FRC Monthly Support Newletter
September 1994
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October 11, 1994
Dear Friend:
You can feel the tension building in Washington as the days draw us nearer to
another election. Next month, on November 8, you and I, as well as millions
of other Americans, will have the opportunity to cast our votes. I hope you
will exercise that right on election day and take your children with you so
they can come to understand this precious liberty, too.
If the pollsters are correct, voters will arrive at the voting booth in an
angry mood this year. In political terms, anger usually translates into
"change." To the politicians and bureaucrats who run this city, change
is a dirty word. To an incumbent seeking re-election, change can even
mean having to look for another line of work.
What makes this situation all the more remarkable is the fact that the public
mood is sour even after so much political change has already occurred.
Our current Congress is composed of 14 new Senators, 110 new members in the
House and two new delegates. The results of the 1992 elections, from the
White House to the halls of Congress at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue,
represented one of the most dramatic political sea changes in U.S. history.
For the first time in over a decade, the Senate and the House as well as the
White House have been placed in the hands of the same political party.
Unfortunately, much of the change coming out of Washington has been radical
and anti-family. To briefly illustrate:
- The Clinton Administration continues to push behind the scenes to permit
homosexuals to serve openly in the military. Believe it or not, on September
9, the Defense Department's new gay and lesbian employees' group, GLOBE,
sponsored a "celebrate diversity" day. Senior officers were urged to sit
through films such as "On Being Gay," a grossly biased account of the origins
of homosexuality. It is hard to imagine a more perverse use of our
hard-earned tax money!
- With several strokes of his pen, President Clinton undid the
anti-abortion policies I helped implement when I worked for President Ronald
Reagan. At last month's population conference in Cairo, Vice President Al
Gore led a U.S. delegation that included Congresswoman Pat Schroeder and
Jane Fonda as well as private advisers such as feminist leader Bella Abzug.
Pro-lifers were not welcomed. Some were actually harassed.
- Women will be exposed to combat in unprecedented numbers. The Clinton
Defense Department has re-classified 250,000 assignments. Women historically
have been exempted from serving in dangerous positions. Some 80 percent of
all military jobs are now gender-neutral. The changes have been so dramatic
that many legal analysts believe that the Supreme Court will reverse its 1981
ruling and subject women to any future draft. Dr. James Dobson and I have
been warning the public about this possibility for years, and now the legal
experts are admitting it is likely.
Obviously, change hasn't been in short supply, but it certainly hasn't been
the kind of change American families were hoping for. That's why 69 percent
of Americans are telling pollsters they believe the nation is headed in the
wrong direction! That's why only 14 percent of Americans in another poll say
they trust Congress to "do the right thing." That's why pundits at both ends
of the political spectrum are predicting that the 1994 Congressional
elections could sweep out dozens of incumbents!
Having been in Washington for more than two decades now, I am watching these
developments with particular fascination. An angry, change-seeking public
clearly senses that something is deeply wrong in the land they love. Despite
sustained economic growth and the virtually unchallenged leadership role of
the United States in world affairs, Americans are worried.
FRC is both nonpartisan and nonprofit, so I will have to leave it to the
columnists and consultants to analyze who will rise to the surface in today's
boiling political waters. But this I can and must say: the sense that
something is terribly off course in our country today, despite our economic
and military prowess, is profoundly on-target. This is a time of cataclysmic
change -- a time of agonizing, slow-motion, nerve-wracking challenges to
family, to faith, and to freedom.
The new Congress will be pressed by the same radical special interest groups
to move our country in a direction that we must resist. Some of the battles
ahead include:
The Employment Non-Discrimination Act
- This bill, the vanguard of the homosexual agenda, has already had
hearings in this Congress. Passage of this Act would bar employers from any
job-related action against an employee because of their sexual preference or
conduct, even when that conduct violates state law, an employer's conscience,
company policy, or all three. FRC was among a handful of groups to testify
against the bill. It's being ramrodded by Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass) and
Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass), an avowed homosexual. If adopted, this sweeping
bill will most likely be followed by others.
The Reproductive Health Equity Act.
- Vice President Gore insisted over and over last month that the term
"reproductive health" in the Cairo population document did not imply
abortion. But he must know that's exactly what it means in U.S. law. Passage
of this bill would, among other things, restore taxpayer-funded abortions
under Medicaid. The 103rd Congress tilted strongly in a pro-abortion
direction, but the votes have not been there to force taxpayers to pay for
the destruction of unborn children. Federal funding of abortion will increase
the death toll (already a horrific 1.5 million a year). And taxpayer
subsidies make all of us complicit in the violent destruction of innocent
human lives.
The Office of Adolescent Health.
