A three-judge District Court in Washington, D.C. unanimously rejected the Northwest Austin Municipal Utility District No. 1’s (NAMUDNO) argument that it is exempt from Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA).
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Supreme Court Issues Rare Pro-Worker Rulings
In response to the Supreme Court's rulings in CBOCS West Inc. v. Humphries and Gomez-Perez v. Potter, People For the American Way Foundation president Kathryn Kolbert issued the following statement:
California Supreme Court Supports Marriage For All Citizens
The Supreme Court of California ruled that the state Constitution requires that all citizens be allowed equal marriage rights. People For the American Way Foundation President Kathryn Kolbert said, “This is a proud day for all Californians. No one should be excluded from marriage simply because they are gay or lesbian. Giving all people the freedom to marry is the American way.
People For Delivers 11,000 Petitions To Cal State Chancellor
People For the American Way Foundation delivered more than 11,000 petitions to California State University Chancellor Charles B. Reed. The petitions call for the university system to adopt a policy that accommodates employees who have religious or other objections to the state's "loyalty oath" by allowing them to sign the oath and attach an explanatory statement, the very same policy of the University of California.
Fired Teacher Calls on Calif State University to Change "Loyalty Oath" Policy
PFAW Foundation has taken up the case of fired Quaker teacher Wendy Gonaver, insisting that the California State University restore her to a teaching job.
The Specter of More Right-Wing Judges
Statement on judicial nominations by People For the American Way president Kathryn Kolbert:
"In the waning days of President Bush’s unpopular presidency, Senator Arlen Specter and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell are throwing temper tantrums over judges. They’ve even repeatedly threatened to shut down the Senate — which would hold up crucial legislation as the economy teeters on the edge of recession — if they don’t get their way.”
"Senators McConnell and Specter conveniently forget that over 300 of President Bush's judicial nominees have been confirmed — a greater percentage than were confirmed for President Clinton. More importantly, the longstanding and bipartisan Senate practice known as the 'Thurmond Rule' dictates that only non-controversial judicial nominees should be processed in the months preceding a presidential election.
"Senator Pat Leahy, who has gone far above and beyond what is required as committee chairman, announced that three additional federal circuit court nominees would be confirmed in short order. But that didn’t suit McConnell and Specter. They’re simply not interested in mainstream nominees that can win bipartisan backing — not when there are political points to be scored. Instead they’re playing to the base by pushing three highly controversial nominees.
"Senator Specter apparently learned a lesson four years ago when he nearly lost a primary to Patrick Toomey, the handpicked candidate of the Religious Right and Club for Growth. Ever since, Specter has been a pit bull for right-wing judges. That’s bad for Pennsylvania and bad for America.
"Senators Specter and McConnell will continue their pressure tactics around judges, but Senate Democrats must stand strong. The clock is ticking for President Bush, but it’s already run out for his controversial nominees."
People For the American Way has background information on the three controversial nominees being pushed by Specter and McConnell: Peter Keisler for the DC Circuit and Robert Conrad Jr. and Steve Matthews for the Fourth Circuit.
David Barton: Propaganda Masquerading as History
In 1987, God reportedly told David Barton, a one-time science teacher at a fundamentalist Christian school that grew out of a church started by his own parents, that he was “to search the library and find the date that prayer had been prohibited in public schools [and] obtain a record of national SAT scores … spanning several decades.” Predictably, the result of Barton’s unscientific study was to find a “correlation” between the alleged banning of prayer and a decrease in SAT scores, as well as increases in everything from alcohol consumption to crimes rates across the nation.
The New Face of Jim Crow: Voter Suppression in America
It is becoming much harder for many Americans to vote. The barriers range from unintentional to obvious to insidious, and they are proliferating across the nation. Racial minorities, students, the poor, and senior citizens are bearing the brunt of new rules and regulations that discourage and limit voting.
