is a sickness care system. and we do a good job of treating illnesses and sickness when people can get to the places where they get the treatment. you know, i had a call yesterday from a person who suggested that they had gone to the emergency room of a two tal and were given tylenol and sat in a room for a good period of time and that when they inquired of the hospital why they had done that, they told them, well, it's because of the obamacare. that ork is causing this to happen -- that obamacare is

causing this to happen to you. this person has been on social security. before there was any obamacare and a way to pay for their health care and somebody took he opportunity to misrepresent obamacare. and i would hope that people would not -- especially people in the industry, people in the business would not do that. i also urge individual citizens to take more responsibility for our health. you know, there's still disparities in smoking, still disparities in drinking too much alcohol, still disparities in not having the appropriate diet or the exercise that is needed. and so we've got an attack on

several fronts. e never butt enough resource into the systems to make sure that they work properly and appropriately. we need to put more money into health education, health promotion, health awareness so that individual citizens have a greater understanding of what it is that they individually can do. people who know me know that i promote community health centers as the best way of providing health care, tory more than anything else we have come up with, with the exception of medicare and medicaid, in a long time. i still promote these institutions as being one of the best ways in local communities

of health care delivery where people themselves are involved. these centers provide jobs and work opportunities and help keep the money in the neighborhood so that the impact of poverty is not as great as it would be. so, mr. horsford, i want to thank you, i want to thank mr. jeffries and commend the caucus for raising the issue, promoting awareness and helping hopefully to develop a different level of understanding, health care ought to be a right and not a privilege. and i yield back the balance of my time. mr. horsford: i would like to thank the gentleman from illinois and again just to highlight as you talked about

the community health centers, important provision within the support. both rural and urban communities suffer from the disproportionate distribution of health care resources and access to care and community health care centers play an important component in overcoming that care, providing millions of health care services, particularly to people of color, access to high quality and affordable care in rural and urban areas. i know in nevada's fourth district, we have 14 health centers throughout my district. these are very important areas. but unfortunately under the sequester, mr. speaker, these are areas that are under attack because cuts to these health care centers are still being imposed because of the uncertainty of the sequester.

in my district and nevada health centers, looking at over $700,000 of reduction between now and september. elimination of positions and services for children and seniors at a time when people are sick and they need it the most. i would hope that again, we can work together with members on the other side to come up with solutions to replace the sequester and to fully fund community health centers, who are providing such good care to our citizens at this time. i would like to turn now, mr. speaker, and to recognize the gentlelady from texas, congresswoman sheila jackson lee. ms. jackson lee: thank you very much. and i thank you for this special order and express my appreciation to mr. horsford and to mr. jeverries for continuing

to educate our colleagues on extremely important issues and i'm delighted to join the congressional black caucus as it proceeds continuously to ensure that we advocate for those who cannot speak for themselves. i am -- i want to take up an issue that has struck home and is being confronted by many states, some of whom are in the south, and some are in other places throughout the nation. i was very pleased to stand with my fellow democrats and support the affordable care act. i could go through the journey of 2009 and 2010, when many of us spread out across the country and confronted misinformation through town hall meetings, and s dr controversy conflict he hadness and what

should be emphasized as the president's leadership on one single point that although health care was not listed, per se, in the constitution, it should be a constitutional right. and if you read the words or quote the words of the declaration of independence, we hold these truths to be self-evident, that we have certain inalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. one might argue that education and health care fall into those provisions of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. it was in the context of that framework and the original words of the constitution that as you open the book, that has the provisions of the constitution, the opening phrases indicate, that we have come together to create a more penth union. i think the affordable care act

was intended to intended to lift the votes of all people. interestingly enough, major hospitals across america are clammering for the passage of this legislation, which is to cut into the health disparity, because our hospitals across america were suffering from not being reimbursed in uncompensated care for those people who came without insurance. many of those, including african-americans who suffered in larger numbers from the difficulties with diabetes, for example, and texas, which is now in the eye of the storm, which is one of those states that has rejected the expansion of medicaid, which goes to the very point of increasing opportunities for those who suffer disparities so they can have access to health care and that is largely the problem here

