[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 6]
[House]
[Pages 8789-8796]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         FREEDOM OF CONSCIENCE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 3, 2013, the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Fortenberry) is 
recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader.
  Mr. FORTENBERRY. Mr. Speaker, tonight's discussion is not about 
politics. It's not about partisanship. It's about principle. It's about 
an American ideal, an ideal so common, so ordinary that we don't think 
about it very much; yet this ideal is essential to a well-functioning, 
orderly, and just society. In fact, it should define the nature of the 
relationship between the government and her people.
  Mr. Speaker, when a person uses right reason and sound judgment when 
they believe something is right or wrong, that is a sacred space. That 
is called conscience.
  Conscience is inextricably intertwined with the inherent rights and 
dignity of all persons. It is, therefore, only just that governing 
authority have the highest level of sensitivity to upholding and 
protecting the person's free exercise of deeply held, reasoned beliefs.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to read two emails that I received from 
constituents back home. Katie, from Nebraska, says this to me:

       Please do everything in your power to ensure that our 
     hospitals, service agencies, and universities are allowed to 
     carry out their work unhindered by laws that go against their 
     conscience. I do not want to see good agencies and businesses 
     shut down because they were forced to choose between the law 
     and their conscience.

  Karen McGivney-Lecht wrote to me and said this:

       As a woman's health practitioner and as a Catholic, I need 
     the ability to stay within my faith boundaries. I would be 
     unable to work if I was required to provide the services this 
     HHS mandate has imposed.

                              {time}  1950

  Now, Mr. Speaker, what are they talking about? What are they 
referring to? Let's take a few moments and unpack the issue here. Let's 
review the multiple layers.
  The Department of Health and Human Services proposed a rule, commonly 
known as the HHS mandate, which will take full effect this coming 
August. This mandate, authorized by the 2010 health care law known as 
ObamaCare, would require all health care plans to cover in full--and 
consequently, every American--to subsidize procedures and drugs that 
many

[[Page 8790]]

Americans consider to be ethically divisive. Americans who cannot in 
good conscience comply with this mandate will now be subject to ruinous 
fines if they do not obey simply for exercising their First Amendment 
rights, exercising their religious freedom, exercising the deeper 
philosophical principle of the rights of conscience as rightly 
exercised by reasonable persons doing what they believe to be right, 
what they believe to be good, what they believe to be just.
  Mr. Speaker, I simply find it difficult to understand how we can let 
this happen, how we got to this place in our country, how we can 
willfully cross a threshold that Republicans and Democrats of an 
earlier, wiser era sought scrupulously to avoid. For the first time in 
our history, Mr. Speaker, the new health care law provides the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services the discretionary authority to 
mandate the coverage of drugs and procedures such as abortion-producing 
drugs. Many Americans reasonably find these drugs and procedures 
controversial. In past times, they were considered to be electives. If 
a person or an organization didn't want to choose them, they didn't 
have to.
  In 1993, Congress passed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, a 
Federal law signed into law by President Clinton. The Religious Freedom 
Restoration Act ensures that Federal officials cannot reach into the 
private sphere to substantially burden the practice of religion. In 
view of the many philosophical and diverse religious perspectives in 
this country that all contribute to our vibrant civic culture, members 
of both parties, Mr. Speaker, worked to pass that important piece of 
legislation.
  Now, however, we have the HHS mandate, which is clearly an affront to 
established law and precedent. Conscience protections in health care 
have always been championed by members of both parties since Senator 
Frank Church authored the widely popular Church Amendment in 1973 to 
protect objections of conscience to abortions and sterilization.
  So, Mr. Speaker, what has changed? What has so dramatically changed 
in this body? We have lost our collective sense of respect for 
divergent views. We have lost our sense that the government must 
protect that sacred right of conscience and not coerce her citizens 
into doing something that they fundamentally believe is unjust or 
wrong.
  While the HHS mandate is arguably a small component of the 2010 
health care law, it does bring us face-to-face with a stark new reality 
here in Washington that we fervently hope will not become the new 
normal in America. We have recently heard of the discrimination against 
Americans by certain employees at the IRS, IRS employees targeting 
Americans because of their religious or philosophical or political 
leanings. The IRS is the very agency set to implement the new health 
care law.
  Mr. Speaker, a good government must ensure that those in position of 
authority are committed to two principles: fairness and impartiality. 
These revelations about religious and political targeting have done 
much to undermine the public trust.
  But, Mr. Speaker, the HHS mandate is also a form of discrimination. 
It primarily targets people in faith communities, the very people who 
have been the backstop of compassionate care for the poor, the 
vulnerable, and the marginalized in our society today.
  When the new health care law was under consideration, it was said 
that if you like your health care, you can keep it. Now, however, we 
are finding out that you may not be able to keep your health care plan. 
You may not be able to keep your doctor. You may not even be able to 
keep your own faith traditions, given this governmental threat.
  Mr. Speaker, no American should be forced to choose between their 
conscience and their livelihood. No American should be forced to choose 
between their faith and their job. No American should be forced to 
choose between their deeply held, reasoned beliefs and the law. That's 
a false choice. It's un-American, and it's wrong.
  I want to thank my colleagues who have joined me tonight to share 
other stories of Americans who are deeply concerned about the impact of 
this mandate upon them, but who also, I think, are going to discuss the 
very purpose of our government, which, at its core, should be to 
protect the dignity and the rights of every person, beginning with the 
fundamental right of the reasonable exercise of conscience. Mr. 
Speaker, this is not some theoretical debate. This is about the 
preservation of our way of life, the ability to work as we choose, the 
ability to serve as we see fit with what should be support from our 
government.
  With that said, I'd like to now call upon and yield time to my good 
friend, Joe Pitts, who heads the Values Action Team, who has been a 
stalwart leader for years upon years now for basic protections for the 
most vulnerable and the calling forth of leadership in the whole arena 
of human rights. Joe Pitts is from Pennsylvania. He is a Vietnam war 
veteran. He flew 116 combat missions in service to our country.
  Joe.
  Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Nebraska 
(Mr. Fortenberry) for his outstanding leadership on this issue that 
we're discussing tonight, the right of conscience. And I come tonight 
to the floor with alarm over how this administration is trampling on 
our First Amendment rights.
  Freedom of assembly means that Americans can come together to 
petition the government, but the IRS has targeted conservative groups 
for extra scrutiny, throwing up roadblocks to their organization.
  Freedom of the press means that journalists can work on stories 
without government interference, but the Justice Department subpoenaed 
multiple telephone numbers for the Associated Press and investigated a 
FOX News journalist as a ``coconspirator.''
  Freedom of religion means that the government does not get to tell 
you to violate your beliefs, but ObamaCare is forcing even explicitly 
religious employers to provide services they have moral objections to.
  Our freedoms are clearly under assault by government bureaucrats who 
claim that they know what is best for all Americans. Over 60 
organizations around the country, nonprofits and businesses, are suing 
the Federal Government to protect their rights.
  One of those businesses is located in my district, in Lancaster 
County, Conestoga Wood Specialties of East Earl, Pennsylvania. For 
nearly 40 years, this family-owned business has made high-quality doors 
and wood components for kitchen cabinets. They provide over 950 quality 
jobs in my district. The owners have provided good health insurance 
that comports with their Mennonite beliefs for their employees, but now 
they are being coerced into providing government-approved health care, 
required to pay for products that include abortion-inducing drugs and 
sterilization.
  Anthony Hahn, President and CEO of Conestoga Wood Specialties 
Corporation, said this:

