DOJ Fights Whisk Management in Baker’s Case
from FRC:
It may be one of the most important religious liberty cases in a century — and President Trump isn’t about to be on the wrong side of it. In the latest sign that this isn’t Barack Obama’s DOJ, the administration is going to bat for Jack Phillips, the Christian baker at the center of a five-year firestorm over vendors’ forced participation in same-sex marriage. In a brief to the Supreme Court, the last stop for his case, the Justice Department argues that Jack was well within his rights to turn down a wedding cake order for a ceremony that contradicts his faith.
“The government may not compel an unwilling speaker to join a group or event at odds with his religious or moral beliefs,” Attorney General Jeff Session’s team argued. “Otherwise, a graphic designer whose clients include ‘a Jewish affinity group’ could also be forced to make fliers ‘for a neo-Nazi group.'” The Left is desperately trying to turn this into a debate about Christians refusing service to same-sex couples. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Like Barronelle Stuzman and dozens of other wedding vendors, Jack offered to sell the men anything in his store.
That didn’t satisfy them — nor did the long list of area bakeries who would have gladly accepted the job. Instead, they wanted to force Jack to use his creative talents to celebrate a message that violates his beliefs. “Just as a painter does more than simply apply paint to a canvas, a baker of a custom wedding cake does more than simply mix together eggs, flour, and sugar,” DOJ officials went on. “Both apply their artistic talents and viewpoints to the endeavor.” Public accommodations laws are important, acknowledged a Justice Department official, but “they — like other laws — must yield to the individual freedoms that the First Amendment guarantees.”
Related Posts
Tags
Share This
