now yesterday we told you about the supreme court ruling in favor of the what the westboro baptist church after a long battle with the family of a fallen soldier. now even though the westboro baptist are saying offensive comments the supreme court backed the church saying of their protected on the under the first amendment of free speech now i already gave you my opinion yesterday fully support the freedom of speech but damn it sometimes you really wish people like the phelps family didn't get to take advantage of it and you hate but comedian brookstone is urging me to change my mind so let's hear your reasoning rick. thanks a lot to the westboro baptist church when the supreme court decision allowing them to continue protesting funerals with their god it's agenda well that's right that's many people it's a courtroom ever the speech must be protected to have a free society i recently interviewed nathan who is the son of westerly or fred phelps nate escape the family the little mini he turned eighteen i asked him if he felt this fall this homophobia might be explained by shame over a gay s

pains in the opinion to talk about how the speaker might be viewed as quite offensive, the westboro baptist church in the form of fred phelps, the pastor of this small kansas-based family-run church that's known for picketting military funerals. but the court pained to say, we don't like his message necessarily but he has every right to do it. gwen: let's remind people he pickets because he said it's an anti-gay issue. >> basically an anti-gay issue. a couple different points of view that actually chief justice john roberts cited in his opinion that said are part of the public debate. he has issues with what he said -- fred phelps in his westboro baptist church have issues with tolerance for homosexuality in america, particularly in the military. he also talks about the clergy, catholic clergy and pope scandal, the priest scandal, all of the signs say things like, you know, pope in hell, thank god for dead soldiers. so they're quite offensive. but i have to say their work is not just at military funerals. they have protested at elizabeth edwards' funeral. they wanted to go to the funeral of the 9-

host: of people want to learn what the westboro baptist church, is a website question of guest:godhatesfags.com and follow me on twitter at margie phelps. host: the lawyer for the westboro baptist church, the daughter of reverend fred phelps. thank you for being on "washington journal." we will take a few more calls about this issue and then congressman jim ran will be here, we will talk about budgeting matters. there are some articles i want to get through in case you might be interested in some other news going on. this is from the huffington post this morning. john edwards hires greg greg in endeavored to ward off indictments. president barack obama's former lawyer has signed on to help john edwards had he tries to ward off criminal indictments over payments to his ex mistress. this was first reported by npr. this is from "washington journal" this morning. ohio senate votes to restrict public unions. nearly votes to approve a sweeping bill that would narrow the power of public employee units to negotiate contracts. the vote came as union supporters protested the measure for a second day on t

before we talk with one of the leaders of westboro baptist church, fox news correspondent james rosen tells how we got here. >> reporter: at funerals and other solemn events across the country, members of the westboro baptist church showed up to wave patently obnoxious signs and chant protests against society that's grown too tolerant of sins. many of the parishioners are relative of founder fred phelps and while the action are widely condemned, the supreme court ruled that the protest outside the 2006 funeral of slain marine matthew snyder who was not gay, was constitutional. >> our team's reaction is thank god, praise his name. the secondary reaction is nothing has changed except this. this case put a megaphone to the mouth of this little church. >> reporter: chief justice john roberts wrote the court 8-1 opinion citing the need to protect even hurtful speech to ensure we don't stifle public debate. for albert snyder, the ruling reopened the wound of his son's death. >> we found out today that we can no longer bury our dead in this country with dignity. >> reporter: in the dissent,

ward off members of the westboro baptist church. that is the antigay group from kansas, infamous for protesting at soldiers' funerals. they had threatened to protest the play, which is a true story about the 1998 murder of a young gay student in wyoming. the folks from the westboro baptist church never ended up showing up. >>> five years after a tragic accident on the train tracks, the city of san jose is making major safety changes. over the years, it's become an unofficial railroad crossing, you see on the map. it's on the city's south side. people cross the tracks illegally at blossom hill road and monterrey highway all the time, but not everyone has made it across safely. you may remember back in 2005 a woman with three young children tried to cross the tracks on the way to a fast food restaurant. she misjudged the distance of the train and a 2-year-old was killed. yesterday, there was a ground breaking for a new $10 million bicycle bridge. that will span the tracks, as well as monterrey highway. >> the traffic across the street

