Arizona Representative Stephanie Stahl Hamilton of Tucson told the full House Wednesday that she holds Scripture very dear to her heart, “It is what guides me. It is what shapes and informs the decisions I make.” It was quite a bold statement after being caught hiding Bibles in the House members’ lounge. Click here to see it play out.

One was later found in the refrigerator and another under a couch cushion. What makes this all the more curious is that Stahl Hamilton is an ordained minister. She told the House that she didn’t mean to offend anyone and that her motivation was the separation of church and state.

Which has become a tired argument. Contrary to repeated claims, the separation of church and state is not in the U.S. Constitution. The phrase was one Thomas Jefferson used in a political letter to the Danbury Baptists during a campaign in which Jefferson was assuring the religious minority in Connecticut of his support for religious rights, free from federal government intervention. He in no way was suggesting Americans with religious viewpoints have no voice in public policy, nor that a Bible should be banned from a state house or forbidden from an elected representative’s reading list.

After Stahl Hamilton offered her apology for the bizarre behavior, she denied hiding the Bibles during an ambush interview with Channel 3 News. Click here to see that exchange.

Even as an ordained minister, the lawmaker has joined public support for pro-abortion legislation and spoken out against CAP-supported bills several times over the years. Earlier this session, Stahl Hamilton spoke against SB 1600, which would have required all newborns be given appropriate medical treatment, calling the bill a breach of freedoms. Perhaps no longer surprising, she twice voted against the CAP-supported bill that made religion an essential service during a public emergency like the pandemic.

Not Hyperbole: They Want to Legalize Pedophilia

 The ever-expanding LGBTQ agenda is pushing up against a breaking point. Some saw this coming, though perhaps not this quickly. A Minnesota legislator introduced a bill this session that would effectively legalize pedophilia.

Minnesota Representative Leigh Finke, a man living as a woman, proposed HF 1655 amending state law regarding “gender identity.” It also changes the definition of sexual orientation by eliminating the prohibition of “physical or sexual attachment to children by an adult.”

Finke introduced the bill in late February, and it has flown under the radar. If it wasn’t yet clear, be aware now; they are coming for the children.

Abortion Battle Update

Late last Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the abortion pill Mifepristone could continue to be available for abortions without the original FDA safety precautions while the case against the FDA plays out in lower courts.

The case now goes back to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to be heard on its merits. Alliance Defending Freedom is representing four healthcare professionals in a case challenging the FDA’s illegal approval of the abortion pill in 2000 because the agency failed to follow its own approval protocols. The FDA later arbitrarily dropped the safety precautions it had implemented in an effort to expand abortion.

The case gets underway next month, and we will continue to keep you updated.

Engage Arizona Relaunch!

 We are excited to announce the relaunch of CAP’s podcast, Engage Arizona. Every other Thursday we will release another episode where we will tackle relevant issues facing society today with key voices on politics and culture from a Christian worldview.

Click here to listen to episode one addressing the consequences of losing American values and the effects on our children, our future, and our country as a whole.

ICYMI

• Read here about the books available for young children at the Maricopa County library.
• Read here how Planned Parenthood has increased the number of unborn babies it aborts in a year, totaling almost 375,000 lives lost last year.
• Read here a compelling description of what will happen if President Biden gets his way and forces female athletes to compete against males.
• Read here about the duplicity behind a news media attack on a second Supreme Court Justice.

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