The Hobby Lobby Case Is Here
Posted by Michelle Moquin on March 27th, 2014
Good morning!
From…
Slippery Slope
The Hobby Lobby Case Is Here
Tomorrow the Supreme Court will hear arguments in a closely-watched lawsuitbrought by Hobby Lobby and Conestoga Wood. When it rules on these cases this summer, the Supreme Court will decide whether the religious beliefs of the owners of for-profit corporations can be used as a justification to deny the company’s employees the contraceptive health coverage they are entitled to under the Affordable Care Act. While these cases are specifically about the Affordable Care Act’s birth control benefit, the High Court could open the floodgates to discrimination in the name of religious belief.
Why Should You Care? Consider the potentially slippery slope of Hobby Lobby. A poorly decided Hobby Lobby decision has the potential to go beyond “corporations are people, my friend.” It has the ability to dramatically transform religious liberty from a fundamental value that protects religious beliefs into a loopholes that can be used to discrimination, dictate women’s health choices, evade federal protections, and promote unfair advantages in the corporate world. The following infographic details the potential consequences that a poorly decided Hobby Lobbyruling could have on our nation.
Are You In D.C.? If so, join Generation Progress to rally at the Supreme Court in support of the birth control benefit provided by the ACA. RSVP here!
BOTTOM LINE: Religious liberty is a core American value and progressives believe in religious liberty for all, not just for some. Religious liberty means religious liberty for everyone. And that includes the freedom from having the theological doctrines of your boss or those of business owners in your community being forced upon you.
The upcoming Supreme Court cases are not really about religious liberty, they are about minority of individuals seeking a license to ignore laws and regulations they disagree with in order to discriminate against women, and others.
*****
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March 27th, 2014 at 12:02 pm
If you are poor, and not still inside somebody’s womb, Republicans want you to die if you get sick.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:03 pm
Why don’t the Republicans put their energy towards fixing the roads and bridges thereby creating jobs instead of their never ending fixation on The Affordable Act…get over it and get to work….
March 27th, 2014 at 12:06 pm
Republicans are always hitting the blogs declaring the total failure of the Obama Presidency.
I wonder. Did they sleep during the W. Presidency? Let me refresh their memory. Two were not paid for, Medicare Part D not paid for, took a Clinton surplus and turned it into a deficit.
Lied about WMD in Iraq and cost over 4000 American lives. Led the USA into the the worst recession in modern times. When he left office we were losing 750,000 jobs per month.
Any time you want to debate the Presidency of Obama, let me know I will be glad to take you to school!!!
March 27th, 2014 at 12:08 pm
Republicans grasp at any old straw to create inequitable solutions to life’s problems. You have to wonder what they do with their spare time: stealing dimes off small children, maybe, to teach them a lesson?
March 27th, 2014 at 12:10 pm
This is total politics by the republican federal bench. Why should some employer’s religious have an impact on my choice of health care?
March 27th, 2014 at 12:10 pm
I wish Republicans would all go jump off the cliff. I’m so tired of seeing STUPID being paraded across the news every day.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:12 pm
I agree with you Kent, I do wish they would spend some of that effort trying to do something useful.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:12 pm
Conservatives want Americans to shoot each other and then have no access to health care.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:14 pm
The republicans just make shit up when they are against something. Like their Manhattan Declaration which is riddled with BS, from the get-go.
“Many in the present administration want to make abortions legal at any stage of fetal development…” OK, name ONE person in this administration who supports the right to abort a 40-week fetus.
“[m]ajorities in both houses of Congress hold pro-abortion views.” Nonsense. Nobody holds a “pro-abortion” view. Many do hold pro-choice views. There’s a big difference.
“are very often in the vanguard of those who would trample upon the freedom of others to express their religious and moral commitments to the sanctity of life and to the dignity of marriage as the conjugal union of husband and wife.” Nobody is threatening the first amendment rights of anyone who wishes to express their religious and moral views. It’s when the civil rights of others are being trampled that’s the issue.
Nonsense from the nutcases, as usual. But there is a valid concern that the SCOTUS might take this idiocy seriously.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:16 pm
What if it were a Muslim business owner who did not believe in giving women health insurance without permission from her husband or an adult male member of her family?
