Ruth Institute Blog

by Charlie Butts

According to Paul Rondeau, executive director of the American Life League, “This administration treats Catholics as useful idiots” and generally undermines religious freedom.

“We all know that this administration has a contraceptive mindset. They are abortion-addicted, and this is simply one more ‘kick the can down the road until after the election,’ where Obama is not up for re-election and then his even truer colors will come out,” Rondeau contends.

He says church-affiliated institutions are looking for an exemption from the mandate — not an extension for compliance beyond the November election.

“There can be no resolution to this conflict when you have an administration that takes the executive power of the presidency and through legislation and bypassing Congress … uses every administrative trick in the book to push their agenda, generally speaking, outside the light of day and in the shadows,” the pro-lifer argues.

Rondeau concludes the administration’s latest move is not a compromise, but simply a delay in the onset of government intrusion into religion.

And though the White House will not be forcing insurance coverage for birth control on religious institutions for the time being, court cases against that mandate will proceed. Hannah Smith of The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty agrees that the one-year delay is a political ploy. But she assures that the affected organizations have no plans of giving in. (Listen to audio report)

“Religious organizations, religious colleges, universities, hospitals, [and] social service organizations will not cave to the government this year or any year,” she insists. “They will not pay for abortion drugs, no matter how many years the Obama administration gives them to comply to this coercive government mandate.”

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