in texas. federal funding for adult expansion far exceeds current local expenses for unreimbursed health care costs, having three years without any match whatsoever and then having the ability to have a very small match later on estimated that medicaid spanning would generate more than 231,000 jobs in 2016 and a reduction in the state's current unemployment from 6.1% to 4.3% and it would directly aid the disparities in diabetes, heart disease and hiv-aids, in partnership with our health clinics, which many states have seen expanded because of the affordable care act and now in my home state, my city, central care has now put more community health clinics in areas where disparities were severe and lies

were being lost. and benefits children as well. and i would like to cite some numbers here for my colleagues to indicate what we would benefit from by the expansion of medicare. unreimbursed health care costs for charity care in 2010 for an stimated $4.4 billion in unreimbursed expenses, we would be covering that. we get off the number one list. texas, number one ranking among states with the greatest uninsured residents. more than 6 million people compared with the national average of 15.7%. as i indicated, we would again eliminate the opportunity for low-income adults to be able to secure care. low-income adults don't get care, the children don't care. i'm suggesting that the rejection by governor perry

along with other governors to not accept medicaid has a direct increase on the unininsured but the numbers of those suffering from certain diseases who cannot get care and therefore, rather than have preventative care, allowing for doctor visits, the only time that we are able to secure health care for them is when they arrive in the cities and counties and the states emergency room where we see a surge in emergency room costs, health care costs and we eliminate the goodwill and good intentions of a very good bill that answers the question, are we attempting to form a more perfect union by establishing a framework of insurance for all hard-working americans, asian have different

d.n.a. and cultural differences that would lead them to have certain diseases than others. one of those particular diseases that impact the african-american woman and that is triple negative breast cancer, that pacts hispanic women and african-american women. that kind of diagnosis gives in this current phrase of time, a short and almost devastating diagnosis, one that is difficult to recover one, one that sees an increase in loss of life. i would make the argument to governors across the nation who have rejected the expanded medicaid as a budget issue, as a political issue, as a i'm going to stand up to the president

issue, you're wrong. you are absolutely wrong. because this is not a political issue. this is a life-and-death question. and i want to applaud governors like those in florida who certainly obviously may not welcome the applause, but i think it's important when people stand on principle on what is good for others, that they should be applauded. i applaud the governor of ohio and the governor of florida for moving forward on medicaid expansion. and i would say to my good friend who is leading this very important special order, that we need to begin to work with the president to find ways to substitute the rejection of the medicaid expansion so that individuals that are in these states who cannot speak for themselves, who in actuality have a head of state governor that is making a simple political discussion will not lose out, which is to give

comfort and to give health and aid to those who need health care. i finish on this note. i want to thank dr. christensen, because when we began to write this legislation, talking about the health care disparity, which was the premise of the fact of expanding health care and it would be a shame after all this work and passage of this bill that innocent persons in our respective states like texas, that could not benefit from something that could save lives. i thank the gentleman for yielding and i yield back. horse morse i thank the gentlelady. and we stand with you, your colleagues here on the floor, to continue to put pressure on leaders not only in texas, but throughout the country, who do not see the value of expanding medicaid. i'm fortunate in nevada, we have a republican governor, but he has agreed to provide the expansion for medicaid because he understands that in nevada, a

third of our population is currently uninsured and with the expansion of medicaid, that is going to make sure that fewer people turn up in the emergency rooms through uncompensated care which we as taxpayers pay for. this is an issue where republicans who understand the bottom line in terms of health care and costs, can work together with us to implement good policy for the american people. we will continue to work with governors who have not seen the light, but we believe this is a plan that will work very effectively. mr. speaker, how much time do we ave remaining? thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i'd like to turn to several new members of the 113th congress. i'm pleased and honored to be serving with them. i have learned so much from all e members here but

particularly have enjoyed getting to know the new members of the congressional black caucus, there's five new members. i'd like to recognize the gentleman from new jersey, the man with the great legacy, car roing the legacy of former -- the late congressman, congressman payne, but i'd like to recognize my good friend, the gentleman from new jersey, representative payne jr. at this time. mr. payne: thank you, mr. speaker. let me first thank my colleagues, congressman horse -- -- congressman horsford of for hosting tonight's special order, i'd also be remiss if i didn't acknowledge our loader on health issues in the congressional black caucus, dr. christensen. mr. speaker, i'd also like to