Should a Christian Scientist business owner be able to deny health insurance to his employees because he does not believe in using medical intervention? This establishes a “slippery slope” where the freedoms of minorities will be increasingly infringed/denied due “religious” beliefs.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:17 pm
Hobby Lobby should have lobbied against the birth control mandate back in 2000, when the law was passed. Nothing is different about its inclusion in Obamacare except that employers with less than 15 employees must comply, if they offer insurance coverage for prescriptions, and there is no co-pay. But would Hobby Lobby have involved Republican President George Bush 14 years ago? Of course not.
This is not religious conviction. This is politics and sheer hypocrisy on the part of this corporation and the Religious Right, including the Catholic Church.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:17 pm
I don’t understand Christians’ arguments against abortion one bit. If they don’t believe in them, then they don’t have to have one if they happen to conceive a child out of wedlock. Stopping others’ right to choose is an act of religious persecutiion.
Basically if they had it their way it would be a case of ‘well since we don’t believe in abortion no one can have one.’ How does that follow in line with the teachings of Jesus that they hold so dear? I think they are all a joke, all being anyone trying to force their beliefs on others.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:18 pm
Victoria, since when have facts played a role in conservative thinking??
March 27th, 2014 at 12:18 pm
Victoria#9, What’s the old saying? “My mind’s made up. Don’t confuse me with the facts.”
March 27th, 2014 at 12:19 pm
Sandra#10, we already know the answer to that question. If the SCOTUS sides with the American Taliban then when a Muslim goes to assert his/her rights they will have a fit and launch another lawsuit forcing the Muslim to follow “christian” dictates.
Just as they have with school voucher programs in many states, Muslim, Buddhist, specific schools have been outright denied access to vouchers, that are supposedly for everyone. The American Taliban will not tolerate other religions!
March 27th, 2014 at 12:21 pm
Let’s cut it down to what it really is: A black moderate resides in the White House, racists like the Hobby Lobby family are having conniption fits
March 27th, 2014 at 12:22 pm
Shellie, #11 – That law was passed in December 2000, when Clinton was still President, Election Day had passed, and the SCOTUS had just awarded the election to Bush.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:22 pm
I suspect Hobby Lobby didn’t have an issue with a Republican President, as they didn’t even raise a peep after Bush was inaugurated and did nothing about the mandate. A Democratic President? Completely different story.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:24 pm
Dune#12, let me try to help you understand. What if followers of the Spaghetti Monster did not think that babies or toddlers were “human” until they reached the “fully formed” age of 4 years old. So in that case killing a 3 year old would be just fine because they aren’t human yet. So if they can’t sleep one night and keep you up and you get tired of it you could just kill them. Would you be ok with them doing this? How on earth could you dare to enforce _your_ view of morality on them?
Christians in general do not support abortion because it is murder. I do not understand how killing someone 8 months after conception is any different than 10 month after.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:25 pm
Brian#15, American Taliban aka ChristoFascists of America. I don’t understand why sensible Christians don’t put the kibosh on the kooks. The fringe characters are giving middle of the road Christians a very bad name.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:29 pm
Sue, Define ‘sensible christian’. Because if you mean the christians who act sensibly and don’t follow everything in the bible because it contradicts itself repeatedly, then they aren’t doing what the bible tells them.
If you pick and choose to do the things in the bible that make sense to you, you aren’t following what the bible says. It’s actually the lunatics from westboro baptist church who are the good christians because they follow the bible and do whatever it says.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:30 pm
Zach#19, Christians’ can believe that abortion is murder, I don’t think anyone has a problem with that. How is it justifiable for them to force that belief onto others, some of whom are not christians at all? Why do they think it makes sense to force their beliefs onto people who do not share in those beliefs.
If you are a christian, and conceive a child out of wedlock, simply don’t have an abortion, case closed. No one is being forced to have an abortion by making the service available. Who are any of you to tell me or anyone else what to believe or how to live my life?