       Being told that we must provide a health plan that includes 
     a provision that violates the Christian beliefs of our family 
     and the Christian values that our company was founded on is 
     deeply troubling. Forcing Americans to surrender 
     longstanding, deeply held principles in order to own and run 
     a business is not merely troubling but unnecessary and 
     unconstitutional.

  And they've gone to court over this.

                              {time}  2000

  Americans should not have to sacrifice their religious rights when 
they enter the marketplace. ObamaCare would fine Conestoga Wood 
Specialties up to $36,500 per employee per year--$34 million a year for 
not providing government-approved insurance, but only about $2 million 
for not providing any insurance at all. This is madness. Clearly, this 
law is out of control.
  Conestoga and many others are fighting for their rights in court, but 
here in Congress, we too have an obligation to defend the Constitution.
  The Founding Fathers established a Bill of Rights because they knew 
that the government would always be tempted to abuse its power. 
Democratic elections do not protect the

[[Page 8791]]

rights of unpopular minorities. In fact, all too often an unbound 
democracy becomes a tyranny of the majority.
  The bureaucrats at the HHS may feel that they know what is best for 
all Americans, but being an American means the freedom to decide on 
your own, to let your convictions guide your life. What kind of Nation 
will we be when the IRS decides who gets to assemble, when the 
Department of Justice decides who reports the news, and when HHS 
decides what religious beliefs are worthy of First Amendment 
protection?
  I'm not a Catholic. I'm not a Mennonite. We don't share the same 
ideas about what is morally objectionable on everything, but I do not 
believe that my ideals should be forced on them. Under ObamaCare, we 
can't choose our doctor; we can't choose our health insurance plan. Now 
we lose our First Amendment rights.
  At one time Pennsylvania was perhaps the only place in the world 
where people could freely practice their religious beliefs without fear 
of persecution. In a world where people were killing each other over 
theology, William Penn established a safe harbor in our colony, and 
Penn's once radical idea became the foundation for our Nation's concept 
of religious freedom.
  The actions of the HHS remind us that our rights are not guaranteed. 
We must stand up and protect them. We must continually demand that the 
government respect that which has been granted to us by God. And I'm 
proud to stand with my colleagues tonight in defense of religious 
freedom, to stand with my constituents at Conestoga Wood Specialties.
  We should pass the Health Care Conscience Rights Act and make it 
clear that this House of Representatives will not stand by while 
minority religious beliefs are under attack. What a sad day for America 
when our fundamental rights like religious freedom and freedom of 
conscience are under attack by the heavy hand of government. We must 
pass this bill.
  Mr. FORTENBERRY. Thank you, Congressman Pitts, for your forceful 
words and your leadership. We're very, very grateful.
  I would now like to call upon my good friend, Dr. John Fleming from 
Louisiana. As a dedicated physician who cares deeply about the health 
care system in our country, I know you can provide us with 
extraordinary insights into the problems with the implementation of the 
new health care law. But I think it's important to point out that you 
are one of the lead cosponsors and a coauthor of the Health Care 
Conscience Rights Act, and we are very grateful for your leadership as 
well.
  Dr. Fleming.
  Mr. FLEMING. I thank the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Fortenberry) 
for bringing us together this evening with a number of colleagues 
talking about an extremely important topic today, and that is health 
care conscience rights. You've heard some of the major points here, and 
I'm going to touch on more.
  On August 1, 2013, the administration's coercive health care mandate 
will take effect. It will force religious organizations, American 
family businesses, universities, and countless others across the great 
country of ours to violate the deeply held moral and religious beliefs 
that we have. The HHS mandate is a serious affront to religious freedom 
and leaves American businesses, nonprofit religious organizations, and 
individuals with three terrible decisions.
  First, they could violate their conscience and religious convictions 
and comply with the mandate, purchasing and providing items and 
services they find morally objectionable.
  Second, they could resist the mandate, not complying with the Federal 
regulations, and face fines up to $100 per employee, per day.
  Or third, they could drop employee health coverage altogether--which 
defeats the purpose, the basic idea of ObamaCare to begin with--leaving 
employees to fend for themselves and still pay a Federal fine of $2,000 
per employee, per year, according to the business that employs that 
person.
  These are not actually choices, but a top-down, burdensome Federal 
regulatory scheme that forces the American public to participate in a 
government-run health care plan that violates their values.
  Who are we talking about? Who will be affected by the HHS mandate? 
Mr. Speaker, to date, 61 cases and over 200 plaintiffs have filed suit 
against the Federal Government to preserve their First Amendment right 
of freedom of religion. One of the nonprofit lawsuits was filed by 
Louisiana College, a private Baptist college in Pineville, Louisiana 
just outside of my district.
  Offering degrees in art, music, science, nursing, social work and 
teaching, this central Louisiana school has over 70 programs of study, 
