Friends,

I just wanted to let you know what is happening in Washington, DC today.

Nancy Pelosi’s House is considering measures like funding Big Marijuana and drafting our daughters into war as top priorities for our country’s national defense. Using critical issues like our national defense as opportunistic tools to merely advance a ‘woke’ political agenda harms the country, the families our troops protect, and our armed forces themselves.

Below is the statement that Family Policy Alliance released this morning.

Autumn Leva
Vice President for Strategy

---

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 22, 2021

Pelosi’s Low Opinion of the Defense of America

Pelosi’s Priorities for American Defense Include Funding for Big Marijuana & Drafting America’s Daughters into War

 

WASHINGTON, D.C.– Family Policy Alliance opposes unnecessary and harmful provisions of the version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) being considered by the House today, including those that fund the Big Marijuana industry, draft American daughters into war, and insert woke LGBT ideology.

Family Policy Alliance’s Vice President of Strategy, Autumn Leva, criticized the low priority Pelosi’s House makes of America’s national defense:

“Nancy Pelosi’s priorities for defending American families boil down to funding the largely illegal and bloated Big Pot industry, drafting our daughters into war, and carrying the banner for the woke LGBT agenda. It’s a sad commentary on the low value she places on our country’s defense. America deserves better. Our families deserve better. And our troops certainly deserve better.”

An amendment added to the NDAA would “cancel Rosie the Riveter” by requiring America’s daughters to register for the draft has already caused controversy and concern. The language remains a point of contention as the House takes up the NDAA.

Late last night, the House added another nonsensical amendment to the NDAA known as the un-“SAFE Banking Act” that would financially legitimize the marijuana industry without regard to the proven public health risks of marijuana use, through vaping in particular. The Act comes forward despite the increase in illness and death related to vaping and warnings from both The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Finally, the version of the NDAA being considered by the House also includes controversial “Equality Act” language, as well as supports critical race theory—a wildly unpopular idea causing controversy in America’s public schools.

These amendments clearly have nothing to do with the defense of America or the support of American troops. Family Policy Alliance opposes the language of these amendments and is actively lobbying both the House and Senate to fight for the removal of the harmful language.

Media Contact:

Robert Noland, (719) 308-2822, Media@FamilyPolicyAlliance.com

###

Family Policy Alliance is an alliance-building ministry that works to advance biblical citizenship and promote good public policy that protects religious freedom, families, and life.

 

We know what you’re thinking. Craig’s list? No, we’re not talking about that Craig’s List. This list, named for our CEO Craig DeRoche, names the best and worst of family policy in the past year.

Over the past year, our nation has faced a lot. COVID, a divisive election, unrest, and countless attacks on the family. Yet, it’s also been a year full of unprecedented victories for children and families. That’s why we’re so excited to share “Craig’s List” with you this August!

We’re naming the best and worst quotes, laws, and other actions that affect families across America. And we want YOU to be involved!

This year, we’re inviting you to vote in categories ranging from “worst for children” to “most dangerous for America.” Come tell us what you think were the biggest attacks on the family, and we’ll share the results soon!

Here’s how you participate:

1. Click this link to find the “award” nominees.
2. Vote for your favorite in each category!
3. Hit “submit!” If you enjoyed voting, be sure to share the survey with friends!

This year’s “worst list” nominees include the Equality Act, the time that leaders referred to moms as “birthing people,” some startling moments of cancel culture – and many more!

Which do you think was the most concerning moment? Let us know now! And, be on the lookout for our announcement of the best pro-family moments of the last year – the truly award-worthy moments.

Voting for Craig’s List 2021 is officially open!

Happy voting!

Meridian Baldacci
Policy and Communications Strategist

Florida is on the verge of a disastrous expansion of legalized gambling that would very arguably be the largest such expansion in American history. Please take a few moments to speak up to your legislators right away!

Our allies at Florida Family Policy Council have put together action alerts, information resources and other ways you can make a difference. Please read below and make your voice heard!

The Family Policy Alliance Team

---

URGENT!
We need all hands on deck NOW!

Take action NOW to STOP the largest
expansion of casino gambling in
American History

1) Call or Email The Following 4 Legislators ASAP
2) Attend the Rally for Florida’s Future next
Tuesday in Tallahassee at the Capitol.

