Week Ending March 28, 2008 - Washington, DC

Bush: Burkas for Christian women OK / Iraqi church bombings are "criminal acts " not persecution by Muslims / Israel Pastor's apartment bombed, son critical / No Mitt for VP? / Obama's new racial problem? / Indian Health and abortion goes to House

NEW END OF MARCH CHAIRMAN'S REPORTS AVAILABLE - The March 29, 2008 Chairman's Report from William J. Murray is now available online in PDF version. The Chairman's Report contains some material not seen in these updates. Click to view!

THE PRESIDENT

BUSH: BURKAS OK FOR CHRISTIAN WOMEN- The official policy of President George W. Bush's administration is that forcing a Christian woman to wear a burka or hijab in public is not religious persecution because nothing in Christian doctrine forbids wearing them. It is also the official policy of the Administration that there is no religious persecution of Christians in Iraq and that the 41 churches destroyed since the war began and the church bombings this past Christmas were done by "criminal elements." The US Commission on International Religious Freedom is considering designating Iraq as a "CPC" or Country of Particular Concern. The Bush Administration is in a state of panic over this possibility and is exerting extreme political pressure to avert this action. As a result, I doubt that CPC status will be issued for Iraq.

NO MITT FOR VP - Senator McCain's recent comments favorable to Mitt Romney and the current "M&M" fund raising tour featuring McCain and Mitt has social conservatives in an uproar. A group of "values voters" have prepared a full page ad addressed to McCain telling him "NO MITT" and a petition is now online at www.NoMittVP.com where social conservatives can leave a message for John McCain on the issue.

OBAMA'S NEW RACIST PROBLEM - Portions of a thesis reportedly written by Senator Obama's wife, Michelle, while at Princeton is circulating on the Internet. The document is racist and radical, calling for blacks to become "separatists" and saying that all whites are "inherently racist." There has been no verification of the document; however, the racist comments of Obama's pastor floated on the Internet for months before mainstream media dared to publish them. If this material is accurate, Senator Obama cannot claim he "was not present" enough with his wife to be aware of her beliefs.

THE HOUSE

INDIAN HEALTH AND ABORTION - When the House returns from "Spring break" next week Congressman Pitts (R-PA) intends to offer an amendment to the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (HR 1328) that would codify a longstanding policy against funding of abortions with federal Indian Health Service (IHS) funds (except to save the life of the mother, or in cases of rape or incest of a minor). A similar amendment offered by Sen. Vitter (R-LA), in the Senate passed by a vote of 52 - 42. Please contact your congressman and ask him to support Congressman Pitts' efforts. NO ABORTION FUNDS IN INDIAN HEALTH!

THE SENATE

SENATE SOMEWHAT IN RECESS - The Senate will not take an official recess for Easter. Every few days there will be a "pro-forma" session of the Senate with only one Senator present. The purpose of these sessions is to stop President George W. Bush from making emergency appointments to the hundreds of judicial and other agency vacancies.

RELIGION AND SOCIETY

NEW MARCH CHAIRMAN'S REPORTS AVAILABLE - The March 29, 2008 Chairman's Report from William J. Murray is now available online in PDF version. The Chairman's Report contains some material not seen in these updates. Click to view!

INTERNATIONAL

OUR EVANGELIST'S APARTMENT BOMBED - The apartment of the pastor of the evangelistic ministry in Israel supported by the Religious Freedom Coalition has been bombed, and his son was critically injured. I have stayed numerous times in the Ariel apartment of David Ortiz and his wife Leah in Ariel, Samaria. I have traveled with him into the Arab areas where he ministers to Muslims. Many have accepted Christ as a result of his ministry. Part of the video done by my daughter Katie, Holy Land Teens, was filmed in the apartment that was bombed. The youngest son who was featured in that video is still in critical condition. His arms have been saved, but he has lost fingers. Microscopic surgery is to be done on his eyes to restore his sight this week. An Islamic organization has claimed responsibility, but police have not ruled out the possibility that a Jewish extremist group planted the bomb because David also pastors a House Church for Messianic Jews in Ariel. Jerusalem Post Story

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CHRISTIAN INTERNET STORE - There are literally tens of thousands of Christian theme items available at our affiliate store including jewelry from the Holy Land. It is a great place to shop for gifts. The store is located at www.rfcstore.com. Please help us with our various projects on Capitol Hill and in the Holy Land by shopping at our affiliate Christian Superstore . Contributions to the work of the Religious Freedom Coalition can be made at www.rfcnet.org.

Week Ending February 15, 2008 - Washington, DC

Nancy Pelosi takes away ability of President Bush to spy on terrorists / Global Aids stalls in House / 29 GOP congressmen call it quits / Two incumbent congressmen lose seats in Maryland primary / Indian Health Act and abortion / Senate to recess / Sacrifice for Freedom memorials / What is Coltan? / Death for Internet article still possible

THE PRESIDENT

PRESIDENT LOSES ABILITY TO FIGHT TERROR- In a stunning move, San Francisco radical Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has blocked passage of the bill that gives authority to the President to fight terror. At midnight Saturday all intelligence gathering by the Administration against terrorists all over the world will be curtailed because Pelosi refused to bring the Protect America Act to a vote. Oddly Pelosi had time to issue contempt citations against two former Bush staffers, to try to arrest them because they will not testify before one of her committees.