has a student enrollment of about 1,500 students, and a faculty/student 
ratio of 13-1.
  The HHS mandate requires that Louisiana College provide employee 
health insurance covering abortion-inducing drugs and counseling on the 
use of such drugs. This, Mr. Speaker, is a violation of Louisiana 
College's belief that all life is sacred, including the life of the 
unborn.
  Who else? Hobby Lobby is another example of a well-known business 
throughout the country--we have 11 stores in Louisiana--employing more 
than 2,000 people in 41 States. The business practice of Hobby Lobby 
mirrors their religious principles. Their hours of operation are family 
friendly, and they are closed on Sundays. Employee pay is important.
  Well, what is the anecdote to this problem created by ObamaCare and 
the rules rolled out of this administration? I'm going to just quickly 
touch on them, and then yield back to my good friend from Nebraska.
  Section 3 provides much needed protections to ensure that the Federal 
Government cannot force individuals, charities and businesses to buy 
plans for their employees that provide or facilitate coverage of items 
or services to which they have a deeply held moral or religious 
objection.
  Section four provides much needed protections to ensure that any 
government agency that receives Federal funds cannot force pro-life 
health care entities to be complicit in abortion or discriminate 
against them because they are pro-life.
  Section 5 of the Conscience Rights Act amends title II of the Public 
Health Service Act. It includes a private right of action for victims 
who have been discriminated against. You see, at this time, Mr. 
Speaker, people who are discriminated against, or coerced or forced in 
some way by this mandate don't have access to courts. This opens up a 
private right of action so that those of us who may object through our 
conscience will have our day in court.
  Just in conclusion I would like to say, Mr. Speaker, that ObamaCare 
has provided many, many problems and really no solutions. But there are 
even unintended consequences, and that is forcing people of conscience 
to have to make that decision on whether to end providing certain care 
for their employees or for their--really to their patients--or suffer 
large fines, or just give up on health care coverage at all for their 
employees.
  I think it's time that this country comes together and decides, let's 
make health care attractive and affordable and protect life, and 
protect those who want to protect life, and not have this top-down, 
bureaucratic, coercive system that's now in law that will require many 
of us to do many things against our conscience. That is simply un-
American.
  With that, I thank the gentleman for his time today.
  Mr. FORTENBERRY. Dr. Fleming, thank you as well for your leadership. 
To know that you gave up a medical practice to enter into public 
service and stand here today defending this deep, essential American 
principle, the rights of conscience, and as it affects those who are 
most vulnerable in our society, is frankly deeply moving to me and I'm 
grateful for your leadership. Thank you so much.
  I would now like to call upon my good friend, Congressman Chris Smith 
from New Jersey. And if you don't mind me calling you the ``Dean'' of 
the

[[Page 8792]]

tireless efforts on behalf of so many of us to fight for human rights 
and the poor and the marginalized around the world. Your tireless 
efforts have been an extraordinary example to me, and I'm very, very 
grateful not only for your mentorship, but for your friendship.
  Congressman Smith.

                              {time}  2010

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Fortenberry, thank you for your 
extraordinary leadership. This has been a very tough fight. You have 
been walking point, and doing it with great class and with great 
precision. I think your opening comments for this Special Order which 
you have sponsored just summed up the issue so eloquently. I want to 
thank you for your leadership. It is making a difference. And while we 
may not have success on the short-term, I do believe on the 
intermediate and long-term we will prevail over time, and I thank you 
for your leadership, Mr. Fortenberry.
  Mr. Speaker, President Obama today is using the coercive power of the 
state to force tens of millions of people of faith and people of 
conscience to violate a fundamental conviction or suffer a severe 
penalty. What Mr. Obama has done is unconscionable, unprecedented, and 
violates religious freedom. By coercing all insurance plans, including 
those offered by faith-based institutions, to pay for drugs and devices 
that are contrary to their deeply held beliefs, including subsidizing 
abortion drugs like Ella and Plan B, President Obama demonstrates a 
reckless disregard for conscience rights.
  Everyone must comply, regardless of moral convictions or religious 
tenets, simply because his administration says so. Mr. Obama's means of 
coercing compliance--absolutely ruinous fines of $100 per day per 
employee that total up to over $36,000 per year per employee. Just 
people listening at home, our Members who may be listening to today's 
important Special Order, $36,500 per employee per year.
  When faith-based organizations refuse to comply, Obama's mandate will 
impose incalculable harm on millions of children educated in faith-
based schools, as well as the poor, the sick, the disabled, and frail 
elderly who are served with such compassion and dignity by faith-based 
entities.
  Even Notre Dame, which heaped praise and honors and an honorary 
degree on President Obama in 2009, will be crushed by this cruel 
mandate. Astonishingly, it was President Obama in his 2009 speech at 
Notre Dame University, who said:

       Let's honor the conscience of those who disagree with 
     abortion and draft a sensible conscience clause.

