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HOBBY LOBBY : GO AHEAD AND FIND US, WE WON’T COMPLY- AFTER THE OBAMA MANDATE
By David Green, the founder and CEO of Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.
When my family and I started our company 40 years ago, we were working out of a garage on a $600 bank loan, assembling miniature picture frames. Our first retail store wasn’t much bigger than most people’s living rooms, but we had faith that we would succeed if we lived and worked according to God’s word. From there,Hobby Lobby has become one of the nation’s largest arts and crafts retailers, with more than 500 locations in 41 states. Our children grew up into fine business leaders, and today we run Hobby Lobby together, as a family.
We’re Christians, and we run our business on Christian principles. I’ve always said that the first two goals of our business are (1) to run our business in harmony with God’s laws, and (2) to focus on people more than money. And that’s what we’ve tried to do. We close early so our employees can see their families at night. We keep our stores closed on Sundays, one of the week’s biggest shopping days, so that our workers and their families can enjoy a day of rest. We believe that it is by God’s grace that Hobby Lobby has endured, and he has blessed us and our employees. We’ve not only added jobs in a weak economy, we’ve raised wages for the past four years in a row. Our full-time employees start at 80% above minimum wage.
But now, our government threatens to change all of that. A new government health care mandate says that our family business MUST provide what I believe are abortion-causing drugs as part of our health insurance. Being Christians, we don’t pay for drugs that might cause abortions, which means that we don’t cover emergency contraception, the morning-after pill or the week-after pill. We believe doing so might end a life after the moment of conception, something that is contrary to our most important beliefs. It goes against the Biblical principles on which we have run this company since day one. If we refuse to comply, we could face $1.3 million PER DAY in government fines.
Our government threatens to fine job creators in a bad economy. Our government threatens to fine a company that’s raised wages four years running. Our government threatens to fine a family for running its business according to its beliefs. It’s not right. I know people will say we ought to follow the rules; that it’s the same for everybody. But that’s not true. The government has exempted thousands of companies from this mandate, for reasons of convenience or cost. But it won’t exempt them for reasons of religious belief.
So, Hobby Lobby and my family are forced to make a choice. With great reluctance, we filed a lawsuit today, represented by the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, asking a federal court to stop this mandate before it hurts our business. We don’t like to go running into court, but we no longer have a choice. We believe people are more important than the bottom line and that honoring God is more important than turning a profit.
My family has lived the American dream. We want to continue growing our company and providing great jobs for thousands of employees, but the government is going to make that much more difficult. The government is forcing us to choose between following our faith and following the law. I say that’s a choice no American and no American business should have to make.
The government cannot force you to follow laws that go against your fundamental religious belief. They have exempted thousands of companies but will not except Christian organizations including the Catholic church.
Since you will not see this covered in any of the liberal media, pass this on to all your contacts.
Sincerely,
David Green, CEO and Founder of Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.
Tens of thousands of Americans across the nation today are showing their support for Hobby Lobby, the Christian-owned company now facing millions of dollars in fines for refusing to comply with Obamacare’s contraception mandate.
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The grassroots “Standing with Hobby Lobby” was launched through social media and has since been embraced by religious liberty groups and Christians nationwide. Organizers say it’s an opportunity to support the company “and its owners’ brave stand against the anti-conscience mandate’s assault on religious freedom.
“This is not just about Hobby Lobby–this is about you,” said former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee. “If Hobby Lobby is forced to eat the ‘king’s meat’ and ‘bow on their knees’ to a human government in direct conflict with their fundamentals of faith, then how long will it be before they come for you and your family?”
The appreciation day is similar to one Huckabee helped launch to support Chick-fil-A after that Christian-owned company came under attack from militant homosexual groups.
“Support Hobby Lobby, a company that obeys God rather than men,” the Family Research Council declared.
Hobby Lobby, a national arts and crafts chain with more than 500 stores in 41 states, is now facing $1.3 million in daily fines after Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor denied their emergency request to block enforcement of the Obamacare contraception mandate.
The company is owned by the Green family, devout, evangelical Christians. They believe “it is by God’s grace and provision that Hobby Lobby has endured” and they seek to honor God by operating their company in a manner consistent with Biblical principles.”
The family believes the Obamacare mandate to provide the morning-after and week-after pills is a violation of their religious convictions.
“To remain true to their faith, it is not their intention as a company, to pay for abortion-inducing drugs,” Becket Fund attorney Kyle Duncan wrote in a statement.
Duncan said the company would continue to provide health insurance for its employees while they fight the government in court.