and 2006 as friends and family were bearing the marine members of the westboro baptist church of topeka kansas showed up to inform the world that his dad was god's punishment for this nation's tolerance of homosexuality. it held up signs that said, thank god for dead soldiers, and god hates the u.s.a. and thank god for 9/11. the core cause father sued members of the church, for among other things, at inflicting emotional distress. the jury awarded him $11 million and reduced, but the appeals court threw out the verdict and this week the supreme court ruled 8-1 that as hateful as the speech was, it is nevertheless predicted by the first amendment. as "the wall street journal" put it the other day, even jerks are protected by the first amendment. do you agree? >> the court agreed. remember the word and that the? -- empathy. you have candidate for mr. snyder but the course job is not necessarily to have empathy, but to say what the rules are that govern the country. essentially what they said it is the first amendment is not for speech that you agree with, but for the fringes. and if you a

elizabeth taylor died yesterday so naturally the westboro baptist church announced plans to pick up her funeral are due phelps these folks are. and for the church said that elizabeth taylor has now joined michael jackson heath ledger in hell do you realize how it was so full of talented people go ahead show up with a picket signs does anyone really even care anymore it's just all very very ugly. coming out over two hundred doctors are prepared to pack their medical bags and head to vermont at a new health care policy is put into effect i'll explain why they're so heated up in tonight's they are take. this number given that we had an apartheid regime right here. i think the bombings even funny well. we never got the that says they're going to keep him safe get ready because you give them their freedom. you know sometimes you see a story and it seems so for like sleep you think you understand it and then he'd slip something else if you're see some other part of it and realize that everything you thought you knew you don't know i'm sorry welcome is a big issue. for . for. another ou

and i think everybody agrees when i say that pretty much nobody out there is a fan of the westboro baptist church case they're out of the loop the church out of topeka kansas was founded by the phelps family and they spread a very hateful message out of the most inappropriate places they can find take a listen whereas the age that they claim comes from god. me to warn neighbors this is taking place but neighbor me the purpose of this is not very anybody is to condemn the world like no it is. now the group has slogans like thank god for dead soldiers they say that their deaths are a punishment for america's acceptance of homosexuality and they don't hide these thoughts they took their protest to a funeral service for matthew snyder who died in iraq in two thousand and six the family many others up a theater of felt that this protest was so inappropriate they took the case to court and now after passing through federal courts the case of snyder versus phelps finally reached the hands of the supreme court and their decision in an eight to one ruling the justices decided in favor of the bout this sid

was trying to track down members of anonymous and they also responded to the crazies of the westboro baptist church by taking down their web site while being interviewed on the david packard show. you can. try to do some. things. so hold on i am getting a thumbs up from my producer that there has been a message posted that appears to be from anonymous downloads that westboro baptist church talked. to mr are you taking responsibility for this you know we just did it right you know it was for a circuit. of pretty good got it and those are just a few examples but it turns out that there is a civil war if you will between the current members of anonymous and former members of the group we now call themselves backtrace security according to back traits the ex and honest members the current have hers have moved away from their initial the purpose of anonymous which was lighter more fun loving with nihilistic roots but now they're happy to seem to pursue political causes so backtrace is doing their best to stop the current members by. revealing their true identities and honors spawns anonymous is trying t

the court sided with members of the tiny westboro kansas baptist church who has protested at hundreds of military funerals and claimed that u.s. war deaths were god's punishment for the nation's acceptance of gay rights. when they showed up at the funeral of matthew snyder, a marine killed in iraq, they carried signs that said "thank god for dead soldiers" and "god hates you." that outraged snyder's father who sued the group for emotional distress. but today the supreme court said the group demonstrated in a public place on issues of public concern and obeyed local laws, keeping them 1,000 feet from the church. writing for eight members of the court, chief justice john roberts said speech is powerful and can stir people to action, move them to tears of both joy and sorrow, and as it did here, inflict great pain, but he said the government cannot react to that pain by punishing the speaker. today matthew snyder's father albert reacted with disgust. >> eight justices don't have the common sense god gave a goat. we can no longer bury our dead in this country with dignity. >> reporter: bu

