Fox's Starnes Fearmongers About Christian Groups Being Denied Federal Food Assistance

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http://mediamatters.org/blog/2013/09/11/foxs-starnes-fearmongers-about-christian-groups/195830

1 hour and 52 minutes ago ››› MEAGAN HATCHER-MAYS




Fox News Radio's Todd Starnes is falsely warning that the USDA is bullying Christian organizations that distribute food to low-income individuals into "choos[ing] between Jesus and cheese," ignoring that religious organizations are allowed to provide social services as long as they comply with federal law.

In a September 9 column for FoxNews.com, Starnes said that the USDA threatened to revoke federal financial assistance from the Christian Service Center, a Christian ministry in Florida, unless the group "removed portraits of Christ, the Ten Commandments, a banner that read 'Jesus is Lord' and stop[ped] giving Bibles to the needy." The sensationalist claim is already being repeated by other right-wing media outlets. From FoxNews.com:

For the past 31 years, the Christian ministry has been providing food to the hungry in Lake City, Fla. without any problems. But all that changed when they said a state government worker showed up to negotiate a new contract.

"The (person) told us there was a slight change in the contract," [Christian Service Center Executive Director Kay] Daly told me. "They said we could no longer have religious information where the USDA food is being distributed. They told us we had to take that stuff down."

Daly said it's no secret that the Christian Service Center is a Christian ministry.

"We've got pictures of Christ on more than one wall," she said. "It's very clear we are not social services. We are a Christian ministry."

The Christian Service Center had a choice: choose God or the government cheese.

So in a spirit of Christian love and fellowship, Daly politely told the government what they could do with their cheese.

"We decided to eliminate the USDA food and we're going to trust God to provide," she told me. "If God can multiply fish and loaves for 10,000 people, he can certainly bring in food for our food pantry so we can continue to feed the hungry."

But Starnes is setting up a false choice and one that the ministry is not facing.

As the USDA apparently explained to both Starnes and the ministry, long-standing First Amendment law delineating the permissible use of federal aid by religious organizations does not permit religious proselytizing of the intended beneficiaries. This basic American principle of the separation of church and state does not, however, disallow religious organizations from assisting in vital programs to assist the hungry and food insecure. In fact, the USDA under the current administration has continued to promote and strengthen partnerships between the federal government, social services, and religious organizations in service of the public and prohibits any discrimination against potential participants based on their religion.


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1. Geez!