Frothyboy and the unhinged GOP are trying to find some issue they can use to attack the President, having no real ideas of their own, and this week they've settled on religious freedom. In their mostly white man world, the federal government's requirement that all health plans provide birth control is an attack on those freedoms:
On Fox News this morning, Rick Santorum described the health care policy as "a direct assault on the First Amendment, not only a direct assault on freedom of religion, by forcing people specifically to do things that are against their religious teachings." NYTimes
Reading the Arizona Republic this morning, I couldn't help but wonder what Mr. Santorum and the other righteous runts in his party would say about this story:
The polygamist-controlled town of Colorado City would be forced to disband its police department under a bill that passed an initial legislative hurdle Wednesday. The measure was approved unanimously by the Senate Committee on Government Reform at the urging of Attorney General Tom Horne. Arizona Republic
If you're not familiar with Colorado City, Arizona, it's one of the few remaining communities where polygamy is practiced openly. It's not just a Mormon town, it's ground zero for the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (FLDS), which controls the city council, police department, and schools. Read Jon Krakauer's
Under the Banner of Heaven if you want the shit scared out of you -- brainwashing, corruption, murder, rape. All in the name of god. Better yet, visit Colorado City: you'll feel like you've stumbled upon the most hateful mob of Stepford wives, husbands, and children imaginable. The message is pretty clear: Get out!
Along with its sister city in Hildale Utah, Colorado City is the town that recognizes Warren Jeffs as a prophet. Families happily gave their young daughters and their savings to the pedophile, who today is serving a life sentence plus 20 years for having sex with underage girls. He still wields control of the sect from prison -- recently banning toys for children, excommunicating members who don't support him, dissolving all marriages, and prohibiting sex until he is released. Some FLDS leaders, of course, proclaim Jeffs' innocence and, reminiscent of the GOP's blather about contraception and the Catholic Church, claim the government is persecuting him because of his religious beliefs.
Senate Bill 1433, which passed unanimously out of committee yesterday, could shut down Colorado City's police department because more than half of the 10-member force have pledged their allegiance to the FLDS Church above the law. The cops practice plural marriage, they do not recognize the state's authority, and they enforce, not state or federal law, but the Church's very scary brand of fundamentalism:
Flora Jessop, a former church member who maintains contacts in Colorado City, said the bill is desperately needed because oppression appears to be at its worst in 15 years. "It's getting to the point where people actually fear for their safety because of the police department," she said. Arizona Republic
Mr. Santorum, this is not the Obama administration demanding that Colorado City disband its police department and recognize state law. It's not Democrats challenging the town's religious principles. It's the friggin' Arizona legislature, which is controlled 2:1 by Republicans. Will you take a stand for the prosecuted believers in Colorado City?