  Mr. Speaker, another promise broken; more empty, misleading rhetoric 
from the President who has excelled at that.
  Mr. Speaker, the fact of the matter is approximately 4,600 employees 
are covered under Notre Dame's self-insured health plan, which means 
that Notre Dame will face fines of over $100 million a year when they 
refuse to comply with the Obama mandate.
  If Mr. Obama's attack on conscience rights isn't reversed, faith-
based employers will be discriminated against and fined, and employees 
who today benefit from health insurance plans provided by their faith-
based employer will be dumped into government health exchanges. And 
even when they do that, the fines to faith-based organizations are also 
without precedent. If a faith-based entity scraps its own insurance 
coverage because of the Obama mandate, they are then fined $2,000 per 
employee.
  Mr. Speaker, Mr. Obama's attack on conscience rights fits a dangerous 
emerging pattern. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops had 
a Federal grant to assist human trafficking victims under a law that I 
wrote, known as the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, and did 
an absolutely superb job, according to all professional reviews, 
assisting trafficking victims in this country. In 2011, however, the 
USCCB, or the Conference of Catholic Bishops, was blatantly 
discriminated against and thrown out of the program simply because they 
would not refer for abortions. That was it. Throw it out of the 
program.
  The Health Care Conscience Rights Act reasserts and restores 
conscience rights, Mr. Speaker, by making absolutely clear that no one 
can be compelled to subsidize certain so-called services in private 
insurance plans contrary to their religious beliefs or moral 
convictions.
  Again, I want to thank Mr. Fortenberry. He had introduced the 
legislation in the last Congress and was the first individual in this 
House to come out of the blocks to recognize just how damaging the 
Barack Obama anticonscience initiative really is. We need to move on 
this. We need to protect those men and women of conscience, those of 
religious belief who will not bow and will not go in the direction that 
this administration is demanding.
  Mr. FORTENBERRY. Thank you, Congressman Smith, for your very powerful 
words. I think, before you leave, I should say this. We also value your 
leadership. For decades now you've stood in this House well, even when 
it wasn't the most popular thing to do--as it isn't now--to talk about 
that which is right and just, that which is higher and good, to, in a 
sense, provoke the conscience of this body to a more meaningful 
engagement. So I want to thank you again for your strong leadership.
  Let's turn now to my good friend Dr. Bill Cassidy, another physician 
in the House of Representatives, from Louisiana. Again, like I told Dr. 
John Fleming, I think it's important that everybody knows that you left 
a medical practice to enter into public service, and we're very, very 
grateful for the example you've provided, and your leadership as well. 
I know you have some broader concerns about the issue of conscience and 
religious freedom, so we look forward to hearing your comments.
  Mr. CASSIDY. Thank you, Congressman Fortenberry.
  Mr. Speaker, a couple of things. First, I associate myself with the 
remarks made by my colleagues. I think that there is a concern 
regarding our religious freedoms here in the United States.
  But for just a moment, I want to draw the attention of those watching 
and the Speaker to an issue of Pastor Saeed Abedini. He is an American, 
originally from Iran, who is now incarcerated for 8 years--this is his 
sentence in Iran--for crimes, as they defined it, that happened 13 
years ago. This is a question of religious freedom which involves an 
American citizen who happens now to be abroad.
  Pastor Abedini is 33 years old, was born in Iran, and there converted 
from Islam to Christianity. Here, that would not be a big deal because 
we have religious freedom. Theoretically, so does Iran.
  In his early twenties, he helped start house churches. It was legal 
to do so. At some point, he moved to the United States and married his 
wife, who I gather her family also is originally from Iran. They have 
two children and they live in Idaho.
  He went back to Iran to work on a nonsectarian orphanage. He was 
arrested by the state police and incarcerated, at first they said for 
activities disruptive to the state. Now they apparently are attributing 
it to his work in house churches around the year 2000. But he has been 
incarcerated in prison and is tortured. He's been taken to the hospital 
on a couple of occasions. The physician recommended that he be admitted 
to a hospital. The Iranian Government will not allow it. He went to 
seek medical care on another occasion. The nurse refused to touch him 
saying that because he was a Christian, or if he had been Baha'i, 
either, she would not touch him.
  So here we have a fellow, an American, who is being imprisoned for 
activities which happened 13 years ago in a country which is a 
signatory to the UN Declaration of Human Rights in which someone may 
have religious freedom.
  Now, it is upon we, as Americans, if you're a person of faith, to 
pray for the Abedini family. If you're a person not necessarily of 
faith but just believe in human rights, this is something which should 
be incredibly important to you.

[[Page 8793]]

If you're just a person who has compassion for a 33-year-old man whose 
wife and two children are here alone as he is being imprisoned and 
tortured for no other crime than attempting to start an orphanage for 
children who might not have another option, even that would offend 
someone who is of no faith whatsoever.
  So what can we as Americans do? One, we have to draw attention to it. 
We have a resolution that has been submitted that calls upon the U.S. 
State Department to intervene on his behalf--and, in fairness, the 
State Department has attempted to do so in the past, but there is some 
feeling they could do more--and for the Iranian Government to free him.
  So one, we have this resolution before Members of Congress. If you're 
watching this, ask your Member of Congress to sign on to this 
resolution. It has bipartisan support now.

