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Mr. HUELSKAMP. I appreciate my colleague from Georgia yielding me time to discuss this rule and the underlying issue.
I do want to report that it was 229 years ago that the Virginia General Assembly ratified the Virginia statute for religious freedom. This was authored by Thomas Jefferson. The statute serves as the model for the free exercise clause in our First Amendment. This is what it said:
No man shall ..... suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief, but that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument, to maintain, their opinions in matters of religion.
Mr. Speaker, religious freedom is a fundamental human right protected by our First Amendment. It is essential to our free and flourishing society. Our Nation was found, in part, by individuals seeking refuge from religious persecution, from religious discrimination. For these pioneers and for all to come after, America was meant to be a permanent fortress of liberty and freedom for all who live within its walls.
At its essence, the concept of religious freedom is about much more than religion. It is much more than just showing up to worship service 1 day or 1 night a week. It is about our fundamental human right to hold our own beliefs and to live out our lives according to these faiths.
Religious freedom, quite simply, is about freedom itself. This is why the very first part of the very First Amendment to our Constitution is about religious freedom. It is our first and most cherished liberty.
However, our ability to be free to live out the convictions of our faith not only in the public square, but also in the privacy of our own homes, in our churches, in our businesses, is in jeopardy right here in our Nation's Capital.
The misleading name RHNDA is nothing more than a legalized discrimination. If allowed to go in effect, the government would force pro-life organizations, pro-life ministries, pro-life business, pro-life churches, pro-life individuals in the District to violate the very heart of their lives and their work and be coerced into paying for abortion on demand and be forced to hire antilife individuals who actually promote abortion. As a Catholic and as an American, I am offended by such coercion.
Now is the time for Congress to stand up against this direct assault on our freedom of religion, our freedom of association, and our freedom of speech.
I encourage my colleagues to join me and honor our constitutional oath of office by adopting this rule and passing H.J. Res. 43.
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