. >> could people see this as the court sanctioning the message of the westboro baptist church? >> well, that's not certainly not what the court said it was doing. it said that what it was doing, the chief justice said that sometimes even hurtful speech has to be protected because if not, it risks stifling public debate on public issues. >> mark sherman is with the associated press. thank for joining us today. >> you are quite welcome. >> now here is the supreme court oral argument from october. the court ruled today the westboro baptist church has the right to hold anti-gay protest near military funerals. the court also dismissed a $5 million judgment from the father of a dead marine. this is an hour. >> your argument first today in case 09751 snyder versus phelps. mr. summers? >> mr. chief justice, may it please the court, we are talking about a funeral. if context is ever going to matter, it has to be matter in the context of a funeral. mr. snyder simply wanted to bury his son in a private, dignified manner. when the respondenting behavior made that impossible, mr. snyder was

. >> reporter: the phelps and their tiny westboro baptist church picketed the funeral of u.s. marine matthew snider, killed in iraq in 2006. snyder's father sued. >> i think it's an insult to every veteran out there that has served this country. >> reporter: the supreme court ruled the phelps are protected by the first amendment, right to free speech. chief justice roberts wrote for the majority. westboro may have chosen the picket location to increase publicity for its views and its speech may have been particularly hurtful to snyder. that does not mean that its speech should be afforded less than full first amendment protection. eight of the nine justices agreed. >> liberals and conservatives have united in this, on the side of free speech. >> reporter: justice samuel alito dissented, saying the phelps intentionally inflicted pain on the snyders. our commitment to free debate is not a license for an attack on matthew and his family at a time of acute emotional vulnerability central to the church's well practiced strategy for attracting public attention. now the phelps and th

justices ruled 8-1 yesterday in favor of westboro baptist church. that kansas-based group makes headlines for demonstrating outside funerals of fallen u.s. servicemembers claiming that god is punishing the military for the nation's tolerance of homosexuality. the court ruled that the first amendment protects even hurtful speech. >>> loyalists to moammar qaddafi are going on the counteroffensive in eastern libya now controlled by rebels. the target, brega, was an airstrip that belongs to an oil complex on the mediterranean coast. in the nearby town of ajdabiya, 14 people have died in fighting between rebels and government forces. in the u.s., some members of congress are calling for a no- fly zone over parts of libya. but the obama administration says the u.s. cannot rush into a move so severe. >>> 5:13. it hasn't happened since the dinosaurs disappeared. could the earth be facing another mass extinction? >> a long time ago. plus, what the super bowl our last days of pro football for a while? the major deadline looming for the nfl and what it means f

host: time for two more calls for our guest, margie phelps, from the westboro baptist church. topeka, kansas. caller: how are you this morning? host: good. caller: i have -- for as long as they have been around. hello? host: we are listening. caller: there are a lot of things i did not agree -- as long as somebody wants to do whatever they want to do and leave me out of it and everybody else out of it, i don't really care. but i know one thing -- and i have lost friends of this thing -- one thing i will say. they pick it. i have been around them a lot. not to support their group, but just watching. i have never seen them carry a gun when they are picketing. . have never seen them violenct and i have seen a lot of people violent against them. they have been very peaceful. and i am so glad the supreme court -- because i was worried the supreme court would shut them down. like in minnesota and other places -- the whole thing would be going down a tube. even though i did not agree with what they are saying, i always believe that they have a right as long as it is peaceful. host: g