take the opportunity to acknowledge a young person on the floor, the gentlelady from tah, potentially the next -- nevada, i'm sorry. my goodness. from nevada. the young ms. horsford who is here tonight. this is truly unique quality time to spend with your daughter. there are numerous factors that contribute to the growing health disparities in new jersey's 10th district. poverty, inadequate access to health care and other inequalities. these -- a piecemeal approach to fixing them will not work. a conch rehencive approach that focuses on providing access to quality care for all, creating

good jobs that provide a decent living and increasing educational opportunities for low-income families is the only way to eliminate health disparities once and for all. even in the 21st century, health disparities start, especially in the african-american community new york which life expectancies are lower and infant mortality rates are higher. children of color who live at or below the poverty line are much more likely to have asthma, develop adhd, contract diseases because they cannot afford vaccinations. so we have a moral obligation to eliminate health disparities. our childrened and our future generations are depending on us. but narrowing health disparities that exist is not only good for our nation's health, it's good for our nation's pocketbook. research tells us that access to quality health care could

eliminate or reduce the on set of many chronic illnesses that disproportionately -- that have disproportionate health outcomes and add to the astronomical health care costs every year. yet many of my colleagues won't rest until they repeal obamacare. the fact is, the affordable care act will now provide health care to nine million african-americans who are uninsured or underinsured. obamacare ensures that everyone has access to life-saving care, such as preventive cancer screenings as well as coverage for children with pre-existing conditions. we know that obamacare has prevent -- obamacare's preventive services will help save lives and save money. so why are my republican colleagues so set on repealing it? we have to protect obamacare just like we have to protect medicare and medicaid. sequestration is a direct attack

on these already limited health resources. sequestration is an irresponsible across the board cut approach that will only contribute to the widening health disparity gap. because of sequestration, medicare has been cut by $11 billion. cancer patients are being turned away from clinics and cannot get access to life-saving treatment that they need to live. millions in funding have been cut from community health centers, furthermore, the effects are very real for the people in new jersey. in my state, nearly 4,000 fewer children will receive vaccines for diseases such as measles, mumps, rubella, tetanus, whooping cough, influenza, and hepatitis b. millions in cuts to grants that will help prevent and treat substance abuse.

new jersey will lose nearly $4.9 million in environmental funding that ensures clean air and clean water. we live in a first world country and you want me to go back home and tell my constituents that we cannot provide them clean water and clean air? this is absolutely insanity. and to make matters worse, the nug state department of health and senior services will be forced to provide 19,000 fewer h.i.v. tests to low-income communities. as a result, sequestration has directly -- is directly contributing to the spread of this fatal disease and in essence is providing a death sentence to those who are poor and can't afford the testing. so i say to my colleagues tonight, addressing health disparities is this -- is in both this country's moral obligation and financial imper ty. if we are going to truly

eliminate disparity well, must start by eliminating sequestration which does not -- does nothing but further the burden of our disdi stressed citizens. and finally we must maintain and strengthen our investments in health care access and resourcers for the disadvantaged populations that we serve. i just want to say in closing that just as medicaid and medicare and social security have become common threads and fibers of this great nation, one day obamacare will be looked at in the same manner. thank you and i yield back my time. mr. horsford: thank you to the gentleman from new jersey. i'd like to turn to the gentlelady from ohio, she has come to congress providing great perspective as a member on the financial services committee,

specifically, but also her background in higher education and working on a number of these issues, particularly on the need to create a work force that's trained and ready, particularly in the health care sector. i'd like to recognize the gentlelady from ohio, ongresswoman beatty. mrs. beatty: thank you. let me thank my freshman class colleagues mr. horsford and mr. jeffries in leading the congressional black caucus' special order tonight. tonight you are hearing a lot of statistics because it is so important for us to let america know that low income americans, racial and ethnic minorities, and other underserved populations often have a higher rate of disease. fewer treatment options -- higher rate of disease, fewer

treatment options, and reduced access to health care. so you will hear facts tonight. the facts are that african-americans have the highest rate of high blood pressure of all populations -- population groups and tend to develop it earlier in life. african-americans are twice as likely to have diabetes than whites. african-americans are twice as likely to die from stroke than whites. african-americans are more than twice as likely to die from prostate cancer than white men. and african-american women younger than 40 years of age are more likely to develop breast cancer than white women. nfants born to black women are 1.5 to three times more likely to die than those born to women of other races or ethnicities.