                              {time}  2020

  Number two, contact our State Department and ask them to redouble 
their efforts to free Pastor Abedini.
  Number three, include him and his family in your prayers. We can only 
imagine if our loved ones were abroad, in prison, being tortured, 
without access to health care, and what that would mean for both wife, 
children, and also parents.
  Lastly, join us all in admiration for a man in his commitment to the 
people whom he loves, who was willing to risk something that he knew 
might be a possibility as he was living out his faith, caring for 
those, treating those as he would have them treat him but, as an 
impulse of his faith, going to those who were otherwise without care.
  So thank you for allowing me to speak on behalf of Pastor Abedini, 
and I thank you for having this discussion of religious freedom here 
tonight.
  Mr. FORTENBERRY. Thank you, Dr. Cassidy, for your powerful words as 
well.
  As you were speaking, I was reminded of the fact that this is 
America. We disagree with what the President and the Secretary of 
Health and Human Services have done with health care, particularly 
imposing this harsh mandate. We need the right type of health care 
reform, but one that is going to protect our liberties and not simply 
shift more unsustainable cost and spending to the government.
  Those are the normal debates that we have, but we have that debate, 
and we can have it right here without fear of that type of retribution 
that so many people in other places have who are exercising their 
deeply held beliefs, their rights of conscience, their faith 
perspectives; but they do so under grave threat. This is still America.
  Mr. CASSIDY. The United States has historically been a beacon of 
human rights to the rest of the world, and so it is no accident that a 
fellow comes to the United States seeking religious freedom.
  I think the undertone of what others here have spoken is the sense 
that some of our commitment to religious freedom is under siege by 
forces of secularism. Now, you can be secular if you wish; but 
nonetheless, the First Amendment says that the right to practice 
religion shall not be infringed upon. So with all of these kinds of 
trimming at the margins, at the edges, of someone's ability to practice 
her faith or his faith, one, it affects us, but, two, it also affects 
our standing in the rest of the world in our ability to advocate for 
those who do not have the same freedom as we.
  If others see our example as substituting religious freedom for 
something which is less so, how much less will our beacon be dimmed? 
That will have tragedy, not only for us, but also for them.
  Mr. FORTENBERRY. That is an outstanding point to make. It's 
something, as I tried to state earlier, that we so take for granted--
our rights of conscience as we exercise them through faith, through 
prudential judgment in our everyday lives. It has been embedded in our 
culture and, therefore, in our government until very recently, until 
this measure has come along and is coercing people unjustly into 
violating that sacred space, that right of conscience.
  By the way, this is not just people of faith who are speaking out. 
Other persons of goodwill can see the fundamental principle here in 
that, if we erode that, we are eroding something that is essential to 
human dignity and the very flourishing of democratic ideals, 
themselves. So thank you for pointing that out.
  The gentleman from Michigan, if you are ready to speak, I'd love to 
hear from you.
  Congressman Walberg is a good friend, who has been here a long time, 
again, championing these issues, standing up for what he believes to be 
right and just, and being a good partner in trying, as well, to 
exercise his rights of good conscience before this body about what is 
essential and good.
  So thank you, Congressman Walberg, for coming tonight.
  Mr. WALBERG. I thank the gentleman from Nebraska. I thank you for 
your leadership, and I thank you for the opportunity to stand with 
principled legislators. We are not talking about parties here. We are 
talking about people who understand rights and responsibilities.
  The First Amendment to our Constitution says so clearly that Congress 
shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or 
prohibiting the free exercise thereof. Tonight, we are talking about 
rights of conscience. Our First Amendment liberty affirms that for us. 
It affirms us for greater principles than just political or even 
governmental.
  In approximately the year my father was born, 1903, Abraham Kuyper, a 
theologian--and I take great comfort in the fact that theologians 
sometimes aspire to political life in coming from the pastorate myself 
and pastoring for over a decade--this theologian who became the Prime 
Minister of the Netherlands, said:

       When principles that run against your deepest convictions 
     begin to win the day, then battle is your calling, and peace 
     has become sin. You must at the price of dearest peace lay 
     your convictions bare before friend and enemy with all the 
     fire of your faith.

  That's a powerful statement. It's a statement that, I'm sure, Mr. 
Kuyper would have said to his brethren in the Netherlands is not coming 
simply from my religious convictions but, rather, is coming from my 
conviction for freedom and the right given us by the Creator God. So he 
fought. Sadly, as we know the course in the Netherlands, they've gone 
away from the freedom of life, and we know the impact upon the unborn. 
We know the impact upon the infirm. We know the impact upon the 
elderly. We know the impact upon the frail, upon the disabled in the 
Netherlands. Their lives are cast off. Their lives are not as secure.
  So here tonight, Mr. Speaker, we stand for rights of conscience that 
go way beyond just issues of medicine and issues of government. It goes 
to the core of life and to the sanctity of it and to the humanity of 
each and every individual.
  We have talked about some people and about their convictions of 
things like life, abortifacient, contraceptives, and people who are 
compassionate to businesses and compassionate in using their businesses 
for the good of people, like the Greens already referred to with Hobby 
Lobby, who allegedly have given over $500 million to charities and who 
give to their employees and benefit them and see that as an outflow of 
their religious life as well;
  Or we go over to St. Louis, where Chris and Paul Griesedieck, who run 
a 105-year-old business that they've carried on from their father and 
grandfather, with 150 employees who have taken stands for their 
religious beliefs, as well, and have very clearly stated that they will 
not abandon their beliefs in order to stay in business. The impact is 
upon all of their people;
  Or we look at an 85-year-old gentleman by the name of Charles Sharpe, 
also from northeast Missouri, who has made millions in the insurance 
business, but who took that and founded Heartland Ministries in 1992, 
providing rehabilitation services to men and women who are battling 
drug and alcohol addiction, and employing 170 employees. Yet if this 
HHS mandate comes down on them, those employees

[[Page 8794]]

will lose their jobs because of millions of dollars in fines.
  I can go to businesses in my district like Eden Foods, which has 
challenged the insurance rule on religious grounds; or a garden center 
in Oakland County, Michigan doing the same--employing many, many 
employees and providing benefits--and is now being challenged with this 
HHS mandate. I could go on and on.
  Mr. Speaker, it is time for us who understand what America is about 
to stand firmly with our convictions and to uphold liberties that go 
way beyond ourselves. Our Framers and Founders understood that. John 
Witherspoon said that a Republic once equally poised must either 
preserve its virtue or lose its liberty.
  We are losing our liberty.
  John Adams--and I close with this--the second President of the United 
States said that our Constitution was made only for a moral and 
religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any 
other.
  Mr. Speaker, the people of the United States are great people, and 
this government is a great government; but when the attack comes on 
what makes America America--its liberty and its freedom and its moral 
and traditional value heritage that is now being impinged upon to the 
point of violating rights of conscience--we must stand and stand 
firmly.
  So I thank the gentleman from Nebraska for pulling us together so as 
to speak out clearly tonight; and I would hope, Mr. Speaker, that those 
who are listening and watching tonight on C-SPAN will speak out very 
strongly to their communities and their families, calling us back to 
decency, order, conviction--and a conscience that even God can honor.

