Chris Van Hollen: “This bill, which is presented to the Congress under the banner of a so-called American values agenda, turns American…”

“This bill, which is presented to the Congress under the banner of a so-called American values agenda, turns American values on their head. It is an example of false advertising at its very worst, and it forgets the lessons of American history. This great country of ours was founded largely on the principle of religious liberty. Many of our earlier settlers to this country came to our shores to escape religious persecution from their mother countries. They didn't want the Church of England or any other government telling them how they should worship God, and they sought to escape a state-imposed religion, to escape the establishment of a state-sponsored religion. They wanted to practice religion according to the dictates of their own conscience, not the dictates of the state. And that is why the first amendment to the United States Constitution gives each individual the right of religious liberty and why it bars the state from imposing and establishing a state religion. If this Congress and this government now seeks to impose certain religious faiths upon an individual, that individual can invoke the protections of the United States Constitution. Now, I would think all of us, all of us in this body, would agree that an individual should not have to pay to enjoy the protections of the United States Constitution.”