Parker signaled today that she was surprised by the breadth of the subpoenas and suggested that they may be narrowed. I’m not surprised that the pastors are resisting the subpoenas, and, assuming there is not more to this story than has been reported, I think they might be successful.”
This has the look of a fishing expedition. The targeted pastors are not even parties to the lawsuit, and the scope of the subpoenas is strikingly broad. For example, if a pastor delivered a sermon and urged his flock to engage in illegal activities, law enforcement officials could investigate it.” But, Boston went on, “That doesn’t appear to be the case here. Rob Boston, Director of Communications for Americans United for Separation of Church and State, said in a statement, “ Government authorities have the right to subpoena pastors and even ask for sermons if there is a reasonable suspicion of wrong-doing. Violates liberty + feeds persecution complex.” As Rachel Held Evans tweeted, “ I support LGBT equality but the subpoena thing in Houston seems intrusive & counterproductive. It’s unbefitting of Texans, and it’s un-American.”īut even cooler heads have a point: even if not evidence of a big bad government plot to oppress Christians, the subpoenas represent a strange overreach, one that additionally failed to foresee the predictable parlaying of the incident into a conservative cause celebre.
Texas Senator Ted Cruz, a Houston native, chimed in with a statement: “ For far too long, the federal government has led an assault against religious liberty, and now, sadly, my hometown of Houston is joining the fight. “Persecution of Christians in US begins led by openly gay mayor of Houston,” tweeted former Rep. “Big Brother knows no bounds,” tweeted Sen. … We have a sin-sick city and we need the power of God through Jesus Christ changing lives and changing City Hall!Ĭonservatives have jumped on the issue as evidence of their long-standing claims of government overreach, government hostility to Christians, and the ultimate result of LGBT rights: infringement of the religious rights of Christians.
#Ted cruz anti gay meme full#
It is astounding to have to say that most Houston citizens – including most Christians and pastors – are still unaware of the radical nature of Mayor Annise Parker’s commitment to imposing the full “San Francisco Style” Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgendered, etc. Represented by the religious right legal firm Alliance Defending Freedom, the pastors are seeking to quash the subpoenas.Ĭhristian right activists in Houston who opposed the HERO and led the petition drive have long disparaged the city’s mayor, Annise Parker, because she is a lesbian. As the Texas Freedom Network reported in 2011, when Parker was running for reelection, Dave Welch, one of the subpoenaed pastors, released a video in which he said: The subpoenas, served on pastors who are not litigants in the lawsuit, seek a broad range of documents and communications, including sermons, regarding their statements on homosexuality, the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance (HERO), and the petition process. After the city attorney ruled that many of the signatures collected for the referendum petition were invalid, the petitioners no longer had the requisite number of signatures to place the referendum on the ballot. The recent change to the law would bar businesses from denying a transgender person entry to a restroom consistent with his or her gender identity. The conservative media world is today aflame over subpoenas served on pastors, by the City of Houston, in litigation brought by activists who claim the City wrongfully rejected their effort to put a recently-passed amendment to the city’s anti-discrimination ordinance up for a voter referendum.