THE HOUSE

AIDS BILL STALLS? - The President's Emergency Program For Aids Relief (PEPFAR) was scheduled for a vote in the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, but the hearings have been put off due to the death of its chairman, Congressman Lantos (D-CA). Democrats are insisting that funds to fight AIDS in Africa be used for abortions and President Bush has indicated he will veto the bill if that is the case. Click here to read the Administration's position on PEPFAR funding.

29 GOP CONGRESSMEN OUT - There are now 29 Republican congressmen who have either outright resigned or announced that they will not run for reelection this year. (This includes Bobby Jindal who resigned to become governor of Louisiana.) With that many incumbent Republicans leaving, we need as many good conservatives as we can find to fill the slots. A good friend of mine, Woody Jenkins, a true social conservative who fights for the Christian values this nation was founded on has announced that he will run for the seat vacated in Louisiana by Congressman Jindal. He is one of many seeking seats of departing GOP congressmen.

TWO CONGRESSMEN LOSE IN MARYLAND - In the middle of the presidential primary, people forget that there are other candidates on the ballot. In Maryland there were both Democrat and Republican primaries for Congress as well. And two incumbents lost their seats. Both were defeated because they had run afoul of the party's activist base.

Reps. Wayne Gilchrest (R-MD) and Albert Wynn (D-MD) are from different parties. Neither had been involved in a scandal, and there had not been recent redistricting. Both lost because they were not ideologically in sync with their party's base.

Congressman Gilchrest, the Republican, voted with Democrats more often than with his own party, and his constituents had enough. Groups such as the Club for Growth spent nearly $1 million to dump him. He did not vote with social conservatives and I am glad to see him go. Wynn, the Democrat, had the opposite problem, having sided with business more often than with his left-wing constituency.

THE SENATE

INDIAN HEALTH ACT - As I have previously noted, social conservative Senators led by Senator Vitter (R-LA) have offered an amendment to prohibit the use of funds in the Indian Health Act for abortion. In response the Democrats have offered the following language: "Nothing in this Act shall be construed to effect or otherwise modify provisions of current Federal law with respect to the funding of abortion" as a side-by-side to Vitter's pro-life amendment. If passed, that language would essentially gut Senator Vitter's amendment. Please contact your Senator and ask him to support Senator Vitter's Amendment and reject the Democrats' pro-abortion amendment.

SENATE TO RECESS - The Senate went into recess Thursday night without a vote on the Indian Health Act and will remain in recess all of next week in honor of President's Day. The Senate will reconvene at 5:30 PM on Monday, February 25th.

RELIGION AND CULTURE

SACRIFICE FOR FREEDOM - A new group, Sacrifice for Freedom, is working to honor those who have fallen in the current conflict while giving their families a daily visible reminder of the nation's gratitude toward them. Sacrifice for Freedom is delivering to families a beautiful three dimensional memorial for their homes. The cost of the memorials are $250 each and so far they have been delivered to over 400 families who have lost loved ones to the cause of freedom in the current conflict. You can designate a family to receive a memorial if you contribute sufficient funds to deliver it to them. For information click here or on the image of the memorial.

ALL NEW CHAIRMAN'S REPORT - The January 4, 2008 issue of the Chairman's Report is now available online. This new issue contains details of "under God" in the Pledge petition deliveries to the Senate and first hand accounts of the huge Right to Life march in Washington. Read about adding a pro-life amendment to Indian Health Services. There is also Information on the church bombings in Iraq. Click here to read in PDF format

INTERNATIONAL

WHAT IS COLTAN? - Coltan' is the African colloquialism for columbite-tantalite, a metallic ore that is used in the manufacture of your cell phones and other devices to keep them cool. About 80% of this material comes from Africa, primarily the Democratic Republic of the Congo where a bitter war has been waged for a decade killing as many as five million people. The war has gone on unnoticed by the world and financed for the most part by "conflict coltan." Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) has expressed an interest in legislation to stop the sale of coltan as a means of stopping the continued slaughter in that nation.

DEATH FOR INTERNET ARTICLE PART III - It has now been nearly a month since an Afghan student, Sayed Parwiz Kambakhsh, was sentenced to death for copying a paper from the Internet that the courts there deemed "blasphemous" to Islam. I and others continue to push the Department of State and the White House for information on his fate but as of now we have no answers.

VISIT OUR INTERNET STORE

OUR INTERNET STORE - We have lots of great Christian themed products at our Internet store. Not only are there books and CD's, but everything from candy to jewelry. Unlike Amazon and other major Internet stores, we do not sell porn and satanic materials right beside Christian books. Please take a look. The store is located at www.rfcstore.com.
Contributions to the work of the Religious Freedom Coalition can be made at www.rfcnet.org.