african-americans are estimated to be 44% of all new h.i.v. infections, despite representing only 13% of the u.s. population. these disparities are shocking and the congressional black caucus will not let us ignore them. in 2009, health disparities cost the united states economy $82.2 billion. we have to continue to bring awareness to this issue within our community, to develop strategies to eliminate these disparities in a cost effective way. on march 23, 2010, president obama signed the affordable care act which is a monumental step that helps us address these overwhelming statistics, health dispair -- health disparities

within our communities. we now have in place comprehensive health care reform that improves access to affordable care and guarantees that millions of our most at-risk citizens will be finally able to receive care. by improving access to quality health care for all americans, the affordable care act actually reduces health disparities. we share this information so citizens will know this law invests in prevention and wellness, gives individuals and families more control over their own care, and expands initiatives to increase racial and ethnic diversity in health care professionals by strengthening cultural competency training for all health providers and improving communications between providers and patients. as a life-long health care provider and

african-american woman, i know the importance of protecting access to affordable health care coverage for all americans, particularly those most in need. we need to continue to move forward with this legislation and initiatives that eliminate health disparities in america and i look forward to continuing to work with all my colleagues to improve our health care system. in order to have a successful nation, we must have a healthy nation. so this is my clarion call to all my colleagues, democrat and republican, to help us make progress on this critical issue. thank you and i yield back. mr. horsford: i thank the gentlelady from ohio. at this time i'd like to turn to the gentleman from texas, congressman veasey and thank him again for his hard work and contributions to this new 113th congress. mr. veasey: thank you and i'd also like to thank the gentleman from the sage brush state,

stephen horsford and from the empire state, hakim jeffries for all their work on this very important issue and also in talking about the importance of the affordable health care act and everything that it's going to bring to our country, and i want to talk about reserving this time to also talk about the health care rye sis that is ongoing in america today. unfortunately, obesity and the long-term effects associated with this condition are all too prevalent in our country. when you look at health statistics it's astounding to say the least. today in america, nearly 2/3 of adults and one in three children are overweight. in my home state of texas, we have one of the highest obesity rates in the country, according to the centers for disease control and prevention. 30% or more of texans are obese. the high obesity rate has contributed to the pervasiveness of die pee tees -- diabetes, heart disease and other chronic diseases that drain resources

from our health care system. increases in food intake, lack of physical activity and environments that make nutrition choices more difficult have all played a role in this obesity ep democrat ex. many children and adults do not have much control over the choices of foods they are able to get to. across this country, we are deserts, places where residents may not be able to get a nutritious food option because they don't own a car or have access to peculiar transportation or maybe don't live along walkable roads this forces families to outsource their daily eating to more accessible and sometimes cheaper alternatives such as fast food to get their daily nutrients. a steady diet of high fat, salt, has ledr-based products to more unhealthy lifestyles. diabetes is one of the more commonly known effects of being

overweight of obese. it affects roughly 8% of our population. the effects and complication of diabetes can include stroke, high blood pressure, blindness, kidney disease, amputation. studies have shown that people with prediabetes who lose weight or increase physical activity can prevent or delay type two diabetes, in some cases return their blood glucose levels to normal. each of these statist ricks -- statistics are greatly exacerbated when you look specifically at the minority population in our country, such as latinos and african-americans and our special needs population. when you break down obesity by race, african-americans have the highest rates of obesity at roughly over 35%, latinos a lit overall 28%, compared to the nonwhite -- non-hispanic white pop ration of 23.7%. individuals with disabilities

also have higher rates of obesity at 31.2%. 245 is why i introduced house resolution 195, designating may as health and fitness month. we need to correct our course as a country and get on the path to healthier lifestyles. the numbers are clear. we cannot sustain this unhealthy path we are on. not only is it cutting the lives of too many americans short but it's also costing our country. iabetes was estimated $140 billion. people obese, 14 times higher than those of normal weight. we can make healthy, nutritious choices and increase our physical activity. we must also not forget that this must be spread throughout all aspects of our population. while tremendous resources have

ombated the obesity epidemic among children, fewer has been used to address programs. let's declare a better food choice and more active lives. mr. horsford, thank you very much. mr. horsford: thank you to the gentleman from texas. i know we are wrapping up. i would like to recognize the co-anchor, my good friend and colleague from new york, mr. jeffries, who will provide a bit of an ending. mr. jeffries: thank you for co-anchoring this special order and to dr. christensen and thankful for all you have done for co-chairing. the affordable care act is the law of the lapped and the president has been elected and re-elected. let's move forward and address