March 27th, 2014 at 12:31 pm
Zach#19, Because we recognize babies as human beings when they have reached the stage of viability. Which is why killing an 8 month fetus is wrong, unless the mother would die unless that step was taken (and even then, because the fetus has viability, doctors would deliver the baby prematurely instead of aborting it). A three year old also has viability, and can exist outside the womb (and has been doing so for a few years).
You’re right in that killing someone 8 months after conception and killing someone 10 months after conception are both wrong. And both are very different from aborting a fetus 8 weeks after conception. Your comparison falls flat. But thanks for playing.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:32 pm
The Religious right agenda hasn’t changed from the days Reagan was in office. They will not be satisfied until Christian Doctrine is the law of the US, period.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:33 pm
How is it that “religious convictions” are called into play when it comes to carrying out acts of discrimination or outright bigotry, but they are NEVER mentioned in the context of “loving your neighbor as yourself.”
Gee, I wonder who came up with THAT notion or in, say, tithing 10% of your money to charity, or indeed doing ANYTHING that might help the poor, the widowed and the orphans?
March 27th, 2014 at 12:34 pm
Why can’t they keep their religion in the churches? It is their belief. I am sorry that their religious beliefs dribble out of their church/beliefs and then have to deal with the public and other people…. The religious right wants to deprive others of their beliefs also… Hmmm, what do they call that?
March 27th, 2014 at 12:35 pm
Craig, they are completely blind to the fact that they are just like the muslim extremists they purport to despise. Conservatives have a hard time understanding irony and hypocrisy, but execute it flawlessly.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:36 pm
Craig#24, you are babbling nonsense. Christian Doctrine has never been the law of the US, or haven’t you read the Constitution?
March 27th, 2014 at 12:37 pm
Chuck#26, we christians call it freedom.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:38 pm
Chuck#26, religion isn’t about church, it’s about living your life. You have an awfully poor (and completely false) idea of what religion is!
March 27th, 2014 at 12:40 pm
Now that “corporations are people too” they are claiming religious protection. I think we need to start taking them at their word. Mergers should be viewed like marriages.
The first step will be to decide which corporation is male and which is female We can’t have any of that “gay” stuff. Then of course there are the matters of divorce, multiple partners and children. Crimes committed by corporations should result in jail time.
That does create a problem. Does everyone at the company go to jail or is it only those on the board and higher ranking officers? The death penalty is going to be really dicey. We can just put that on the back burner for now.
What happens when a company acquires another company? Has the acquired company been killed? It no longer exists. Is it now a slave? That is illegal. I know these statements are ridiculous.
But this is what Hobby Lobby and others are claiming as a result of “citizens united”. Because they , as owners of the corporation, hold certain beliefs. Their corporation holds those beliefs and should enjoy the same First Amendment protections as any other person.
But corporations are not really people. They cannot do what people do and should not be allowed to masquerade as human beings. Beyond that the owners of any corporation are employers, they are paying for services rendered health insurance is part of that It isn’t a gift. It belongs to the employees and they can do what they want with it.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:40 pm
Their basic premise is flawed. Religious freedom means you are free to practice your own beliefs for yourself. It does NOT mean you are free to force everybody else to live according to YOUR religious beliefs.
And if you want to live in a society that enjoys religious freedom under our Constitution, you must respect the right of others to their own beliefs or lack of beliefs.
People of faith who engage in business must respect civil laws, and should not impose their religious rules on employees or customers. As the saying goes, if you can’t stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:43 pm
That’s true Nicholas#28, true, but that doesn’t stop the wacky right from claiming this is somehow a ‘christian’ country and try endlessly to redo the laws to conform to their distorted ideology.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:45 pm
Lila#29, Oh lawdy lawdy…Freedom to take away other’s freedom of beliefs…? Ahhh.. I gotcha! The Christian right is on a roll then! Nobody has freedom unless it agrees with their ideas…gotcha again! Wooohooo…. Hypocrites!
March 27th, 2014 at 12:46 pm
You dems are full of shit. The only freedom Hobby Lobby and Conestoga are asking for: the freedom, guaranteed by our Constitution, to practice their own beliefs. The contraception mandate violates that freedom.
