid-summer, far-right activists are making a latch ditch effort to encourage fresh GOP attempts to block the repeal law’s implementation.

The head of the American Family Association’s Pennsylvania chapter is pushing her state’s congressmen who sit on the House Armed Services Committee to scuttle the repeal policy. Diane Gramley told the AFA’s media outlet OneNewsNow that the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell would literally “destroy” the military: “We are undermining our military [with this policy] and thus undermining our national defense, so we are encouraging them to get into the thick of the battle because that’s what it’s going to take to get this terrible law thrown out…If we allow this implementation to go forth, then it will destroy our military, and there’s no doubt about that. So we’re encouraging Pennsylvanians to contact Congressman Bill Shuster and Congressman Mark Critz and ask them to...protect our military.”

Rev. Louis P. Sheldon, chairman of the Traditional Values Coalition, sent out an email to members that the chaplaincy would collapse following the repeal. A spokesman for the Army chief of chaplains told USA Today that training with chaplains is “going very well [and] in no way are we giving the message, shape up or ship out,” and so far just one chaplain quit over the policy’s repeal. But according to Sheldon, the implementation of the repeal policy could ultimately ban Christian preaching and create “homosexual privileges”:

Could you imagine America's military chaplains banned from sharing the message of the Holy Bible?

It’s happening... and I am urgently scrambling to raise awareness and fight back.

…

Should a chaplain privately counsel an American soldier, or should an American soldier share his Christian faith with others, the military brass would have the right to discharge that chaplain or soldier -- AND RUIN THEIR CAREER.

On April 7th (this Thursday) there will be a full hearing with the House Armed Services Committee to go over the impact the repeal of the 1993 ban on gays and transgenders serving in the military -- and unless we make sure there are firm, solid protections for the rights of conscience and religious liberty, America's chaplains will no longer be able to share and counsel according to Biblical principles.

This goes far beyond mere tolerance. This is the whitewashing of any other perspective other than the ones agreed upon by Barack Obama and the extremist liberals -- not to mention the homosexual lobby for whom Obama appears to be willing to bend over backwards.

…

Gays and transgenders are now pushing well beyond mere acceptance. They have a friendly White House administration, and the homosexuals are pushing their advantage.

Only if the U.S. House realizes that America's military chaplains are being told to "shut up or resign" will we be able to turn back this implementation of homosexual privileges in America's military.

After telling a reporter from Think Progress that he wouldn’t appoint any Muslims to his administration, Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain has doubled-down on his religious test for public office. Cain told the conservative site NewsMax that his opposition to Muslims serving in government comes fro his belief that “they are not free to infuse their religious beliefs into our laws”:

“They can accuse me of bigoted speech all they want,” Cain counters.

“I want people committed to the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States in my administration. I don’t have the time or the desire to worry about somebody or some faction that wants to impose shariah law on this nation. I believe in American laws in American courts.

“The First Amendment says everybody can practice whatever religion they choose. [Muslims] are free to practice their religion in the United States, just like all other legitimate religions. But they are not free to infuse their religious beliefs into our laws. We don’t do that in the United States, and if I’m president I’m going to work to keep it that way.”

But in an interview with Bryan Fischer, Cain claimed that the US and the constitution is “based on biblical principles, [and] I want to get back to those principles as president.” He also said that he was called by God (via text message) to run for the office.

Another likely Republican presidential candidate, Rick Santorum, similarly criticized Muslims for purportedly trying to bring their religious beliefs into politics while at the same time urging Christians to “try and change” laws since “civil laws are supposed to comport with God’s laws.”

As part of the House GOP’s efforts to thwart the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) of the House Arms Services personnel subcommittee is holding a hearing this morning on the implementation of the repeal policy. Wilson wants to see Don’t Ask Don’t Tell reinstated and at least twenty-five House Republicans have signed on to legislation that would effectively block the repeal from going forward. Moreover, likely GOP presidential candidates Mike Huckabee, Tim Pawlenty and Haley Barbour have came out publically to support reinstatement.