“The Green family respects the religious convictions of all Americans, including those who do not agree with them,” the Becket Fund said in a statement. “All they are asking is for the government to give them the same respect by not forcing them to violate their religious beliefs.”
There are now 42 separate lawsuits changing the mandate, the Becket Fund said.
The Green Family
Conservatives praised Hobby Lobby for standing by their convictions.
“God bless this company,” columnist Michelle Malkin told Fox News. “It’s incumbent upon every conservative who believes in freedom of religion and freedom of conscience to support those businesses that are standing up and taking the slings and arrows of this discriminatory administration.”
“This is the most egregious violation of religious liberty that I have ever seen,” wrote columnist Denny Burk. “The first line of the Bill of Rights says this: ‘Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.’ Obamacare prohibits the free exercise of the owners of Hobby Lobby. Who’s next?”
Conservative talk radio host Laura Ingraham said President Obama “must step in to stop this madness.”
“It turns out as many feared, the president’s religious exemption to the contraception mandate is so narrow as to be meaningless,” she said on Fox News. “Unless you employ and serve only those of your same religious faith you don’t receive an exemption. So under that standard, Jesus himself would not qualify. This is unconscionable and unconstitutional.”
Ingraham pointed out that in a previous case Sotomayor ruled in favor of a Muslim inmate who was denied Ramadan meals. She held that the meal was subjectively important to the inmate’s practice of Islam.
Malkin called it a selective double standard.
“Religious liberty for some, none for others,” she said.
With reporting from Associated Press
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Posted on December 28, 2012 at 11:06am by 
Becket Adam
(AP)
WASHINGTON (TheBlaze/AP) — An attorney for Hobby Lobby Stores said Thursday that the arts and crafts chain plans to defy a federal mandate requiring it to offer employees health coverage that includes access to the morning-after pill, despite risking potential fines of up to $1.3 million per day.
Hobby Lobby and religious book-seller Mardel Inc., which are owned by the same conservative Christian family, are suing to block part of the federal health care law that requires employee health-care plans to provide insurance coverage for the morning-after pill and similar emergency contraception pills.
The companies claim the mandate violates the religious beliefs of their owners. They say the morning-after pill is tantamount to abortion because it can prevent a fertilized egg from becoming implanted in a woman’s womb.
On Wednesday, Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor denied the companies’ request for an injunction while their lawsuit is pending, saying the stores failed to satisfy the demanding legal standard for blocking the requirement on an emergency basis. She said the companies may still challenge the regulations in the lower courts.
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/hobby-lobby-go-ahead-and-fine-us-we…
Sotomayor Ruled in Favor of Muslim Inmate’s Ramadan Dinner But Rejected Christian Hobby Lobby’s Appeal for HHS Exemption
Jim Hoft Thursday, December 27, 2012, 8:28 PM
Justice Sotomayer ruled in favor of Muslim inmates but ruled against Christian business owners.
The Supreme Court denied a request by Hobby Lobby, a Christian-owned company, to shield the company from the controversial contraceptive mandate. Justice Sonia Sotomayor rejected a request for an emergency injunction that would have shielded employers from the mandate. Hobby Lobby could face fines of up to $1.3 million a day if they do not comply to the Obama mandate.
In a previous case Sotomayor ruled for a Muslim inmate who was denied Ramadan meals.
http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2012/12/sotomayor-ruled-in-favor-of…
Support Hobby Lobby shopping day Saturday, January 5, 2013 9:00 am – 7:00 pm
Hobby Lobby,Support Hobby Lobby shopping day Saturday, January 5, 2013 9:00 am – 7:00 pm
(FreedomWorks) –When a government oversteps its limitations, citizens will sometimes grumble or gripe. When it’s the American government overstepping the bounds of the Constitution, Americans band together and take it a little more seriously.
When local governments tried to stomp on Chick-Fil-A’s right to free speech, a grassroots movement organized a day to support them. Americans swarmed to the restaurants on Chick-Fil-A Appreciation Day, shattering sales records. A similar event was planned to support Papa John’s Pizza after owner John Schattner was realistic about the ramifications of Obamacare. Now, the government is treading on the religious beliefs, and ultimately the first amendment rights of business owners, and Americans are poised to step up to the plate again.
As Christians, the Green family who own Hobby Lobby are unable to provide the morning-after pill as part of their healthcare coverage without violating their religious beliefs. As that coverage is required under Obamacare, this conflict has set off a legal battle that still rages on. In order to comply with their religious beliefs, the Greens could be out up to $1.3 million per day in fines. That would be more than $40 million this month alone.
