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Join us today. We can win this fight!

November 7th, 2013

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, which is considered widely “the second most influential bench in the land behind the Supreme Court” ruled 2-1 in favor of the two Catholic business owners, the Gilardi brothers, who are fighting the Health and Human Services contraceptive mandate.

The decision is a delicious read. Please do not miss it!

Here are some of my favorite parts:

On the first sentence, the judge says: “[W]e are asked to revisit the behemoth known as the Affordable Care Act.”

Now, we know things are going to go badly for the government, when the judge chooses to use the word “behemoth.”

Then things get worse for the government. And much better for the cause of freedom.

The opinion quotes Jefferson “that the right to free exercise necessarily prohibits the government from ‘compel[ling] a man to furnish contributions of money for the propagation of opinions which he disbelieves.'”

And, to my personal delight, John Locke: “Penalties are impertinent, according to Locke, if they are used to compel men ‘to quit the light of their own reason, and oppose the dictates of their own consciences.'”

But, the judge does not stop there. She goes to James Madison who, as we all know, “described conscience as ‘the most sacred of all property.'”

Finally, the opinion states that the Gilardis (the two Catholic brothers) are burdened “because the government commands compliance by giving the Gilardis a Hobson’s choice. They can either abide by the sacred tenets of their faith, pay a penalty of over $14 million, and cripple the companies they have spent a lifetime building, or they become complicit in a grave moral wrong. If that is not ‘substantial pressure on an adherent to modify his behavior and to violate his beliefs,’ we fail to see how the standard could be met.”

The judge goes on to call the government’s arguments “perplexing and troubling,” ‘unconvincing,” and concludes by stating “the [HHS] mandate is self defeating.”

The judge’s opinion leans heavily on the decision made by the Tenth Circuit in the win for our client, Hobby Lobby. One of the judges even quotes a law review article written by one of our great attorneys, Mark Rienzi.

The arguments we are making in court are making a difference.

I should add one more reason why we can win: I have your support. As you know, this is an expensive fight. We represent all of our clients pro-bono, without charging them. All of our funding comes from individuals like yourself.

In short, do not be depressed. Join me and my great team at the Becket Fund!

All we do, we do together.

Sincerely,

Kristina Arriaga
Executive Director
The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty
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