Large majorities of Americans favored the discriminatory policy’s repeal, and a Gallup poll conducted just before Congress voted to repeal found that 67% of Americans believe gays and lesbians should be allowed to serve openly in the military. But according to Wilson, since the repeal bill was passed during the “lame duck session,” the vote was “undemocratic” and an “insult.” Wilson, who shouted “you lie” during President Obama’s address to Congress, said in a statement:

“Today the Subcommittee has an opportunity to influence the future course of the implementation of a change in the law regarding the service of openly gay and lesbian service members.

“I was troubled by the process employed to repeal the law known as Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell this past Fall. I feel the repeal was rushed through the Congress without adequate review and consideration of the full extent of the implications of repeal. I believe the lame duck session was undemocratic in that dozens of defeated Congressmembers adopted a law with significant consequence but it failed to even pass a budget. It was an insult to the principles of representative democracy. Elected officials should be reflective of the views of their constituents; the Congressmembers voting had been rejected for not reflecting views of constituents.

…

“We must ensure that we do not make a mistake by allowing the repeal to move ahead when there is any possibility that it will put the combat readiness of our force at risk at a time our nation is in three wars with worldwide instability.”

Michele Bachmann

Fundraising: Embellishes fundraising skills (WaPo, 3/28).

Religious Right: Slams proposed “social issues truce” at conservative forum (Des Moines Register, 3/26).

Iowa: Names State Senator and prominent Birther the director of her Iowa campaign (MoJo, 3/25).

Haley Barbour

Mississippi: State lawmakers criticize Barbour’s out of state traveling that caused him to miss budget deadline (The State Column, 3/28).

Obama: Claims President sees Americans as “too stupid to take care of ourselves” (ABC News, 3/26).

Equality: Calls to reinstate Don’t Ask Don’t Tell in order to prevent an “amorous mindset” among soldiers (RWW, 3/25).

Herman Cain

Equality: Says he will not appoint any Muslims if elected President (ThinkProgress, 3/26).

Race: Declares he “won’t stay on the Democrat plantation” (Politico, 3/26).

Newt Gingrich

Background: Believes it wasn’t hypocritical to impeach Clinton for affair while he was having an affair himself (CBS News, 3/28).

Religious Right: Tells John Hagee’s church he fears America as “a secular atheist country, potentially one dominated by radical Islamists” (CNN, 3/28).

Equality: Discusses with Bryan Fischer how he will “slow down the homosexual agenda” (RWW, 3/25).

Mike Huckabee

Religious Right: Calls on activists to become “spiritual warriors” in social issues fight (RWW, 3/25).

Poll: Leads all other Republican candidates in national poll (TPM, 3/25).

Jon Huntsman

PAC: Horizon PAC hires more staffers and readies for potential campaign (Politico, 3/28).

Background: Staffers looks to distance Huntsman from Obama (AP, 3/26).

Roy Moore

2012: Alabama justice best known for Ten Commandments controversy plans to announce presidential bid in April (CBS News, 3/28).

Equality: Addressed Iowa opponents of marriage equality law at rally (Des Moines Register, 3/15).

Sarah Palin

Poll: Loses support in survey of Republicans nationwide (Reuters, 3/25).

Media: Refers to Bill Maher as an “annoying little mosquito” (Politico, 3/24).

Tim Pawlenty

Religious Right: Focuses Iowa campaign on attracting support of the Religious Right (RCP, 3/28).

Fundraising: Announces finance team led by former McCain fundraiser (WaPo, 3/28).

Mitt Romney

Campaign: Hires former Bush Administration staffer as policy advisor (Politico, 3/28).

Fundraising: Hopes to raise $50 million for the primary campaign (The Caucus, 3/25).

Rick Santorum

Family: Cancels campaign appearances to attend to ill daughter (CBN News, 3/28).

New Hampshire: Scheduled to appear at “first town hall meeting” of 2012 primary (Union Leader, 3/22).

As we noted yesterday, Bryan Fischer has broadcasting his radio program live from the Rediscover God in America conference in Iowa.  Yesterday he had Rep. Michele Bachmann on the program and today he hit the trifecta as Newt Gingrich, Mike Huckabee, and Haley Barbour all joined him live in his remote studio.

