SCOTUS LGBTQ Ruling Is Wrong for America

In this week’s bombshell Supreme Court ruling, the justices voted 6-3 to force millions of America’s businesses, organizations, and individuals to accept LGBTQ employees against their moral and biblical convictions. This is wrong on many levels.

The decision, shocking most Americans, applied to three lower court appeal cases, the most notable of which was Harris Funeral Homes v. Aimee Stephens and EEOC. Funeral director, Anthony Stephens, was fired after announcing to his funeral home owners that he was changing his name to Aimee and would be working dressed as a women. The funeral home owners believed the action would cause increased grief for families of departed loved ones who were aware of the situation. The firm also felt such condition would cause undue stress on its other female employees who would have to share restrooms with the biological male. Stephens sued the funeral home.

The ruling according to the majority justices is an interpretation of the 1964 Civil Rights Act which, among other things, prohibited employment discrimination based on gender. At the time, the intention of the Act was clearly about biological males and females. Monday’s decision interpreted the Act as applying to all LGBTQ sexual identities.

About half of all states already have some valid level of non-discrimination protection for LGBTQ communities. But the other half have limited or no such ordinances. On this issue, the states are generally aligned according to political party majority with blue states legislating LGBTQ protection and red states not. The SCOTUS decision no longer leaves the issue up to the states and even usurps the responsibility of the US Congress to enact discrimination law. Most conservatives view this ruling as judicial activism at the highest level. It was a radical rewrite of existing federal statute. It has taken a controversial social issue out of the hands of legislators representing national sentiment and forcing social change by judicial fiat from six individuals.

Although the decision left open the possibility of employers being exempted on religious grounds, there is little doubt but that lower courts will now use this decision to defend LGBTQ persons applying for employment in churches, Christian schools, para-church organizations, and religious related companies. The ruling’s application to only employment issues will not stop it from being influential in backing men attempting to join women’s sport teams as well as men using women’s restrooms and changing facilities. Such a sweeping decision by the Supreme Court has sunken America much deeper into the normalizing of deviate sexual behavior.

Furthermore, traditional conservative Americans guided by Christian principles felt a sense of disappointment and betrayal upon learning that Chief Justice John Roberts and Trump-appointed Justice Neil Gorsuch sided with the liberal justices on this ruling. Gorsuch, usually an unyielding conservative on the Court, even wrote the majority opinion. Justices Kavanaugh, Thomas, and Alito provided the dissenting opinions.

Apparently, conservatives can no longer assume that justices leaning in their direction will vote with conservative ideals. With a 5-4 conservative majority in the Court, one liberal vote by any of the five will swing the decision. This makes it crucial to conservatives that a conservative president and Senate majority be in place when the next Supreme Court seat is vacated.

So, be alert. This ruling has left open all potential for capitalization by the LGBTQ community. Pray that the decision will not embolden those who might want to test the waters in ways that would cause more offense and animosity. What are your thoughts?

Reshaping the Supreme Court

The main reason many voted for President Trump is about to be justified for the second time in 18 months. The president’s nomination and Senate confirmation of Justice Kennedy’s replacement will change the dynamic of the Supreme Court significantly. Let’s examine the Court’s current makeup and how this new justice will impact America.

America’s highest judicial body, the Supreme Court, consists of nine justices nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate. Presently, they are (above, front row, left to right) Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Anthony Kennedy, John Robert (Chief Justice), Clarence Thomas, Stephen Breyer, (back row, left to right) Elena Kagan, Samuel Alito, Sonia Sotomayor, and Neil Gorsuch.

Although justices and judges are supposed to be unbiased in their decisions based on the letter of the law and legal precedence, they are human with principles and values shaped by life experiences, education, and environment. Four of these justices, Robert, Thomas, Alito, and Gorsuch usually lean to the conservative view of sociopolitical issues. Four of the others, Ginsburg, Breyer, Kagan, and Sotomayor lean mostly to the liberal view. Justice Kennedy, a conservative nominated by Reagan, often favors the liberal view in decisions and has been labeled the “swing vote.” So, many Court decisions are 5-4 with Kennedy breaking the tie in favor of either a liberal or conservative ruling. Recently, he was the deciding vote in favor of gay marriage and abortion rights.

With Justice Kennedy’s resignation, President Trump’s choice will be a stronger leaning conservative. This should portend a 5-4 decision favoring the conservative world view on many more issues. If any of the justices are considered a swing voter in future rulings, it will probably be Justice Robert who is a stronger conservative than Justice Kennedy.

Then, there is considerable likelihood that Justice Ginsburg will resign voluntarily or due to poor health during President Trump’s term in the White House. She is 85 (Justice Kennedy was 81). She is the most staunch liberal on the Court. That would result in a conservative majority of 6-3, or 5-4 with a swing vote toward the liberal side. The president will nominate a relatively young justice. His nomination of Gorsuch seated the Court’s youngest justice at age 50. Therefore, 5 or 6 strong conservative justices should be on the bench for many years.

This is a tectonic shift from the liberal-leaning Supreme Court of the last few decades. It will be a reversing trend away from liberal rulings on social issues such as abortion, gay marriage, LGBT rights, prayer in schools, religious freedom, universal health care, immigration, etc. Legislation from the bench will be returned to its rightful place in the legislative branch. The Constitution now often viewed as an evolving living document will be reinterpreted by the Court as a firm foundational standard.

Because of this judicial shakeup, the liberals are apoplectic over this nomination. Many liberal leaders are calling for voters to deluge the Senate with insistence that they oppose any and all nominations from President Trump. Suddenly, Roe v. Wade has become the most important legal precedent in America. Look for the wildest confirmation process in the history of Supreme Court nominations. Fortunately, conservatives can thank former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and the Obama administration for declaring the “nuclear option” in a previous justice confirmation when it benefited liberals. This procedural option of requiring a simple majority of 51 votes rather than a super-majority of 60 votes is now the precedent for confirmations. It will also eliminate the filibuster.

The long-term positive impact of this administration’s second new justice (and perhaps a third new one soon) on the survival of America as a free capitalist republic is immeasurable. Thank God for the election of 2016 and pray for a continuing conservative White House and congressional majority.

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