                              {time}  2030

  Mr. FORTENBERRY. I thank the gentleman from Michigan for his 
thoughtful and powerful remarks. I particularly noted what you said, 
that the rights of conscience go way beyond the issues of health care. 
That was very well put. Thank you very much for your leadership on this 
issue, as well.
  I want to turn now to Congressman Dan Lipinski and yield time to him.
  As I said earlier in the beginning of this hour, this is not about 
politics and it's not about partisanship. It's about principle. 
Congressman Lipinski and I do not share the same party affiliation, but 
we share this principle. He has been one of the key lead cosponsors on 
this initiative, the Health Care Conscience Rights Act, and has stood, 
as well, side by side in helping to promote this effort to revive an 
understanding of this fundamentally American principle that transcends 
the philosophical differences we tend to find with the pushing and 
shoving that go around here.
  So I'm very grateful, Congressman Lipinski, for your willingness to 
come tonight and speak with us.
  Mr. LIPINSKI. Thank you, Mr. Fortenberry. Thank you for yielding and 
leading us here tonight. I'm glad to join you here from this side of 
the aisle.
  Mr. Speaker, religious freedom is our first freedom, as stated right 
there in the First Amendment. This is not just freedom to worship as we 
hear it defined now in many ways. It is not just freedom to worship in 
our own homes, in our churches, synagogues, mosques, temples. It is 
freedom to practice and live out religious faith here in America.
  On June 21 through July 4, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is 
having a Fortnight for Freedom to pray, educate, and act for religious 
freedom. But this is not just a Catholic issue. This is an issue for 
all Americans. It's an American issue. Just as you said this is not 
just a Republican issue.
  Freedom is what our country was founded on. We just recently 
commemorated Memorial Day for all of those who have died for our 
country and for freedom. Friday is Flag Day. Again, we'll be 
remembering what America is all about in our freedom. And on the Fourth 
of July, we celebrate the freedom that our country was born to serve 
and to live out and be a beacon for the rest of the world. We need to 
uphold that freedom, and the HHS mandate, amongst other efforts, other 
things that have been done by the Federal Government, unfortunately, in 
recent years has really run counter to freedom.
  Mr. Speaker, I want Americans to understand what this is about. It's 
not about birth control or abortion, although we were told in the 
health care law, ObamaCare was not going to cover abortion, though we 
know the HHS mandate requires the abortion-inducing drugs. But that's 
not what the core of this is about. It's about freedom. It's about 
taking away Americans' freedom, requiring them to participate in 
activities that violate their conscience.
  Unfortunately, I think there's been a lot of misdirection on this, 
and I think it's important for all of us to focus back on what this is 
about. It's about freedom for all Americans to live their lives 
according to their conscience, whether or not they are practicing faith 
or not. It's to live according to their conscience.
  So, Mr. Speaker, I just am very happy to join with my colleagues in 
helping to support, protect and call upon Americans to speak up, rise 
up and bring that message to Congress, to their Representatives, that 
freedom must be protected. We must do it now. We cannot continue to let 
freedom slip away. And I'm very happy to join my colleagues tonight.
  Mr. FORTENBERRY. Before you leave, Congressman Lipinski, let me first 
of all say thanks. I'm very deeply grateful to you for two things. One 
is your personal friendship. The second is the gift of your leadership 
on these essential American issues. I think most American people want 
to see what we just did: Republicans and Democrats standing right here 
and focusing on that which can be constructively achieved for the 
greater good. So for you providing that example of strong 
bipartisanship in this effort, I'm very grateful. Thank you so much.
  Mr. Speaker, may I inquire as to how much time we have remaining.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Cook). The gentleman has 12\1/2\ minutes 
remaining.
  Mr. FORTENBERRY. Mr. Speaker, now I'd like to turn to my new friend, 
Congressman Mark Meadows, from near Ashland, North Carolina. He was 
newly elected for this Congress. And I'm just going to say this--and I 
hope this doesn't embarrass you--I consider you a rising star. Your 
thoughtfulness, your immediate engagement on that which is most 
important around here, your willingness to look for good outcomes, to 
me, has been a great example.
  So we are grateful for your willingness to come tonight, and I turn 
it over to you.
  Mr. MEADOWS. I thank the gentleman from Nebraska, and I, too, would 
echo just the fact that we're friends. And I appreciate your leadership 
on this and the heart that it represents.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join with my colleagues in strong 
opposition to the Obama administration's attack on our fundamental 
religious freedoms that we have, our First Amendment rights that must 
be protected.
  This HHS mandate that has been mentioned many times tonight is an 
unprecedented government overreach that forces charities and businesses 
to buy plans for their employees and provide coverage in areas that 
violate their deeply held religious beliefs.
  We've already heard about Hobby Lobby and the fact that they're 
facing fines of some $1.3 million a day just for believing and 
upholding those values that they hold dear. And I'd love to say that I 
wish that it was just with ObamaCare that we're having this attack, but 
it's not.
  Throughout our Nation, we're seeing our religious liberties being 
attacked in a number of areas. In New York, the school board has been 
working there for two decades to block Bronx Household of Faith from 
meeting in a public building for their worship services on Sundays.
  In Montana, we see that Canyon Ferry Road Baptist Church faced 
election law charges just for a volunteer passing out petitions to 
place a marriage amendment on a Montana ballot.
  In Louisiana, we saw a Federal contractor order Calvary Baton Rouge