. >> could people see this as the court sanctioning the message of the westboro baptist church? >> while that is certainly not what the court said it was doing. it said that, what it was doing, the chief justice said that sometimes even hurtful speech has to be protected because if not, it risks stifling public debate on public issues. >> mark fuhrman is with the "associated press." thanks for joining us today. >> you are quite welcome. >> now we hear is the supreme court oral argument from october. the court ruled today the westboro baptist church has the right to hold protests near military funerals. the court also dismissed a 5 million-dollar judgment from the father of a dead marine. this is an hour. >> we will hear arguments first today in case 09751 snyder versus phelps. mr. summers? >> mr. chief justice, may it please the court? we are talking about a funeral. if contest is ever going to matter has to matter in the context of a funeral. mr. snyder simply wanted to bury his son and a private unified manner. when the respondent's behavior made that impossible, mr. snyder wa

supreme court says the westboro baptist church can protest at military funerals. justices said the first amendment protects, quote, even hurtful speech. that group demonstrates outside funerals of fallen u.s. service members. >>> and astronauts aboard the international space station are getting a break today. nasa says it is well deserved following yesterday's successful spacewalk. this is the final voyage for the space shuttle discovery. >>> time now 6:20. actor mickey rooney opened up to congress this week about elder abuse. the movie star spoke before the senate yesterday urging them to pass legislation to protect the elderly from abuse. rooney says he has been a victim until recently. the 90-year-old has obtained a restraining order against his stepson. he claims the man denied him medication and food, often bullied and threatened him, as well. rooney says he was a prisoner in his own house. >> even when i tried to speak up i was told to shut up, and be quiet, you don't know what you're talking about. >> rooney says he waited for years before coming forward. t

. >> reporter: the message from the westboro baptist church is hateful.thank god for dead soldiers." "god hates fags." church members believe god is killing all american soldiers because the country tolerates homosexuals. >> we are trying to warn you to flee the wrath of god, flee eternal destruction. >> reporter: but no one paid much attention until the church started taking its message to soldiers' funerals. matthew snyder died in iraq. his father told cbs news last fall that the protests at matthew's funeral stole his last moments with his son. he sued the church for emotional distress and got a $5 million judgment. >> somebody said to me, you know, "$5 million. i bet you... i bet you'd give it up to have matt back." i would give it up just to say good-bye. >> reporter: but the supreme court said in an 8-1 decision that the church doesn't owe snyder a dime. chief justice john roberts said the first amendment protects even hurtful speech to ensure that we do not stifle public debate. now, justice alito dissented. he said the protests don't add anything

the westboro baptist church members claim that u.s. military deaths are god's punishment for the nation's tolerance of homosexuality. >> feelings hurt over words is not enough to shove up to speech. >> they may have an official legal right to say it but that doesn't mean you need to do it. >> karen meredith from mountain view lost her son army lieutenant when he was killed in iraq almost seven years ago. she says she has encountered the protesters when she visits her son's grave at arlington national cemetery. >>> today former house speaker newt gringrich is expected to formally say that he is considering a run for the presidency next year. the spokesman says gringrich won't set up an exploratory committee yet because that would make him a legal candidate. he says gringrich and his wife need to tie up some loose ends with their businesses before the georgia republican can take that step. gringrich left congress in 1999. >>> well, talks could begin today to find a common ground between senate democrats and republicans on a long-term spe

the westboro baptist church is promising to protest the ceremony most likely because of taylor's humanitarian work against aids. the group has been known to protest funerals of gay military service members. recently the supreme court upheld the church's first amendment right to protest. >>> well, there is disappointment among gay rights supporters this morning over a critical court ruling. a federal appeals court rejected an appeal to let same sex marriages resume in california while the court reviews the constitutionality of proposition 8 which bans same sex marriage. the court did not give a reason for the stay. >>> the bad weather is washing away plans for an outdoor concert starring pop star britney spears. it was announced this weekend's free concert will be moved to bill graham civic auditorium. fans will still get a chance to see her perform, business owners in the castro are disappointed in the change of venue. >> we're in the middle of a recession and we're going to showcase our neighborhood. >> when the threat of rain for this weekend became serious concern, then organizers consider

