'Hate crimes' bill likely to pass House, thanks to Dems.
Chad Groening - OneNewsNow - 4/29/2009 6:00:00 AM (see link above)
A Republican Congressman who attempted to derail the controversial "hate crimes" bill with numerous amendments says, in the end, the Democrats simply had the votes to ram it through the Judiciary Committee.
The Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act would add gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, and disability to the list of protected categories under federal hate crimes law. Proponents of the bill claim that Christians and others who speak out publicly against homosexuality are not threatened with the same type of prosecution that criminals would face for committing acts of violence against homosexuals and transgendered individuals.
But Judiciary Committee member Steve King (R-Iowa) says that is simply not true. "Don't believe what they say; read the bill. Think what happens. What's their agenda? Their agenda is to shut down preaching of faith from the pulpit," he contends. "Their agenda is to force public approval of the homosexual agenda. And destroying marriage nationally is the follow-up piece of this."
King explains that one of the amendments he introduced would have barred pedophiles from special protection under the hate crimes statute. He finds it unbelievable that Democrats threw out that amendment.
"I just think that tells you that this breaks down the logical approach to law," King adds. "If we move away from punishing overt acts to punishing thoughts -- which is what this legislation does -- heaven help us [because] we've crossed a line from which it will be awfully hard to ever get back again." If the bill passes the full House this week, King believes it will have a chilling effect on free-speech rights. He says the bill could be approved by the House as early as today and fears the Democrats have the votes to accomplish it.
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