Looking Back, Looking Ahead

By Barrett Duke - Jan 1, 2008 - comment

The first session of the 110th Congress came to an end with little negative impact on biblical values. This hasn’t been because liberals in Congress weren’t trying, however. Fortunately, many factors worked against them.

First, the conservative Republican leadership in both the House and the Senate held their ground, oftentimes under intense pressure from liberals in Washington and the media. Our greatest area of concern has been the efforts by liberals to create special protections for homosexuals. Both the Hate Crimes bill and the Employment Non-discrimination Act created serious threats to those who believe that homosexual behavior is aberrant or sinful. Liberals tried every gimmick imaginable to pass these bills, but they failed every time.

Second, President Bush remained a champion for biblical values. Prior to the 110th Congress, while Congress was under the leadership of Republicans, the president vetoed only one bill. In the first half of the 110th Congress, the president threatened to veto legislation more than 100 times, compared to a total of 63 veto threats for both years of the 109th Congress. Of the six bills the president vetoed during the current Congress, only one was overridden. He successfully vetoed bills that would have put time limits on U.S. troop presence in Iraq, provided federal funding for expanded embryo-destructive stem cell research, expanded government-run health care, and undermined pro-life abstinence education.

Third, you made sure you were heard in Washington. Your phone calls and e-mails helped ensure that Congress and the White House heard from Evangelicals on the issues that are shaping our culture and our world. As we enter a new year, liberals in Congress will continue to press their agenda, and do so more forcefully as elections draw near. We have been very sensitive to your time demands in the past year and sent Action Alerts to you often as a last resort. We commit to continue to exercise restraint out of respect for your time. So please keep in mind that when we do send out a call for you to act, your immediate action is crucial. We look forward to giving voice to your concerns in the coming year and to letting you know when your added voice is needed. Together, with God’s help, we can hold the line against much of the liberal agenda in Washington that threatens to lead our nation away from biblical values.

Thank you for all you are doing to make a difference in the world. Please join us in praying that God will continue to guide us, provide for our needs, and make our efforts successful for His glory. We pray He will bless you and your family in the coming New Year. We pray also that He will bless the United States of America and enable this great nation to continue to lead the world to a brighter future for all mankind.

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