Action Steps:
Call and or Email Just 4 Legislators

Legislator #1 Senate President Wilton Simpson:
Call 850-487-5229
Email simpson.wilton@flsenate.gov

Legislator #2 House Speaker Chris Sprowls:
Call 850-717-5000
Email chris.sprowls@myfloridahouse.gov

Legislator #3 Your District Florida State Senator (See Below)

Legislator #4 Your District Member of the House (See Below)

To quickly obtain the name, phone number and email address for your District’s Florida State Senator & House Member click HERE and type in your home address. The Upper Chamber is your Senate Representative, the Lower Chamber is your House Representative.

Just call or email your legislator and ask them “VOTE NO to the special session proposals to expand casino gambling in Florida.”

SIGN UP TO ATTEND THE RALLY TO STOP GAMBLING NEXT TUES IN TALLAHASSEE HERE:

 

 

Well, that didn’t take long. As soon as the regular legislative session was done – a little over a week ago – Gov. Lujan-Grisham suggested that she may call a special session to bring full-fledged recreational marijuana to New Mexico. That session begins tomorrow – at a heavy cost to taxpayers.

But while the cost of security for the special session (potentially well over $100,000) has gotten the main attention, the real cost to taxpayers will come if the Legislature and Governor actually legalize recreational pot. After all, in states that have fully legalized marijuana, the cost to the states has been enormous.

As New Mexicans, we have to look no further than Colorado to see the social and fiscal costs since legalization in 2014. Since that time, our neighboring state has seen a dramatic increase in violent crime, traffic fatalities, and marijuana hospitalizations. And usage by minors – sometimes fatal, from eating poorly regulated marijuana “candies” – has soared.

Watch this short video to see what awaits New Mexico if legislators choose to do the Governor’s bidding and legalize recreational weed.

TAKE ACTION: Please take 30 seconds to send a message to your state senator and representative asking them to oppose legalizing recreational marijuana in the special session. (Even if you contacted them earlier, it’s important that they hear from you again.)

Thank you for speaking up and spreading the word!

The Family Policy Alliance of New Mexico Team

Texas State Rep. Matt Schaefer, a Statesmen Academy alumnus, made national news Tuesday when he tweeted a picture of the indictment of Netflix, Inc. by the District Court of Tyler County Texas.

A grand jury in Tyler County indicted the streaming service for showing “Cuties” which includes “visual material which depicts the lewd exhibition of the genitals or pubic area of a clothed or partially clothed child younger than 18 years of age… which appeals to the prurient interest of sex,” according to the document.

As we shared with you last month, the new French film broadcast by Netflix centers on a group of 11-year old girls in a dance troupe called “Cuties.”  But their dance routines are anything but cute – they include seductive poses, twerking, and even simulating sexual acts.

The movie is pornographic and clearly meets the legal definition of child pornography in federal law: “any visual depiction, including any photograph, film, video… where the production of such visual depiction involves the use of a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct.” (18 U.S.C. 2256) *

Despite a reported eighty-fold increase in Netflix cancellations since “Cuties” was released, and the District Court indictment, the company continues to defend the film.  “’Cuties’ is a social commentary against the sexualization of young children.  This charge is without merit and we stand by the film,” Netflix said in a statement yesterday.

Unbelievable!  Quite the opposite of Netflix’s claim – we believe firmly that “Cuties” is a film which sexualizes young children.  For that reason, we celebrate the grand jury indictment in Texas while waiting expectantly for the U.S. Department of Justice to take action.

Just this Monday, Family Policy Alliance sent the petition signed by more than 17,500 of you to Attorney General William Barr calling on the DOJ to enforce federal obscenity law – including laws against child pornography.  It is imperative and urgent that the federal government investigate and prosecute Netflix for distributing the pornographic film “Cuties.”

Many Members of Congress echo this sentiment, including Statesmen Academy alumnus Rep. Jim Banks (IN-03), who wrote a letter to the DOJ in September calling on the Attorney General to bring charges against Netflix. “’Cuties’ is child porn and unlike certain media apologists, I and the vast majority of Americans are disgusted by that, which is why a grand jury indicted Netflix.  I’d still like to see the DOJ get involved.  Netflix broke federal law,” Banks said.

