Religious Right Groups Demand Litmus Test For Supreme Court.A coalition of Religious Right organizations has put President George W. Bush on notice that they expect him to fill any Supreme Court vacancy with a nominee who shares their religious perspective on abortion. The $2 million effort, called Shake the Nation, is spearheaded by Janet Folger, a staffer with the Rev. D. James Kennedy's Florida-based Center for Reclaiming America. Organizers plan to run anti-abortion television ads in Washington, D.C., and other cities and are urging supporters to mail baby rattles to members of Congress. Religious Right groups were divided over Bush's recent decision to allow limited stem cell stem cell In living organisms, an undifferentiated cell that can produce other cells that eventually make up specialized tissues and organs. There are two major types of stem cells, embryonic and adult. research, and some of those who grew angry over that action apparently see a Bush pledge to apply an antiabortion an·ti·a·bor·tion adj. Opposed to induced abortion: the antiabortion movement. an litmus test litmus test n. A test for chemical acidity or basicity using litmus paper. to potential Supreme Court nominees as their due. "I can tell you this," Folger told The New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of Times. "There can never be another David Souter." Souter was appointed to the high court in 1991 by Bush's father, but he turned out to be a moderate, voting in favor of legal abortion and church-state separation. Twenty-three organizations are taking part in the campaign, among them the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, the Eagle Forum, Charles Colson's Prison Fellowship, the American Family Association The American Family Association (AFA) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that promotes conservative Christian values.[1][2][3][4] It was founded in 1977 by Rev. , Concerned Women for America Concerned Women for America is a conservative Christian political action group active in the United States. The group was founded in 1979 by Beverly LaHaye, wife of Christian Coalition co-founder Timothy LaHaye, as a response to activities by the National Organization for Women and , the Family Research Council, Focus on the Family, the Traditional Values Coalition The Traditional Values Coalition is a Christian Right organization that claims to represent over 43,000 conservative Christian churches throughout the United States of America. Headquartered in Washington, D.C. , CatholicVote.org and the Campaign for Working Families, Gary Bauer's political action committee. Some Religious Right activists are worried that Bush will refrain from nominating a strident anti-abortion justice in order to avoid a bruising battle with Senate Democrats. Observers say the campaign is a warning to Bush not to ignore the concerns of social conservatives. Since the election, Bush has worked hard to shore up his ties to at least one faction of that coalition - conservative Roman Catholics. Deal W. Hudson, editor of the right-wing magazine Crisis, said Bush advisor Karl Rove calls him frequently and called the level of access conservative Catholic leaders have to the White House "historic." |
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