- During 1994, Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders advanced her radical ideas
for new federal anti-pregnancy initiatives directed at teens. She was backed
by a White House task force that endorsed "abstinence-plus," the notion that
sexual abstinence and condom distribution programs can operate successfully
in tandem. Because you and thousands of others wrote and called, Congress did
not abolish abstinence funding this year. Look for this issue to return in
1995 with renewed vigor. Look as well for Dr. Elders to return to the health
policy scene with more of her crazed public outbursts. Her irresponsible
statements even have members of the Clinton Administration dreading what they
call "Joycelyn eruptions."
Welfare Reform.
- Deferred because of the health reform debate, this issue goes to the
heart of whether Congress understands the magnitude and implications of
family breakdown in the United States. A new Census Bureau report points out
that just over 50 percent of American children today live with both
biological parents, a record low. Children who grow up lacking "the ties that
bind" often lack larger ties to the community. Juvenile crime, exploding in
both quantity and ferocity, is just one result. Today in the United States
some 70 percent of our high schools have installed metal detectors.
Washington can pass pork-filled crime bills all it wants, but unless we deal
with family breakdown and the flight from virtue, our streets will never be
safe.
I do believe that the American people are thirsting for a new direction. If
nothing else, they have tried relativism and moral anarchy and found that
when moral absolutes and reliable standards of right and wrong go out the
window, so too does our safety.
Will the changes we see resulting from next month's elections point
the way home? Whatever the immediate outcome, FRC is preparing for the public
policy debates of 1995. I met recently with my senior staff to craft a
strategic plan that will assist FRC in winning these debates as we represent
families like yours. For example, last year, on the eve of the health care
reform debate in Congress, FRC brought aboard one of the most seasoned
analysts available to help develop our own standards for family-friendly
health reform. His work has been a great asset.
We plan to fight for tax relief for hard-pressed families, too. FRC has
already developed several family tax cut proposals and we have been working
hard behind the scenes to place them on the agenda in 1995. FRC's strength
lies in its ability to harness the most effective arguments and the best work
of acknowledged experts to underscore the truth about the family and public
policy. If we are to make a mark on the ideas that will guide the welfare and
tax relief debates, we must have the right people in place and ready now.
As you might imagine, our Government Relations staff has been stretched to
the limit as the range of issues covered by FRC has steadily grown. Members
of Congress are turning to us more and more frequently as a reliable source
for current information and analysis from a profamily perspective. The
Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress, which prepares
reports at the request of Congress, regularly includes FRC materials among
its key references on family policy questions. Congressional committees often
rely on our testimony. In the coming months, FRC plans to bolster its
Government Relations staff by bringing in an individual with in-depth
knowledge of sanctity of life issues and adolescent health. Promoting
abstinence and adoption will also continue to rank high among FRC's
priorities.
FRC has plans to continue expanding its information and educational
outreach. The generosity of friends like you has supported the expansion of
our efforts. Your gifts have enabled FRC to hire necessary staff and develop
new initiatives to communicate the pro-family message. Because of the
critical challenges currently facing families and the anticipated onslaught
of anti-family activity, however, we must do more.
As my staff and I have reviewed the effectiveness of the Council's
publications and projects, we have targeted numerous areas for improvement in
the months ahead:
Family Policy
- We plan to upgrade our research-oriented bimonthly publication to a
new format with expanded coverage of family issues.
Washington Watch
- My daily 90 second commentary, now heard on some 100 radio stations
coast-to-coast, will be expanded to reach an even wider audience.
Advertising projects
- We plan to build on the success of past advertising campaigns, which have
boosted fatherhood, promoted the virtues of abstinence, and defended the
rights of religious Americans to participate fully in the political
process.
As you can see, FRC has a list of ambitious goals. I believe our vision for
defending the family must be as well thought through as that of the many
groups which seek to undermine our efforts. FRC is strategically positioned
to impact the public policy debate, but it is your support and financial
contributions that enable us to leverage our efforts. With your help, I
believe we can move closer to the fulfillment of our vision. From the bottom
of my heart, thank you and God bless you for all you do on our behalf.
- Sincerely,
- Gary L. Bauer
- President
P.S.
May I ask a special favor from you this month? As our visibility has
increased, FRC's staff has become the target of an increasing number of
threats, harassing calls and obscene letters. I have long since grown
accustomed to the efforts of radicals on the other side who try to silence us
through intimidation. For some of our younger staff members, however, the
experience of receiving expressions of hatred can be unnerving. Please pray
for a shield of strength and protection over the dedicated team we have
assembled.
No matter what the elections bring, I promise you that FRC will never
surrender in our efforts to defend family values. We will never head for the
tall grass when the going gets tough. With your help we will continue to
fight the good fight, finish the race and keep the faith.
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FRC Monthly Support Newsletter provided by courtest of Mark Conty.
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