[[Page 8795]]

Church to stop feeding people who were left homeless during Hurricane 
Katrina's aftermath just because the group offered voluntary prayer 
service and Bible studies.
  These are painful examples, Mr. Speaker. But one that comes home to 
me--and I'll share this and close with this--in my home district, a 6-
year-old writing a poem about her grandfather who served our country 
honorably put in there that he prayed to God for peace and he prayed to 
God for strength, and yet they wanted to strike the word ``God'' from 
that poem.
  We have created a culture that, quite frankly, we cannot continue to 
support. We must stand up and stand against it. So tonight I join with 
so many of our colleagues, and those who are watching, I hope that you 
will understand the true point to which we've come that we must stand 
up and fight.
  In the rotunda of this very building is a painting of the Mayflower 
where they had a particular person there, William Brewster, who had a 
Bible open. The foundation of our country was really about religious 
freedoms, and we have it there as a reminder of that. To me, that's got 
a special meaning because William Brewster, holding that Bible there 
for those freedoms that we must hold dear, is my 11th great 
grandfather. I'm a direct descendent of that. So today I am here 
joining with him and my colleagues to say that we must stand and we 
must fight back and make sure that we protect this freedom and not 
yield.
  With that, I thank my friend and colleague.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong opposition to the Obama 
administration's attacks on our fundamental First Amendment right to 
religious freedom.
  The HHS mandate is an unprecedented government overreach that forces 
charities and businesses to buy plans for their employees that provide 
coverage of items or services that violate their deeply-held religious 
convictions.
  Individuals, non-profits, and businesses that fail to comply will 
face massive fines.
  We're already seeing this happen with Hobby Lobby, facing fines of up 
to $1.3 million a day because of refusing on religious grounds to 
include abortion coverage in employee healthcare packages.
  Organizations that do not comply with the mandate will face fines of 
up to $2,000 per employee per day. Those who can't pay may have to make 
the incredibly difficult decision to drop insurance coverage for their 
employees. This administration has made it more costly to defend and 
protect our religious freedoms than it is to provide healthcare.
  Americans should never be penalized like this simply for following 
their conscience.
   Violations of religious liberty aren't just limited to Obamacare, 
however.
  Throughout our nation, we are seeing an increase in attacks on our 
religious liberty:
  In New York, the school board has been trying for nearly two decades 
to block Bronx Household of Faith from meeting in a public school 
building for worship services on Sundays.
  In Montana, Canyon Ferry Road Baptist Church faced election law 
charges after a volunteer passed out petitions to place a marriage 
amendment on the Montana ballot.
  In Louisiana, a federal contractor ordered Calvary Baton Rouge Church 
to stop feeding people left homeless by Hurricane Katrina because the 
group offered a voluntary prayer service and Bible study.
  And the list continues.
  These violations of religious freedom are becoming more frequent 
because our government is sanctioning this type of discrimination 
against people of faith.
  Religious liberty does not simply mean allowing people to attend a 
worship service. It protects the fundamental right to--live all aspects 
of our lives in a way that is consistent with our religious beliefs.
  Religious freedom, often referred to as our ``first freedom,'' is one 
of the bedrocks that make America such a tremendous nation. Our 
Founding Fathers knew a country could not flourish without defending 
this fundamental truth.
  Thomas Jefferson emphasized the value of freedom of conscience when 
he stated that ``no provision in our Constitution ought to be dearer to 
man than that which protects the rights of conscience against the 
enterprises of the civil authority.''
  Throughout our history, Americans have been able to freely choose and 
live out their faith, abiding by conscience in their day-to-day lives.
  Yet, through the mandate, this administration is now telling 
Christian business owners to check their faith at the door and comply.
  And which agency will be tasked with ensuring that businesses comply 
with the mandate? None other than the IRS, which has already admitted 
to targeting organizations for their beliefs.
  In the 11th District of North Carolina, my constituents continue to 
voice their concerns to me about these dangerous infringements on 
religious liberty. They want to ensure that our fundamental freedoms 
are protected, not trampled on by our government.
  Our heritage, from the Mayflower until today, has been rooted in 
protecting our religious freedoms. [William Brewster]
  This administration's decision to disregard our fundamental right to 
religious liberty cannot be ignored.