Ralph Reed: The Crash of the Choir-Boy Wonder
Religious Right power-broker Ralph Reed’s first bid for elected office crashed and burned July 18 week amid the stench of the Jack Abramoff corruption scandal. The former Christian Coalition front man’s hard-nosed and duplicitous tactics, which had catapulted him to right-wing political stardom, ultimately became his undoing. People For the American Way Foundation traces the rise and fall of the political wunderkind, who once said “I want to be invisible. I do guerilla warfare. I paint my face and travel at night. You don’t know it’s over until you’re in a body bag.”
The Patriot Pastors Electoral War Against the 'Hordes of Hell'
A new generation of Religious Right leaders is turning conservative churches into political machines for far-right Republican candidates with rhetoric that might make Pat Robertson blush. The new report by People For the American Way Foundation, NAACP, and the African American Ministers Leadership Council documents how high-level Republican officials in Ohio and elsewhere are embracing the self-proclaimed "Christocrats" and counting on a new wave of aggressive politics-from-the-pulpit to win elections.
Toxic Rhetoric from Culture Warrior Bennett
A Statement by PFAWF President Ralph G. Neas
On yesterday’s Salem radio broadcast of Bill Bennett's Morning in America, archconservative commentator Bill Bennett questioned the accuracy of a study suggesting that legal abortion has reduced the crime rate by reducing the number of unwanted children, and then said this:
Supreme Court End-of-Term Analysis: 2005-06 Term
The 2005-06 term was clearly a period of transition for the Supreme Court, as Chief Justice Roberts replaced Chief Justice Rehnquist, and two justices in a sense replaced Justice O’Connor Justice Alito took her seat on the Court while Justice Kennedy replaced her as the “swing” vote in a number of closely divided cases. And while a relatively large number of the Court’s decisions this term were unanimous (generally where the Court was able to agree on a narrow approach and avoid divisive issues as in the New Hampshire abortion case), the new justices clearly pushed the Court towards the right in several important, closely divided cases.
Flaws and Failings
In early 2004, Congress passed, and President Bush signed into law, an omnibus appropriations act that also created a new federally-funded school voucher program in the District of Columbia, the first such federally-funded voucher program in the country.
UN-dermined: The Right's Disdain for the UN and International Treaties
The influence of right-wing political groups on domestic policy is well-known, but they are equally active on issues pertaining to foreign policy and international affairs.
The Long Shadow of Jim Crow: Voter Suppression in America
This report lays out a historical review of more than a hundred years of efforts to suppress and intimidate minority voters following emancipation, through Reconstruction and the “Second Reconstruction,” the years immediately following the passage of the Voting Rights Act.
Undermining the Bill of Rights: The Bush Administration Detention Policy
Last week the Supreme Court of the United States heard arguments concerning the Executive Branch's right to unilaterally strip citizens of core constitutional rights. People For the American Way Foundation believes the government's "enemy combatants" and detention policies -- the heart of the case before the high court -- violate fundamental principles enshrined in our Constitution, such as the separation of powers and due process of law, and actually threaten progress in the war on terror and America's campaign for greater freedom and democracy around the world. Read the powerful new PFAWF report on these policies.
PFAW Report on William G. Myers III
Mining, coal and cattle industry lobbyist William G. Myers III is President Bush’s latest nomination to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Myers has amassed an incredible record of promoting environmental degradation and harm to the interests of Native Americans, both from his position as an industry lobbyist and from a short stint as solicitor for the Bush Administration Department of the Interior.
Confirmed Judges Confirm Our Worst Fears
This report shows that many of the George W. Bush's nominees that have already been confirmed to lifetime seats on the federal judiciary threaten the rights of ordinary Americans.
Voucher Veneer: The Deeper Agenda to Privatize Public Education
Today, governmental responsibilities in education and the strong connection that
Americans have with their public schools are being put to a serious test. A network of Religious Right groups, free-market economists, ultraconservative columnists and others are using vouchers as a vehicle to achieve their ultimate goal of privatizing education.
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