the health care disparities that have been set forth so eloquently here today, come together and deal with the ailments that are facing the american people. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. members are reminded not to refer to persons on the floor as guests of the house. under the speaker's announced policy of january 3, 2013, the gentleman from texas, mr. gohmert, is recognized for 60 minutes. mr. gohmert: it's always an honor to come to the floor of the house of representatives. and especially when there's so much of great importance

occurring in our nation at this time. we do need health care reform and i appreciate my friends across the aisle talking about the importance of good health care. i've continued to hear people find that they are going to lose their health insurance, talking to employers, numerous employers this past week, who say, i want to compete and then notified that insurance is going up higher next year. heard from a small business employer this afternoon. i'm not going to be able to carry insurance. i love my employees and provide them good insurance, but come january, too many of my competitors have said they can't afford to keep the insurance for

their employees, so they're going to drop it and pay the $2,000 fine, because $2,000 is so much cheaper than the cost of health insurance. so, though, the reason we were told for pushing through the obamacare bill in a very, very partisan way was because there are 30 million or so who didn't have insurance and as some who have indicated there would be that many that would lose insurance as a result of obamacare. so i'm very concerned. i, like my friends across the aisle, want to make sure that people not necessarily have insurance, but have affordable health care. and i'm hearing from health care providers that because they're hearing from people who are no longer going to carry insurance for their employees, that it's

going to be more and more expensive to provide health care since they made money off of those who had insurance and without people having the insurance they have in the past as the president promised and has been made very clear, is not true, there will be more pressure on those who are paying for their health care to pay substantially more, which means there are more people who will not be able to afford and it will break the system. and of course with health insurance companies complaining that because of the things they're forced to cover, their insurance is going to necessarily have to go up. there will likely be insurance companies that will give up the

health insurance business and then the administration can complain, well, we thought we were going to be able to work with the greedy health insurance companies, but as it turns out, they've gone out of business, and doctors have abandoned their practices and retired early. so it looks like the government is going to have to take over the health care business. under obamacare, the federal government is already going to have everybody's health records, the most private, personal secrets between them and their health care provider will then be available to the federal government. and as i understand it, to general electric, who this administration, because of the great support of general electric for this administration and the cozy working relationship, they'll have the contract to take care of everybody's health care records. so it will be just delightful.

the tragic thing, just as the one lady asked during the town hall that the president had at the white house, when she asked about her elderly mother getting pacemaker, though she was of late years, i believe 95, and she's had the pacemaker for 10, 11 years, would the panel that decided who would get what treatment, would they consider the quality of life of an individual in determining whether or not they get a pacemaker or such things. and the answer the president ultimately gave is, let's face it, maybe we are better off telling your mother, maybe instead of a pacemaker, get a pain pill.

we approach the day where obamacare kicks in fully. there will be more and more seniors, it's not a death panel, but will decide who gets pace makers and who is perhaps too old and maybe lived a good life and beyond worthy of this administration's opinion of getting a new knee or a newspaper hip or back surgery, those kinds of things. so you'll have bureaucrats that are deciding those issues, all in the name of helping people with their health care, because anyone that seriously looks deeply into socialized medicine, the only way for socialized medicine to stay afloat is if you have people dying while they're waiting on a list to get their particular procedures. i mentioned on the floor, i

believe last year, about a report from england that they're hoping to reduce the length of time that patients have to wait for their procedures, whether therapeutic or diagnose gnostic diagnostic, reduce that wait down to 10 months. there are a lot of people that know have cancer, they have some problem, perhaps need a buypass and if they don't get it immediately, they don't make it for 10 months. so, that's where we're headed and i just hope and pray that it's not too late so enough people will put pressure on their members of congress and

especially the senate, to repeal obamacare and get us true health care reform, so that people can have the health care that they want to have and deserve to have and for those that are truly and only those that are truly chronically ill or poor and are not able to work and obtain affordable health care. then those people, as a caring society, would take care of. but what it appears, since obamacare cut $700 bill yoven from medicare -- billion from medicare, it is appearing to more and more seniors that this administration effectively took money for treatment that they would get and provided that to young healthier people who or could --