Fortunately, the American people have their backs. This Saturday, January 5th, has been appointed as the day to support Hobby Lobby with our wallets. It is getting costly to take a stand against the overreaching government, however, we can pitch in to show our support to business owners who are willing to do so and to show the government that these businesses do not stand alone. Our Constitution must be defended.
H/T Ruth Ann McClain‘s event page at The Tea Party Community
Hobby Lobby’s website: http://www.hobbylobby.com/
Hobby Lobby on Twitter: http://twitter.com/hobbylobbystore
Hobby Lobby on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/hobbylobby
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Tragic letter from The Hobby Lobby CEO: results of personal freedoms slipping away
The Hobby Lobby CEO (left) and his wife
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This letter is a very sad example of what happens when our personal freedoms and liberties are taken away. America wasn’t built on this, readers, and we absolutely must share this to show people the impact the Obama administration is having on every-day Americans.
When my family and I started our company 40 years ago, we were working out of a garage on a $600 bank loan, assembling miniature picture frames. Our first retail store wasn’t much bigger than most people’s living rooms, but we had faith that we would succeed if we lived and worked according to God‘s word. From there, Hobby Lobby has become one of the nation’s largest arts and crafts retailers, with more than 500 locations in 41 states. Our children grew up into fine business leaders, and today we run Hobby Lobby together, as a family.
We’re Christians, and we run our business on Christian principles. I’ve always said that the first two goals of our business are (1) to run our business in harmony with God’s laws, and (2) to focus on people more than money. And that’s what we’ve tried to do. We close early so our employees can see their families at night. We keep our stores closed on Sundays, one of the week’s biggest shopping days, so that our workers and their families can enjoy a day of rest. We believe that it is by God’s grace that Hobby Lobby has endured, and he has blessed us and our employees. We’ve not only added jobs in a weak economy, we’ve raised wages for the past four years in a row. Our full-time employees start at 80% above minimum wage.
But now, our government threatens to change all of that. A new government health care mandate says that our family business MUST provide what I believe are abortion-causing drugs as part of our health insurance. Being Christians, we don’t pay for drugs that might cause abortions, which means that we don’t cover emergency contraception, the morning-after pill or the week-after pill. We believe doing so might end a life after the moment of conception, something that is contrary to our most important beliefs. It goes against the Biblical principles on which we have run this company since day one. If we refuse to comply, we could face $1.3 million PER DAY in government fines.
Our government threatens to fine job creators in a bad economy. Our government threatens to fine a company that’s raised wages four years running. Our government threatens to fine a family for running its business according to its beliefs. It’s not right. I know people will say we ought to follow the rules; that it’s the same for everybody. But that’s not true. The government has exempted thousands of companies from this mandate, for reasons of convenience or cost. But it won’t exempt them for reasons of religious belief.
So, Hobby Lobby – and my family – are forced to make a choice. With great reluctance, we filed a lawsuit today, represented by the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, asking a federal court to stop this mandate before it hurts our business. We don’t like to go running into court, but we no longer have a choice. We believe people are more important than the bottom line and that honoring God is more important than turning a profit.
My family has lived the American dream. We want to continue growing our company and providing great jobs for thousands of employees, but the government is going to make that much more difficult. The government is forcing us to choose between following our faith and following the law. I say that’s a choice no American – and no American business – should have to make.
The government cannot force you to follow laws that go against your fundamental religious belief. They have exempted thousands of companies but will not except Christian organizations including the Catholic church.
Since you will not see this covered in any of the liberal media, pass this on to all your contacts.
Sincerely,
David Green, CEO and Founder of Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.Why does Hobby Lobby’s defiance matter? Find out here.
Please share this letter with your contacts, friends, family and social media circles. Only we can turn this back.
WASHINGTON (AP) — An attorney for Hobby Lobby Stores said Thursday that the arts and crafts chain plans to defy a federal mandate requiring it to offer employees health coverage that includes access to the morning-after pill, despite risking potential fines of up to $1.3 million per day.
Hobby Lobby and religious book-seller Mardel Inc., which are owned by the same conservative Christian family, are suing to block part of the federal health care law that requires employee health-care plans to provide insurance coverage for the morning-after pill and similar emergency contraception pills.
The companies claim the mandate violates the religious beliefs of their owners. They say the morning-after pill is tantamount to abortion because it can prevent a fertilized egg from becoming implanted in a woman’s womb.
On Wednesday, Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor denied the companies’ request for an injunction while their lawsuit is pending, saying the stores failed to satisfy the demanding legal standard for blocking the requirement on an emergency basis. She said the companies may still challenge the regulations in the lower courts.