If you are one of the 17,500 people who signed our petition to Attorney General Barr, thank you!  We pray that its delivery on Monday, along with news of the Texas court indictment on Tuesday, will encourage the Department of Justice to act now – before more children fall prey to the porn industry.

Sincerely,

Robert Noland
Communications Manager

Advancing public policy to protect children and strengthen families is among our top priorities at Family Policy Alliance.® In today’s culture, one of the most pervasive forms of harm to children and families is pornography – which is why we are focused on curbing the pornography industry.

Unfortunately, 2020 has created a “perfect storm” for the proliferation of pornography in America. During the COVID-19 pandemic when Americans were quarantined at home, many lost their jobs or had to work less and school children were required to learn online, pornography viewing and distribution increased at an alarming rate…taking children and families as victims.

That is why throughout this year, we’ve asked you to take action against the burgeoning pornography industry.  Specifically, we asked you to sign a petition to Attorney General William Barr calling on the Department of Justice to enforce federal obscenity laws that have been largely ignored for far too long.  Despite a first-of-its-kind pledge made by then-candidate Donald Trump in 2016 to aggressively enforce these laws, the Department of Justice has so far failed to make obscenity prosecution a national priority.

Over the course of many months, more than 17,500 of you have made your voices heard and signed the petition to Attorney General Barr. I’m pleased to report that yesterday, we delivered your petition to the Attorney General’s office. 

You may be asking “so what do we do now?”

Well, our work is certainly not done.  Most importantly at this time, we invite you to pray with us that our petition and the calls of thousands of Americans concerned for the welfare of children and families will be heard and heeded at the Department of Justice.  We can pray specifically for Attorney General Barr who leads the 94 U.S. Attorney’s Offices that are responsible for enforcing federal law.  And as we look forward to the 2021 state legislative sessions, we will continue to educate you on public policy to strengthen existing anti-pornography laws and create new laws to curb the growth and negative effects of pornography in our country.  Stay tuned!

For families,

Amanda Banks
Director, External Relations

Earlier this month, the House of Representatives was poised to vote on the MORE Act (Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act) – a very dangerous bill that would have fully legalized marijuana in federal law.  When we informed you of this bill, many of you responded and Congress heard the outcry from thousands of concerned Americans.

The good news: Nancy Pelosi canceled the MORE Act vote.

The bad news: The marijuana lobby is back and the House is now poised to vote on legislation to financially legitimize the marijuana industry.

The ugly news: House Democrat leadership has snuck the Big Marijuana bill into COVID disaster relief legislation! We need your quick action today to stop it.

You may remember our alerts on the SAFE Banking Act last year.  While it passed the House of Representatives, it thankfully did not succeed in the Senate.  Now Nancy Pelosi has resurrected the bill and inserted it into the Heroes Act 2.0 (on page 1687 of 2154 pages, to be exact).  This is legislation she says will provide the much-needed financial assistance to those affected by COVID-19.  It’s also legislation she knows her colleagues will be hard-pressed to oppose.

Big Marijuana has linked arms with Democrat leadership to exploit disaster relief legislation to line their own pockets.

Make no mistake – the so-called SAFE Banking Act is the first step toward federal legalization of marijuana.  This legislation would provide federal banking privileges and prop up the marijuana industry without regard to the proven public health risks of marijuana use.  In other words, the “un-SAFE Banking Act” is a backdoor green light to Big Marijuana with a front-door cash infusion to an already bloated (and largely illegal) industry that has been complicit in harmful effects to many Americans.

During a pandemic – when drug use and abuse is significantly on the rise – is the worst time to legitimize this dangerous, illegal industry with massive financial investment.  That’s why your action is needed now!

A vote is expected on the Heroes Act 2.0 as soon as this evening, so please, take action now!

Respectfully,

Robert Noland
Communications Manager

A new hashtag is trending on Twitter: #CancelNetflix.  Thousands of Americans are canceling their Netflix subscriptions and taking to social media to denounce the company’s broadcasting of Cuties – a new French film that centers on a group of 11-year old Parisian girls in a hyper-sexualized dance troupe.