. >> reporter: the high court ruled 8-1 in favor of westboro baptist church.ts members travel the country picketing military funerals. preaching that god's punishing the military for the nation's tolerance of homosexuality. >> my first thought was, eight justices don't have the common sense god gave a goat. >> reporter: albert synder's son matthew was killed in iraq. after westboro members demonstrated outside the marine's funeral in maryland, synder sued and won a $5 million judgment against the kansas-based church for inflicting emotional distress. that ruling was overturned wednesday by the high court. >> we can no longer bury our dead in this country with dignity. >> reporter: the justices were almost unanimous, as even the most hurtful speech is still protected under the constitution. but there was one voice of dissent. justice samuel alito wrote our profound national commitment of free and open debate is not a license for the vicious verbal assault that occurred in this case. after the decision, westboro announced plans for even more protests. for albert

justices ruled 8-1 yesterday in favor of that westboro baptist church kansas-based group which makes headlines for demonstrating outside of fun raffles fallen u.s. servicemembers claiming god is punishing the military for the the nation's tolerance of homosexuality. >>> the moammar qaddafi is going on the counter offensive in the eastern part of the country controlled by anti- government rebels. today warplanes struck an oil port. it appears the target was an airstrip that belongs to an oil complex on the mediterranean coast. in a nearby town, health officials say 14 people have died in fighting between rebels and government forces. opposition leaders are pleading for foreign powers to launch air strikes to help oust qaddafi, who has been in power for more than four decades. >>> the white house keeping up pressure on qaddafi to resign as some members of congress are calling for a no-fly zone over libya but the obama administration isn't ready to rush into anything just yet. >> call a spade a spade. a no-fly zone begins with an attack on libya. >> speaking before a cheering crowd yest

members of westboro baptist church often picket events, including military funerals carrying signs that say "god is punishing america for its tolerance of homosexuality." in an 8-1 decision, the justices ruled that while the signs may be hurtful and offensive, the speech is still protected under the constitution. the sole dissenter was justice samuel alito, who said westboro's message is a vicious verbal assault that should not be legal. >>> faith-based groups stepped up lobbying efforts as congress continues to battle over potential budget cuts. religious conservatives maintain that addressing the government's massive debt is a moral issue. meanwhile, a diverse interfaith coalition urged members of congress to consider how cuts would hurt poor people in the us and around the world. as part of that effort, several prominent christian leaders launched a new ad campaign asking "what would jesus cut?" joining me with more on this is kevin eckstrom, editor of religion news service. kevin, there's been a huge mobilization it seems from many quarters of the religious community on these budget

court judge ruled in favor of protecting the constitutional rights of the westborough baptist -- westboro a baptist church to spread hatred at the funeral support soldiers. yet we would restrict the right to those who want to express themselves through dance and creativity. banning the right to protest would have set a precedent that could have lead to meaningful protests by others being banned in the future. the same president must be applied here. one could argue that most electronic music rarely if ever carries explicit or negative messages, but the medium of music itself has been used to express meaningful political opinions. based on this court ruling, to restrict one style of live performance is an assault on the entire political medium. the only types of free speech that can be built are those that are obscene, slanderous, or inside violence. electronic music does not follow any of these restrictions. this bill is clearly unconstitutional. my friend lives for afghanistan in 10 days. he uses electronic music to get his soldiers through the war as separate as possible. he hopes when he returns to san

of her military. >> reporter: but the supreme court ruled those outrageous protests by the westboro baptist churchd by free speech. >> this case put a megaphone to the mouth of this little church. shutting us up wasn't going to change that. >> reporter: the topeka, kansas-based church claims homosexuality is responsible for the death of u.s. soldiers after they picketed outside marine matthew snyder's funeral, hisfather sued the church for emotional distress. he won but the appeal went all the way to the supreme court. the justices ruled 8-1 in favor of the church. chief justice john roberts writing, "simply put, the church members had the right to be where they were." still, roberts also wrote, "westboro's funeral picketing is certainly hurtful." >> we can no longer bury our dead in this country with dignity. what is this country becoming? >> reporter: margie phelps is the lead counsel of the church and daughter of its controversial pastor, fred phelps. after the decision she was hardly conciliatory. even mocking the case and its argument. >> when you're standing there with your young child's bod