Kyle Duncan, who is representing Hobby Lobby on behalf of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, said in a statement posted on the group’s website Thursday that Hobby Lobby doesn’t intend to offer its employees insurance that would cover the drug while its lawsuit is pending.
“The company will continue to provide health insurance to all qualified employees,” Duncan said. “To remain true to their faith, it is not their intention, as a company, to pay for abortion-inducing drugs.”
In ruling against the companies last month, U.S. District Judge Joe Heaton said churches and other religious organizations have been granted constitutional protection from the birth-control provisions but that “Hobby Lobby and Mardel are not religious organizations.”
Hobby Lobby, a Christian-owned hobby, arts and crafts chain, has decided to risk fines of up to $1.3 million per day and defy the Obamacare mandate that it provide insurance coverage for abortifacient drugs.
The decision is the latest development in Hobby Lobby’s suit against the Obama Administration, which has ordered all employers in the country to pay for insurance coverage of abortion-inducing drugs, regardless of religious objections.
In the suit by Hobby Lobby and lawsuits brought by other employers, the Administration has argued that Christians must surrender their religious freedoms if they own a company.
Supreme Court Justice Sonya Sotomayor rejected Hobby Lobby’s emergency request that it not be required to follow the mandate or be subject to fines until its lawsuit can be decided in a lower court.
Sotomayor, an Obama flunkie, unsurprisingly ruled that it was Obama’s way or the highway.
Hobby Lobby, to its owners’ credit, chose the highway.
Sotomayor proved both that she is unqualified to sit on the Supreme Court and why she was chosen by Obama when she ruled that Hobby Lobby did not meet the legal definition for an exemption to the Obamacare mandate. That ruling foreshadows how she will argue if and when the case returns to the Supreme Court.
The D.C. Court of Appeals had ruled earlier, noting that the Administration had promised different regulations by August 2013 for companies whose owners had religious objections to the Obamacare mandate. The court ordered that the Administration should be held to its promise, so it’s possible Hobby Lobby may still escape fines.
If that order does not hold, though, the company will be burning money while it fights Obama’s frontal assault on religious liberty.
Dozens of other companies, hospitals and universities have also challenged the Obama Administration’s effort. The Catholic bishops have led the fight and tried to create a church-wide uprising against the Obamacare mandate.
But the majority of American Catholics didn’t follow the bishops’ lead, probably due to the church’s previous support of Obama and many of the main principles of Obamacare. The church’s own liberalism has now come back to roost.
The bishops’ failure to rally their church leaves individual owners of companies like Hobby Lobby to lead the fight to preserve freedom for all Americans.
It’s been said that liberalism is itself a religion, and abortion is its sacrament.
If that’s so, it’s a faith of godlessness that the Man Who Would Be King is trying to establish as the state religion. Health care has become a wedge to split Christianity from public life.
Read more: http://godfatherpolitics.com/8755/hobby-lobby-first-business-to-openly-defy-obamacare-mandate/#ixzz2GTswXiVa
Atty: Hobby Lobby Won’t Offer Morning-After Pill
More Sharing ServicesShareShare on facebook_likeEmail54 CommentsPrintText Size- / +WASHINGTON December 28, 2012 (AP)
An attorney for Hobby Lobby Stores said Thursday that the arts and crafts chain plans to defy a federal mandate requiring it to offer employees health coverage that includes access to the morning-after pill, despite risking potential fines of up to $1.3 million per day.
Hobby Lobby and religious book-seller Mardel Inc., which are owned by the same conservative Christian family, are suing to block part of the federal health care law that requires employee health-care plans to provide insurance coverage for the morning-after pill and similar emergency contraception pills.
The companies claim the mandate violates the religious beliefs of their owners. They say the morning-after pill is tantamount to abortion because it can prevent a fertilized egg from becoming implanted in a woman’s womb.
On Wednesday, Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor denied the companies’ request for an injunction while their lawsuit is pending, saying the stores failed to satisfy the demanding legal standard for blocking the requirement on an emergency basis. She said the companies may still challenge the regulations in the lower courts.
Kyle Duncan, who is representing Hobby Lobby on behalf of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, said in a statement posted on the group’s website Thursday that Hobby Lobby doesn’t intend to offer its employees insurance that would cover the drug while its lawsuit is pending.
“The company will continue to provide health insurance to all qualified employees,” Duncan said. “To remain true to their faith, it is not their intention, as a company, to pay for abortion-inducing drugs.”
In ruling against the companies last month, U.S. District Judge Joe Heaton said churches and other religious organizations have been granted constitutional protection from the birth-control provisions but that “Hobby Lobby and Mardel are not religious organizations