Despite Netflix’s original poster ad for the film depicting half-clothed adolescent girls in seductive positions, the streaming service now describes the film innocently enough: “Eleven-year-old Amy starts to rebel against her conservative family’s traditions when she becomes fascinated with a free-spirited dance crew.”

But the reality – from the clip I viewed as well reviews from those who have seen the film in its entirety – is completely different.  As Rod Dreher at The American Conservative stated, “[Cuties] centers on the grotesque sexualization of minor girls” and “is a deeply dishonest film that exploits its young cast nauseatingly.”

The black and white of it is that the film stars scantily clad pre-teens who perform stripper-like dance routines, including twerking, suggestively sucking their fingers, and simulating sexual acts.  The film also includes clips of the girls watching hardcore porn on their smartphones.

It is truly disgusting and deeply disturbing.  As the mother of an 11-year old girl and her two younger sisters, I am outraged that Netflix would air such a film, which is distasteful at best and criminal at worst.  Isn’t Netflix run by adults?  Some of whom have young children?  All of whom should care about objectifying adolescent girls and sexualizing children?

Astonishingly, Netflix continues to defend the movie amid severe backlash and numerous calls to #CancelNetflix.  According to a Netflix spokesperson, Cuties is a “powerful story about the pressure young girls face on social media and from society more generally growing up – and we’d encourage anyone who cares about these important issues to watch the movie.”

NO THANKS, Netflix!

I won’t be watching this garbage, but more importantly, I don’t want my daughters watching this pornographic film, nor the pedophiles who prey on young girls.

Which begs the question – who, exactly, is Netflix’s target audience here?

I shudder to think it is adolescent girls and pedophiles – yet those are the populations most likely to be interested in a movie about adolescent girls who perform sexually explicit dance routines with close-up shots of their pelvic areas, behinds and in one shot – a bare breast.

The images and dancing in Cuties are nothing less than obscene and pornographic.

Any business that peddles child pornography and any film producer that promotes the sexualization of children should be held accountable.

Thankfully, some in Washington agree and they are doing something about it.  Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) has written to Netflix and urged them to take down Cuties immediately.  Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) has called on the Department of Justice to investigate whether the film violates federal law, while Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) and Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) have asked the DOJ to take swift action and prosecute Netflix for the distribution of child pornography.  These Members of Congress and others, including Democrat Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii), are speaking boldly in defense of children.

Gabbard tweeted “child porn ‘Cuties’ will certainly whet the appetite of pedophiles & help fuel the child sex trafficking trade. 1 in 4 victims of trafficking are children. It happened to my friend’s 13 year old daughter.”

And she’s exactly right.  Pornography increases the demand for sex trafficking and is used to groom trafficking victims.  Another word for “trafficking” is “slavery.”  Films like Cuties fuel modern-day child sex slavery.  Pornography also steals our children’s innocence, increases violence against women, causes psychological addiction and destroys families.

The movement to #CancelNetflix is not about one distasteful, offensive film.  The Cuties backlash is about a lot of sensible Americans saying “Enough is enough.  Stop the sexualization of our children and the infiltration of pornography into our culture and homes.”

How do we do that?

The good news is that we don’t need new laws to prevent images like those seen in Cuties appearing in our living rooms.  The bad news is that federal obscenity laws are not being readily enforced.

For several months, Family Policy Alliance has collected signatures on a petition to Attorney General William Barr asking him to declare obscenity prosecution a national priority at the Department of Justice and to vigorously enforce current obscenity laws, including laws against child pornography.

We will soon deliver this petition to the Department of Justice.  If you haven’t done so already, please take a moment to sign the petition today.

You may also consider canceling your Netflix subscription or joining the movement on social media to call Netflix to account and urge the company to reverse course on peddling child pornography.

For children and families,

Amanda Banks
Director, External Relations

This month, the U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote on whether to remove marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act. The bill is even worse than you may think: please contact your representative TODAY through our Action Center.