overpass should be open by the end of 83. >>> despite concerns of anti- gay protestors from the westboro baptist church, the show went on at a san jose high school last night. members of the kansas church were expect to protest the high school production of the laramie project, a play about the reaction to the 1998 death of gay student matthew shepard. amidst concerns of protests, the student actors were given the truant not to perform, but all decided to take the stage. >> i don't understand why there's any controversy. this is a story about a hate crime. a hate crime is a hate crime is a hate crime. and i don't understand why people don't see that. >> the westboro church did not turn up last night, but plenty of people did come to support the students. school officials say about 550 people showed up to demonstration. >>> john boehner says he'll defend the marriage act. he is ordering the house general counsel to defend the statute that defines marriage between a man and a woman. last month attorney general holder said the department of justice will enforce the law but will not defend its constitution

when they are grieving the loss of their loved ones. ♪ >> reporter: the message from the westboro baptist churchs hateful and offensive. church members believe god is killing all american soldiers because the country tolerates homosexuals. >> we are trying to warn you to flee the wrath of god! flee eternal destruction! >> reporter: the church has protested at more than 600 funerals of u.s. soldiers like matthew snyder who was killed in iraq. matthew's father says the protests stole his last moments with his son. he sued the church for emotional distress and got $5 million judgment. but the supreme court said in an 8-1 decision that the church doesn't owe snyder a dime. the church protests on a public sidewalk and on a matter of public concern were protected by the first amendment. in an interview with "cbs evening news" katie couric, snyder doesn't intervene others will. >> if the blood starts flowing let it be on supreme court justices hands. >> only one justice dissented alito saying the protests were verbal assault and didn't add anything to the public debate and, therefore, they could be ban

the tiny westboro baptist church has been called a hate group. the father of a u.s. mathieu schneider, killed in iraq, sued the church after the church protested at his son's funeral in 2006. albert schneider initially won a $5 million judgment but it was thrown out on appeal. now the supreme court has also ruled against schneider saying he has to pay for the xhurch's legal bills. last year the protestors came to palo alto protesting gunn high school's atmosphere of tolerance. >>> the fbi caught a lot of people off guard this morning. all across the bay area agents raided more than a dozen card rooms and concentrated on artichoke joe's in san bruno and the oaks card club in emeriville. they were looking for people and documents and other evidence related to gangs and money laundering. everyone was searched and not allowed to leave until their identities were confirmed and had no outstanding warrants. no one was arrested. snow, wind, and rain making for some slippery conditions bay area. also up above. let's go live outside. a look at the sierras right now along i-80 i

. >> the antigay westboro baptist church of kansas tweeted that it plans to picket taylor's funeral.official word yet on the services. elizabeth taylor was 79 years old. >>> this weekend's free britney spears concert will not be happening in san francisco's castro neighborhood as originally planned. they had to move it to the bill graham civic auditorium. the free show being taped for "good morning america" to coincide with the release of britney spears's new album. the producers didn't want to take a chance with the forecast of more rain so they moved the concert indoors, at 12 noon at the bill graham auditorium on sunday. it's first come, first served. not as many people will see it. >> it's happening. >> it's happening. still happening. get in line. >>> well, your eyes aren't playing tricks on you. seems more women are going gray at a younger age. thanks to the guys in their lives. i'm just kidding. kidding. the daily mail reports that 32% of british women under 30 have gray hair, up 14% from 20 years ago. the women blame it on stress. some doctors say to take more vitamin b. >> i

well, as people around the world mourn the death of hollywood legend elizabeth taylor, the westboro baptist church is promising to protest the funeral. most likely because of taylor's humanitarian work against aids. the group is known for its extreme stance against homosexuality. recently the supreme court upheld the church's first amendment right to protest. >>> last night the "american idol" contestants took on the sound of motown. ♪ [ music ] >> that was lauren from georgia singing supremes hit you keep me hanging on. her confidence impressed the judges and she was among many contestants to get rave reviews. she worked the audience there and the judges. but america will make the final decision. and tonight we find out who will be the third idol hopeful to be eliminated. you can watch all the action of that elimination right here on ktvu. the results show kicks off at 8:00 p.m. >>> all right. time now 5:57. more rain, some flooded roads waiting for you as your morning commute begins. we're on storm watch all over the bay area. we have live reports on exactly where the problems are. >>> plus thin