Hobby Lobby and Conestoga aren’t asking to be able to forbid their employees from obtaining contraceptive and sterilization services, only pointing out that requiring the company to pay for those objectionable services is unconstitutional.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:47 pm
In the case of Hobby Lobby vs. Sebillius one mat take into account Hobby Lobby is not religious in that it is a company. Ownership, management and share holders are, but the corporation are not! “[F]reedom of religion and the rights of conscience” the Declaration claims, “are gravely jeopardized by those who would use the instruments of coercion to compel persons of faith to compromise their deepest convictions.”
Religious freedom is not being challenged here in any way. Religion is a human behavior and Hobby Lobby is a paper entity! Ownership, management and share holders are or can be religious, but the legal entity on paper is not. Hobby Lobby does not go to church or pray at night. People do. People are defined as Homo Sapiens and bleeds red blood. Absolutely no freedoms are being compromised!
March 27th, 2014 at 12:48 pm
Kerry #35 , no, they are asking to impose their beliefs on others,. not just to practice them, liar. They are looking to save a few bucks, that’s all, just hypocritical, lying, greedy assholes. And they are discriminating as well, which is against the law.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:51 pm
Kerry#35, have you read the issue? They also have included phrases wanting to limit what doctors can say to female employees… A bit over-stepping the bounds of individual privacy with one’s doctor, wouldn’t you say?
Need help with ED? Can’t talk to your doc about it! Oh, whoops! Men seem to be exempt from any of this! Wonder why?
March 27th, 2014 at 12:52 pm
Rodolfo#36, so, how do you reconcile your opinion with the fact that SCOTUS has ruled, explicitly, that a corporation owned by African-Americans can be considered an African-American corporation, such that no one is allowed to discriminate against the corporation itself?
Yet you deny the same protection from discrimination on the basis of deeply-held faith, even though such discrimination is unconstitutional? Sorry, that dog don’t hunt.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:55 pm
Kerry,#39, that never happened.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:57 pm
Kerry#39:
Discrimination based on a person’s skin color IS discrimination! Discrimination based on religious beliefs of a corporation is a falsity on steroids. Corporations do not go to church, pray or kneel to pay homage.
Religion is faith based and secular with beliefs of Homo Sapiens that there is a God. Corporations are a paper based creation owned, managed and operated as a whole and separate entity based on a state’s ability to allow it’s creation ON PAPER!
Minute somatic’s has been used by fringed extremists at the state level to punish and drive wedges between women and their God-given right to make their own choices about their bodies. The same is being done on this issue. I have never seen Exxon, Walmart or Dell Corporation in church praying.
I have seen women kneeling praying to God prior to making the decision to terminate a pregnancy created by rape! In that same light SCOTUS has moved too far to the right allowing states to make decisions that should standardized across the nation!
March 27th, 2014 at 12:58 pm
Kerry#39 – Please cite which case you are using as your example…case name and number.
March 27th, 2014 at 12:59 pm
Kerry, you are mixing personal beliefs with corporate responsiblility. Hobby Lobby is a corporation that sells toys etc. The “african american” corporation (I would like to see some documentation on that) is for government bidding only, same would hold true for a woman held corporation. Within the organization the laws are the same, same discrimination rules apply.
March 27th, 2014 at 1:00 pm
Michelle, although I didn’t see Zen Lill’s comment, I guess you are back on line.
March 27th, 2014 at 1:02 pm
Ditto, Robert. It isn’t official until Zen Lill, Howie, or Madam Butterfly oops, Social chime in.
March 27th, 2014 at 1:02 pm
Oh, shut up already, Edward. You’re just jealous.
March 27th, 2014 at 1:04 pm
You know what the most frustrating part about the Kochs’ attack ads is?
They’ve been proven false by independent fact checkers across the entire country time and time again.
But that doesn’t mean they aren’t working. We’re being outspent 3-to-1 in must-win Senate battlegrounds, and these attacks are completely erasing the leads that strong Democrats have held for months.
As it stands today, I’m not sure who will control the Senate next year.
But I can tell you this: The Koch brothers have spent $30 million — THIRTY MILLION — to tear down Democrats. If we fail to respond to their attacks now, it could cost us everything.
The Kochs are counting on you to sit back until it’s too late. Prove them wrong! We can’t wait another second to respond to their attacks.