What Part of “No Religious Test” Don’t We Understand?

Written by Jerry Newcombe

The U.S. Constitution says there can be no religious test applied to those seeking office at the federal level (Article 6, clause 3). But lately some on the left are trying to apply a type of religious test against some would-be Trump nominees.

Two years ago, U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) raked a Trump nominee over the coals because of the man’s theological views. Russell Vought, a nominee to the Office of Management and Budget, attended Wheaton College.… Continue Reading

SPOTLIGHT: How to Prevent Illinois’ Collision With Legal Pot

Written by Benjamin Smith

Happy New Year and welcome to the first Spotlight podcast of 2019! For this edition of Spotlight we are revisiting highlights of an earlier episode featuring IFI’s own Monte Larrick and J.D. Mesnard, Regional Director with Alliance Defending Freedom’s Church Alliance. This interview took place in May 2018 at IFI’s fourth annual Worldview Conference. Mesnard begins the podcast by detailing the range of vital legal assistance the ADF Church Alliance provides to churches.… Continue Reading

That Giant Liberty-Sucking Sound From the Tolerant Left

Written by David Limbaugh

Various leftist grievance groups have insisted for years that they just want equal treatment and equal rights, that they only want to end discrimination and that they come with an attitude of “live and let live.” Nope.

We’ve long known that the “tolerance” police don’t merely want equal rights and to be treated with civility. They require that you honor their ideas as superior, reject your own contrary ideas and do penance for ever having held your own ideas.… Continue Reading

SPOTLIGHT: Free Exercise of Religion on Display in the Capitol

Written by David E. Smith

This week’s edition of Spotlight begins with a focus on the importance of the nativity display at the Illinois state capitol – as well as the value of nativity scenes in state capitols and public places across the US — as Thomas Brejcha (from the Thomas More Society) joins our host, Monte Larrick.

Brejcha and Larrick discuss the connection between free exercise of religion and free speech, and they consider whether religious freedom is at risk in Illinois, especially in light of a democratic governor-elect and the supermajorities in the Illinois legislature.… Continue Reading

Lefty SPLC, Soros Foundations Build Coalition to Ban ‘Hate Speech’ Online

Written by Corinne Weaver

The anti-conservative hate group, Southern Poverty Law Center, wants to censor people it disagrees with and it’s asking the top social media companies to help.

On Thursday, October 25, the liberal organization announced that it had formed a coalition with five other groups to encourage the prohibition of so-called “hate speech” online. SPLC partnered with four George Soros funded organizations: the Center for American Progress, Color of Change, Free Press and Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, as well as the National Hispanic Media Coalition.… Continue Reading

SPOTLIGHT: Preserving Religious Freedom

Written by David E. Smith

In this week’s podcast, Monte Larrick interviews Alliance Defending Freedom’s (ADF) Regional Director J.D. Mesnard. This interview took place at IFI’s fourth annual worldview conference in early May. In the first half of the podcast, J.D. identifies the importance of ADF’s Church Alliance program, which supports the legal needs of churches across the nation during a time in which attacks on religious liberty are increasing.

During the second half of the podcast, in his capacity as Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives, J.D.… Continue Reading

Anthony Kennedy Has Important Parting Advice for Liberals

Written by David E. Smith

This week’s U.S. Supreme Court decision in NIFLA v. Becerra should drive a stake into the heart of an Illinois law that requires pro-life medical professionals to refer patients for medical procedures/services they find morally objectionable such as abortion, sterilization and certain end-of-life care protocols.

This tyrannical legislation (SB 1564) was signed by Republican impostor Bruce Rauner and sponsored by Chicago Democrats. In writing the majority opinion of the Court, Justice Anthony Kennedy offers some constructive criticism to totalitarian policy-makers:

[B]egin by reading the First Amendment as ratified in 1791; to understand the history of authoritarian government as the Founders then knew it; to confirm that history since then shows how relentless authoritarian regimes are in their attempts to stifle free speech; and to carry those lessons onward as we seek to preserve and teach the necessity of freedom of speech for the generations to come.

“Pride Month” is Officially a Religion: Twitter CEO Shamed Into Disavowing Chik-fil-A Visit

In April, Babylon Bee published a satirical op-ed entitled: “You Either Die An SJW, Or You Live Long Enough To See Yourself Become A Bigot”

The “author” of the piece was Starbucks Executive Chair Howard Schultz. The op-ed mocked how Starbucks was shamed into closing all of its 8,000 stores because leftist social justice warriors claimed that one Philadelphia store manager’s decision meant the entire company was full of racists.

This is the same Starbucks which endorsed left-wing ideologies on LGBT issues long before they were popular.… Continue Reading

Deconstructing Young Minds

Written by Robert Knight

Since November 2016, the Deep State and its media allies have spent considerable time and money cultivating animus toward President Trump and the Republican-led Congress among younger voters.

Many Millennials came unglued in the wake of the election and still are.  The Left is counting on their turning out to elect progressives in November.  Social media bristle with anti-Trump and anti-conservative invectives, and some of it spills over into anti-American rants.

As author William J.… Continue Reading

SPOTLIGHT: Q & A With John Stonestreet

In this edition of Spotlight, we’re pleased to present a portion of the Q&A session that closed out our recent 2018 Worldview Conference. Our keynote speaker, John Stonestreet, president of the Colson Center for Christian Worldview and co-host of BreakPoint Radio programs, fielded a variety of questions from Monte Larrick and conference attendees.

Stonestreet insightfully addressed a wide range of topics from pending Supreme Court legislation to Kanye West and the dangers of celebrityism, identity politics, division in our nation, and the need for discernment in regard to Facebook and other forms of social media.… Continue Reading