Currently, marijuana is an illegal substance under federal law. (While some states have legalized recreational marijuana in their own states, this only “works” to the extent that federal law enforcement turns a blind eye to offenses.) Still, the federal status of marijuana hasn’t stopped Pelosi’s House from trying to support Big Marijuana: last fall they attempted to fund the illegal industry through the SAFE Banking Act, and they tried the same trick with emergency COVID funding this spring.

Now, Pelosi’s House wants to go further by legalizing marijuana at the federal level. While that doesn’t automatically make marijuana legal throughout the states, it would certainly send a strong message that marijuana just isn’t a big deal. But we know it is a big deal. That’s why it’s on Schedule I, a federal list of drugs that have “no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.”^*

CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVE TODAY THROUGH OUR ACTION CENTER!

Indeed, marijuana is not the harmless drug some paint it to be. Here are the facts:

• One study found that regular recreational marijuana users had psychotic disorders at a greater rate than users of any other drug (more than cocaine, methamphetamine, amphetamine, LSD, PCP, or alcohol).
• Following legalization, central Oregon hospitals saw a nearly 2,000% increase in emergency room visits due to marijuana poisoning.
• When THC (the psychoactive, “high”-inducing substance in marijuana) is present in vaping products, it can be dangerous and even fatal: as of this February, states reported 2,807 hospitalized cases (including 68 confirmed deaths) of a lung disease linked with vaping and in particular with products containing THC.

And it’s not just medical concerns. Here’s what happened in Colorado when it legalized pot:

The bill would open the floodgates for what happened to Colorado to begin to happen nationwide. And the bill isn’t just about removing criminal penalties. Here are some of the other things the bill would do:

• Eliminate criminal penalties for the manufacture and distribution of marijuana
• Expunge records for previous marijuana offenses, including manufacture and distribution
• Legitimize Big Marijuana by charging the Small Business Administration with creating a “Cannabis Opportunity Program” giving loans to the cannabis industry, and an “Equitable Licensing Grant Program” designed to “minimize barriers to cannabis licensing”

The bottom line? This bill is dangerous.

Representatives have been asked to indicate by Thursday whether they will support the bill. Please visit our Action Center today to contact your Representative and ask them to NOT support this dangerous legislation!

Pressing On,

Meridian Baldacci

*Hemp, a cannabis plant with a very low content of THC, is sometimes used for medical reasons and is already exempt from the Controlled Substances Act.

Nearly half a century ago, the Supreme Court issued an opinion that would change the legal landscape of the pornography industry. In Miller v. California, the Supreme Court cloaked pornography in First Amendment protections, allowing the porn industry to get away with exploiting countless lives both on screen and those who viewed the content. Ever since then, courts have struck down lawmakers’ efforts to restrict pornography, and prosecutors have been afraid to even enforce laws already on the books that do pass Supreme Court muster. There are even sections of law that allow porn sites to get away with their blatant abuse by passively permitting others to post on their site.

The First Amendment was never meant to protect the exploitative, multi-billion-dollar industry of pornography. The industry has sexually abused countless young children—and then broadcast the video or image of their abuse to the whole world on sites like Pornhub. Pornhub is the largest pornography website on the planet with over 42 billion visits a year. Pornhub is knowingly complicit in the human trafficking industry.

And of course, a site like Pornhub could not miss an opportunity to exploit ongoing international and national crises – like COVID-19 and racial tensions in the U.S. In the height of the pandemic, Pornhub did its best to use the crisis as an opportunity to gain even greater foothold in homes by offering increased access to its harmful content. In the last several months, Pornhub also allowed videos expressly created to denigrate minorities to circulate on its site. The hypocrisy was overwhelming when they also claimed to fight for equality. Pornhub’s version of equality is equally exploiting everyone.

We believe that everyone has dignity and value because they are created in the image of God. We believe that the porn industry exploits women and children, as well as the men they prey on to fund their bloated bank accounts.  And we believe that the porn industry should be held accountable for the content that they put on the internet.

If you agree and haven’t yet had a chance, would you take 30 seconds to add your name to our petition to President Trump’s Attorney General Barr, asking him to make prosecuting obscenity a top priority in his office? This is just one way that we can start changing the culture when it comes to holding the porn industry accountable.

Sincerely,

Brittany Jones, Esq.
Policy Manager