As Fischer is want to do, he asked Barbour if he would reinstate Don't Ask, Don't Tell if he were to be elected president and Barbour asserted that "of course" he would because an "amorous mindset" will interfere with the decision-making process under fire:

Barbour: Let's look at the best evidence that we have. They did research to see what military people thought about this idea. The closest to the ground, the soldier on the ground, was the most opposed to this. And it's not necessarily over homosexuality. Its over the fact that when you're under fire and people are living and dying of split-second decisions you don't need any kind of amorous mindset that can affect saving people's lives and killing bad guys. You look at the data and it is the foot-soldier that is the person who is out there, boots on the ground, who was most against this. And it's because they live or die with this and that's who we ought to be listening to, that's who we ought to be caring about and that's why I am against it. I think it ought to be rolled back. I just don't see how you can take any other position if the person you are trying to protect is the soldier who is actually in combat.

Here is the complete interview:

Mike Huckabee tells the AFA's OneNewsNow that he supports reinstating Don't Ask, Don't Tell: 

Mike Huckabee says he would support legislation aimed at reinstating the 1993 law that prohibits homosexuals from serving openly in the military.

In January former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty said if he were to become president in two years, he would work to reinstate the prohibition of open homosexual service. Now former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, another potential GOP presidential hopeful, tells OneNewsNow that he, too, would support re-imposing the ban.

"I would -- because that's really what the military wants," says Huckabee. "There's been some talk that the military is fine with having same-sex orientation people. But if you really surveyed the combat troops, that is not at all the case."

According to Huckabee, currently a political analyst for Fox News, politicians should back out of the picture. "...I don't think that these are decisions that politicians should make. These are decisions that soldiers should make," he says emphatically. "And when the soldiers in the foxholes make the decisions, they choose something different -- and we should listen to them."

Gary Cass of the Christian Anti-Defamation Commission has traditionally dedicated most of his energies toward attacking the standard Religious Right tagets: gays, hate crimes legislation, society, and President Obama.

But now Cass has taken up a new issue: Glenn Beck and his Mormon faith.

As we noted last week, there are some Religious Right activists who are growing alarmed that Beck seems to be passing himself off as a Christian in an effort to promote distinctly Mormon doctrines ... and now Cass has joined in with them, releasing a video claiming Beck's work is a "theological train wreck" and an accompanying report accusing him of peddling "heresies and errors":

Mormons, and especially their missionaries, intentionally prey on ill-informed people by falsely identifying themselves as Christians, even though honest Mormons know they reject the essential doctrines of Christianity.

Mormons redefine Christian terms and use them in deceptive ways so that, if you weren’t very well informed, you wouldn’t know they were doing it. They even have a name for the practice; “Lying for the Lord.”

Mormons know if they told people the truth of what they believe up front they would not be able to persuade them to become Mormons. So they present a warm fuzzy, family facade and withhold their strange doctrines, practices and secret rituals until after they have created trust and an emotional bond.

Beck even laments regularly on his TV show that people don’t believe he’s a Christian. Sorry Glenn, but you can’t have it both ways. It’s either Jesus Christ of the Bible or Joseph Smith and the doctrines of Mormonism. If Beck ever renounces his Mormonism, then I will believe he’s become a Christian, in the meantime he sounds just like the rest of the Mormons I’ve known all my life.

I pray God will grant Beck the grace to humble himself and beg God to have mercy on him through Jesus Christ for arrogantly presuming that he is on his way to godhood. This is the absolute height of arrogance and exactly the lie of Satan in the garden: “You shall be as gods!” Mormons accept the demonic doctrine and glory in it.

While I support Mormon’s freedom to believe what they want, they aren’t free from being criticized for their false doctrines and deceitful practices. Beck’s illicit use of the Bible to lend authority to his Christ-denying, man-exalting, graceless, self-help “gospel” is breathtaking. Unfortunately, using his quick wit and self-effacing humor to disarm and deceive will only bring Beck more eternal condemnation.