unless they have their employer provide it, if the employers weren't penalized by doing so, but whose employers will likely give up that insurance and we will see that as time goes on. seniors, though they were told by this administration and told by some people across the aisle that they wouldn't lose their doctor. well, many have already lost their doctor. people were told, if you like your insurance, can you keep it. and we have already found that's not true. so my heart breaks for people that are going to need health care in the next few years and are simply not going to be allowed to have it because the government will stand between them and the health care they need. i do recall seeing the president on video saying, some years

back, that he wanted single-payer health care, government wasn't taking over health care, but we couldn't get there in one step. and as you examine obamacare and you see it is going to bankrupt health insurance companies and going to drive doctors out of the profession, it's going to ultimately bring down the standard of care, we see that it as now set up the whole system to fail so that down the road, just as nment will say then senator obama said, we will get to a government-run health care, because, gee, the greedy insurance companies went bankrupt and the doctors got out of the business and the government is going to to

take it all over just like we hoped. and if there were ever any aspect of life that would ensure that the federal government could dictate people's lives to them, it would be health care. when the government controls all health care, the government will control all people in this country. because they will make the decision, basically, who gets what treatment, when we get to that point. and i'm hoping and praying we will repeal obamacare before that happens. going to require a new senate, obviously. well, another area that has had lot of government intrusion has been in the area of the first amendment. and so many people simply do not

understand and do not appreciate that the first amendment does say congresses shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof. so, we have had so many areas in which the government has moved forward to establish a has forced, like in e case of the major who shot -- killed 13 of our great service members at fort hood, he and his islamic faith, were forced upon people who needed counseling about having to go,

hristians who had to go to the middle east, to iraq, to afghanistan, to serve their country. they had to get counseling from someone who made very clear that his faith was everything and the so h -- his faith and islam overwhelmed him that not only must have it affected the advice that he gave to christians who were forced to see him, but also caused him to shoot and kill, even those he had not wounded with his words. . but there does seem to be a war on christianity in this country. certainly thearks founders anticipated, there should not be an establishment of religion.

but most important was that they not prohibit the free exercise of religion. i was in the army for four year, i had so many christian friends. i had friends that were not. but i had so many christian friends, and it seemed that especially around east texas where i grew up, many christians, those that came from christian backgrounds, also had instilled not only a faith in a love of country. because of just how blessed this country has been. i mean, because they understood that since most of the founders had this christian faith, over

alf, about 2/3 were even ordained christian ministers, of the signs of the declaration of independence, they wanted freedom of religion. so you could be an atheist, you could be a muslim, you could be a buddhist, whatever. you could believe in the power of crystals and nothing else. whatever it was. because it was the christian faith, if it is truly christian, then it provides everyone with freedom of choice. as god has given us. there are other religions that do not give freedom of choice. and we know as the islamic countries where we are not allowed even as members of congress to carry in a bible or to talk about our faith at all, they clearly prohibit the free

exercise of religion. even since this country, so many thousands of americans, vlade down their lives to bring eedom to afghanistan, this country gave afghanistan a constitution in which sharia law was the law of the land and the last report i saw indicated that the last jewish person had left afghanistan and the last christian, public christian church had closed. so there's no freedom of religion there there's no freedom of religion even in allied nations like saudi arabia. or even in egypt. not complete freedom of worship. even when egypt was more of an ally than a country that elected a muslim brotherhood member who

wanted to see the great satan, america, destroyed. this has been a country where anyone, any religious beliefs, would have freedom of religion. but when we get away from the judeo christian faith, whose otions founded this country, then there is no protection for all religions. so it was interesting to see, especially having been in the army, having had friends that made careers out of the military, so many that started with me stayed in for careers, this last week that headline says pentagon confirms

may court-martial soldiers who share christian faith this article, may 1, by ken plakowski, said the pentagon has released a statement confirming that soldiers could be prosecuted for promoting their faith. quote, religious prossly tai tyization is not permitted proselitization is not allowed within the defense department. this report follows the brite bart news report on pentagon appointees meeting with anti-christian extremist mikey wine steyn to develop court-martial procedures to punish christians in the military who express or their share -- or share their faith. from our earlier report, he's head of the military freedom foundation. that's a misnomer.