this was yet another instance in which the westboro baptist church from topeka kansas picketed and protested at a funeral. they had done this hundreds of times all over the country. their view seems to be that began a is overly tolerant of sin and that god kills american soldiers as they deserve it punishment. signs include, god hates the u.s. and thank god for 9/11, america is doomed. thank god for ieds. thank god for dead soldiers. god hates you and you are going to hell which was a sign that seemed most directed at lance corporal snyder. the family brought an action for various support liability claims including intentional affliction of emotional distress and prevailed in a jury verdict including an 8 million-dollar punitive damage judgment that was remitted to $2 million. the supreme court held that action was hard by the first amendment. the opinion by chief justice roberts. events as the court sense of sympathy for the families. the chief justice says that the record makes clear that the applicable legal term emotional distress fails to capture fully the anguish westborough's choice a

the host will welcome the -- a member of the westboro baptist church and will also have jeb hensarling. "state of the union" is next. then at 4:00 p.m., mitch mcconnell and john kerry he. the five network tv talk shows are brought to you as a public service. re-airs begin at noon with "meet the press." 4:00 p.m., "face the nation." listen on xm satellite radio channel 132 or online at c- spanradio.org. >> mit american history professor pauline mayer -- maier will be on "indepth" later today. she has written several books. join our conversation. today at noon eastern on c- span2. >> i find more and more the behavior of professional sports owners to be unseemly in the sense that they want hundreds of millions of dollars from their communities, and yet they do not really participate in the problems of those communities. >> tonight on "q&a," best- selling author and "the washington post" author, sally jenkins. "washington journal" continues. host: we want to welcome back frank luntz, who we have seen on the fox news channel. he is the author of "win -- the principles that take your busines

this was yet another instance in which the westboro baptist church from topeka kansas picketed and protested at a funeral. they had done this hundreds of times all over the country. their view seems to be that began a is overly tolerant of sin and that god kills american soldiers as they deserve it punishment. signs include, god hates the u.s. and thank god for 9/11, america is doomed. thank god for ieds. thank god for dead soldiers. god hates you and you are going to hell which was a sign that seemed most directed at lance corporal snyder. the family brought an action for various support liability claims including intentional affliction of emotional distress and prevailed in a jury verdict including an 8 million-dollar punitive damage judgment that was remitted to $2 million. the supreme court held that action was hard by the first amendment. the opinion by chief justice roberts. events as the court sense of sympathy for the families. the chief justice says that the record makes clear that the applicable legal term emotional distress fails to capture fully the anguish westborough's choice a

this was yet another instance in which the westboro baptist church from topeka kansas picketed and protested at a funeral. they had done this hundreds of times all over the country. their view seems to be that began a is overly tolerant of sin and that god kills american soldiers as they deserve it punishment. signs include, god hates the u.s. and thank god for 9/11, america is doomed. thank god for ieds. thank god for dead soldiers. god hates you and you are going to hell which was a sign that seemed most directed at lance corporal snyder. the family brought an action for various support liability claims including intentional affliction of emotional distress and prevailed in a jury verdict including an 8 million-dollar punitive damage judgment that was remitted to $2 million. the supreme court held that action was hard by the first amendment. the opinion by chief justice roberts. events as the court sense of sympathy for the families. the chief justice says that the record makes clear that the applicable legal term emotional distress fails to capture fully the anguish westborough's choice a

this was yet another instance in which the westboro baptist church from topeka, kan., picketed and protestedone this hundreds of times all over the country. their view seems to be that the united states is overly tolerant of sin and that got killed american soldiers as a deserved punishment. signs include saying god hates americans, america is doomed, thank god for dead soldiers. god hates you and you are going to hell, or the signs we see most directed at lance corporal snyder. the family brought an action for various tort liability claims, including intentional if it -- intellection of emotional distress, and prevailed in a jury verdict, including an $8 million punitive damage judgment that was permitted to $2 million. the supreme court held that that action was barred by the first amendment. the opinion by chief justice roberts insists the court's sense of sympathy for the family. the chief justice says that the record makes clear that the applicable legal term "emotional distress" fails to capture fully the anguish that westboro's joist added to their already incalculable grieve, but on