                              {time}  2040

  Mr. FORTENBERRY. What a powerful and beautiful story you shared with 
us. I had no idea about your family being one of the founding families 
of this country. And now 13 generations later, you stand here with the 
mantle of authority now on your shoulders directing the affairs of 
state. That has to be very gratifying and a proud moment for your 
entire family, but it is also proud for me to know because I consider 
us to be good friends. Thank you so much for your comments.
  I now recognize my friend, the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Huelskamp) 
for a few thoughts on the subject. Thank you as well for your tireless 
and strong leadership on the fundamental principles of protecting that 
which is necessary for all of us to understand at the core, where our 
liberty comes from.
  Mr. HUELSKAMP. Thank you, Congressman Fortenberry. It is a pleasure 
to be here. I will warn you, as I will warn those who are listening, 
I'm going to try to be frank. And obviously, short, candid and 
truthful. But I think it may be uncomfortable to hear what is 
happening.
  Simply put, the HHS mandate is a religion tax. You heard me right. If 
you morally or ethically disagree with the abortion, drugs, 
contraception, sterilization, it doesn't matter, under the President's 
health care plan, you will pay for it for your employees, for your 
family, and for yourself even if you don't want it. If you dare to 
follow your conscience and actually practice your faith and refuse to 
participate, you will be fined. You will be taxed. You will be forced 
to give your hard-earned money to Washington, even if you morally 
disagree.
  That, my fellow Americans, is a religion tax; a faith tax; a tax on 
conscience; a tax on our freedom of religion. It's a shocking attack on 
that first right in the First Amendment, the right to believe in and 
follow the God we choose. As of now, there have been 31 lawsuits by 
nonprofits filed over the HHS mandate, another 30 lawsuits filed by for 
profit. These include hospitals, businesses, charities, religious 
colleges, Catholic dioceses, and many others. Let me illustrate the 
impact, particularly with Catholic services.
  One in six patients in America are treated in Catholic hospitals. 
Catholic Charities provides an estimated 334 orphanages, feeds millions 
of Americans each year, serves thousands of our homeless each year, and 
the mandate punishes these individuals for feeding the homeless, takes 
away help for the sick, starves the hungry, and punishes the 
entrepreneur. Since the initial announcement, the administration has 
issued multiple updates claiming to modify the mandate. These are 
simply deceitful smoke screens. And even if some accommodation did 
exist in the language, the First Amendment is to be protected, not 
accommodated.
  It's kind of like accommodating our freedom of speech by saying you 
use your freedom of speech on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, but 
Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, that's probably not 
permitted. We should ask ourselves: How can the beacon of freedom known 
as America become home to religious intolerance on such a massive 
scale?
  Frankly, there is a war on religious liberty in this country, and 
there is no one to ride in defense. It is up to us. We must be ever-
vigilant in defense of our God-given rights. We must be ever vigilant 
in safeguarding the protections in

[[Page 8796]]

law for those rights. We must be ever-vigilant in standing for that 
first right of that First Amendment, religious liberty.
  Thank you for your leadership, Congressman.
  Mr. FORTENBERRY. Thank you, Congressman Huelskamp. I know you have to 
run. We are very grateful you were willing to share those powerful 
sentiments tonight.
  I turn now to Congressman Jim Jordan of Ohio, a former national 
championship wrestler in college, who now wrestles with some of the 
toughest issues right here on the House floor.
  Mr. JORDAN. I thank the gentleman for yielding, and thank you for 
your leadership on this most fundamental, most basic of issues.
  You think about the folks who started this place, this experiment in 
freedom we call America. In Europe they said you have to practice your 
faith a certain way. And they said, No, we don't, and we're willing to 
risk it all. We'll get on a boat and risk everything and practice our 
faith the way we think the good Lord wants us to. And they did. They 
risked everything to come here for that fundamental principle.
  This experiment in freedom we call America, the greatest nation in 
history, was founded on that simple, yet basic and profound principle.
  The document that started it all--it's probably been talked about, I 
haven't been here for the whole hour--but the document that started it 
all, the Declaration of Independence:

       We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are 
     created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with 
     certain unalienable Rights.

  The document that started this experiment in freedom started with 
this simple concept that there is a Creator, and that's where we derive 
our rights from. Not gifts from government, not grants from government, 
but gifts from the Creator. Gifts from God. And here's why this is so 
important: because this attack on this basic and most fundamental 
principle is not isolated.
  Think about what we are witnessing in this country today regarding so 
many of your liberties. Start with the one we are talking about 
tonight, the most basic, your First Amendment right to practice your 
faith the way you think the good Lord wants you to. There is an attack 
on our First Amendment religious liberty rights. But there is also a 
First Amendment attack on freedom of the press. We now know that what 
this Justice Department did relative to Mr. Rosen, First Amendment 
attack on freedom of the press. There is a violation, an attack on your 
First Amendment rights to free speech, political speech, as evidenced 
by the IRS issue. There are attacks on your Second Amendment rights. 
And as we just learned this past week, potentially your Fourth 
Amendment rights to be free from unreasonable search and seizure.
  So this is critical because this is the issue that started it all, 
but it's also critical when viewed in context, when viewed in the 
overall attack on freedom, the overall attack on the Constitution, the 
overall attack on the Bill of Rights. And that's why I applaud the 
gentleman from Nebraska for his leadership, and as he well said, the 
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Lipinski) on the other side of the aisle, 
who understands these basic principles and basic freedoms, and how 
central they are to the American experience and to what we call the 
United States of America.
  Mr. FORTENBERRY. Thank you so much, Congressman Jordan, for your 
thoughtful words and your powerful presentation. Thank you for your 
tireless leadership on this and so many other issues. Thank you for 
coming tonight.
  I think it is most appropriate that the gentlewoman from Tennessee 
(Mrs. Black) gets to close the hour. Diane Black is the primary author 
of the Health Care Conscience Rights Act. We have been proud to stand 
in partnership with you as you've taken the lead on this term, this 
Congress.
  Mrs. BLACK. I thank you the gentleman from Nebraska for yielding. I'm 
getting a signal from Mr. Speaker that I have 1 minute left, so I'm 
going to reserve what I've written up, and just talk very briefly about 
what my colleagues have addressed up to this point in time.
  The bill that we are talking about, the Health Care Conscience Rights 
bill, would simply take us back to where we were before a decision was 
made by Ms. Sebelius to change the way in which we have operated in 
this country now for over 235 years. All we're asking is to take us 
back to where our Founding Fathers had us from the beginning, as has 
just been talked about by Mr. Jordan, about the founding principles of 
this country where people came here to be able to practice their deeply 
held beliefs without having government intrusion.
  This is so important for the American people to understand, that this 
is not about the issues that sometimes are talked about from the other 
side about birth control. This is about religious freedom, and I thank 
the gentleman for leading this hour this evening. We will have many 
more conversations.
  Once again, thank you for being a leader in this arena.
  Mr. FORTENBERRY. Thank you, Congresswoman Black. We are so grateful 
for your leadership.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

                          ____________________