and says christians, including chaplains, sharing the gospel of jesus christ in the military are guilty of treason and of committing an act of spiritual rape as serious a crime as sexual assault. end quote. he also asserted that christians sharing their faith in the military are, quote, enemies of the constitution, unquote. being convicted in a court-martial means a soldier has committed a crime under federal military law. punishment for a court-martial can include imprisonment and being dishonorably discharged from the military. the article goes on, so president barack obama's civilian appointees who lead the pentagon are confirming that the military will make it a crime, possibly resulting in imprisonment, for those in uniform to share their faith.

this would include chaplains, military officers who are ordained clergymen of their faith, mostly christian pastors or priests or jewish rabbis, whose duty, since the founding of the u.s. military under george washington, is to teach their faith and minister to the spiritual needs of troops who come to them for counseling -- for counsel, instruction, or comfort this regulation would severely limit expressions of faith in the military even on a one-on-one basis between close friends. it could also effectively apolish the position of chaplain in the military as it would not allow chaplains or any service members, for that matter, to say anything that their faith -- about their faith that others say led them to think they were being encouraged to make faith part of their life. it's difficult to imagine how a

member of the clergy could give spiritual counseling without saying anything that might be perceived in that fashion. "world magazine" has an article entitled religious battle lines, posted may 2, 2013. in that article, by edward lee pitts. -- edward lee pitts, it says in a provocative piece at the huffington post written before his pentagon visit, wine steen who served in the u.s. air force, said we face incredibly well funded gangs of fundamentalist christian monsters who terrorize their fellow americans by forcing their weaponized and twisted version of christianity upon their helpless subordinates in our nation's armed forces, unquote. after the meeting, a column appeared in "the washington

post" largely sourced by wine steyn which portrayed him as heroically taking on and lecturing the pentagon brass. that piece in the newspaper's on faith section opened by suggesting that while defense secretary chuck hagel has pentagon budget concerns, quote, there are much more serious issue he is must deal with. religious prosyletization and sexual assault are at the top of the list. well if secretary hay fwal were alking about the type of prosyletization that's caused anyone to yell allah achbar and go about killing fellow members of the service, then i would certainly understand why secretary hagel would be concerned about that kind of

proselytizing. t for anyone to talk about dition and treason and christians basically acting in an unconstitutional way by expressing or utilizing their freedom of religion, for him to promote the prohibition of the free exercise of religion would encouraging treason and it would be so very unconstitutional. so it's quite interesting when we find people who are educated beyond their ability such that they can read the constitution and not understand the second clause that does not allow the

prohibition to the free exercise of religion. we got an explanation from d.o.d. and air force on what they really meant after people started objecting to this. and the air force statement said this. quote, when on duty or in an official capacity, air force members are free to express their personal religion -- religious beliefs as long as it does not make others uncomfortable. proselytizing, inducing someone to convert to one's faith goes over that line. leaders must avoid the actual or apparent use of their position to promote their personal religious beliefs to their subordinates or to extend preferential treatment for any religion. this is a matter

from fox news, this says, lieutenant colonel tingley's last sentence is troubling. an air force officer was told he could no longer keep a bible on his desk because it may appear that he was condoning a particular religion. air force officers must be allowed to live out their faith in a way that is consistent with their faith. if the bible is important, then an air force officer should be able to have one on his desk. air force officers should be allowed to attend chapel, lead prayers, even speak in chapel and lead bible study, it is consistent with their faith. this statement does not help. what does, quote, as long as it does not make others uncomfortable, unquote, mean? who decides? how much of this policy did

mikey wine steyn influence? -- weinstein influence? these are good questions because if the standard is that you may be allowed to express your religious beliefs unless it makes someone uncomfortable, then that is basically a prohibition of anybody's freedom of religion if they are a christian. le mr. wine steen doesn't -- mr. wine steyn doesn't seem -- mr. weinstein doesn't seem concerned about anyone yelling allah achbar and killing 13 other service members as an expression of religion. he doesn't seem to have found that treasonous or problematic. but some of the rest of us do. common sense that

and reason will win out, especially considering the historic nature of our constitution. and those who parrot the words separation of church and state as if they are in the constitution, i find, don't often know that those are not in the constitution and are not aware that thomas jefferson coined that phrase in a letter to the danberry baptists where he also coined the phrase wall of separation. and and this is a president who's been confirmed by secular and ven the congressional resource folks that jefferson most sundays when he was here in washington