Why did Democrats sneak a ‘religious test for redistricting’ into H.R. 1?

The “For the People Act,” the much-ballyhooed scheme by Democrats on Capitol Hill to codify the mechanisms through which voter fraud can become ubiquitous, has received plenty of blowback from the political right. Most of us have argued that H.R. 1 creates a perpetual environment that we first saw in 2020 with Covid-19 lockdowns. We argue that the rules made by legislatures, election boards, and the judiciary were unnecessary through the pandemic and therefore should definitely be unnecessary when lockdowns fully end.

But hidden in the bowels of the bill is a hideous provision that requires a “religious test” for those applying to participate in the non-partisan redistricting agency that would be formed if the bill becomes law. This is blatantly unconstitutional and should allow for an easy route for a Constitution-friendly judiciary to strike it down. According to Travis Weber at the Family Research Council:

H.R. 1 requires states to establish a nonpartisan agency in the state legislature. This nonpartisan agency will establish an independent redistricting commission to organize electoral districts.

Section 2412 establishes eligibility criteria to serve on the redistricting commission. Any individual applying to serve on the redistricting commission must provide personal information, including:

The reason or reasons the individual desires to serve on the independent redistricting commission, the individual’s qualifications, and information relevant to the ability of the individual to be fair and impartial, including, but not limited to—

(I) any involvement with, or financial support of, professional, social, political, religious, or  community organizations or causes [emphasis added].

While it may appear minor, this is incredibly problematic because it suggests that religious affiliations may affect an individual’s ability to be impartial, and thereby may make them ineligible to serve on the commission. This is not only discriminatory, but also unconstitutional.

Surprisingly, this little nugget of the bill has not received the attention it is due from conservative media. Hopefully, that will change soon as this article and another by Christian Post from yesterday spread. According to Ryan Foley at Christian Post:

While the For the People Act passed the House, where legislation can pass with a simple majority, its future remains uncertain in the Senate, where legislation requires 60 votes to pass. Democrats have a narrow 50-50 majority in the Senate, with Vice President Kamala Harris serving as the tie-breaking vote.

In order for the For the People Act to overcome a filibuster, it would need to secure the support of 10 Republicans. Top Senate Democrats have threatened to invoke the so-called “nuclear option” to abolish the filibuster and enable legislation to pass the Senate with a simple majority.

Because Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia has reaffirmed his support for maintaining the filibuster, Democrats might find themselves unable to accumulate the votes required to abolish the filibuster and pass H.R. 1.

Article VI, Clause 3 states: “The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.” It immediately follows a clause requiring all federal office holders to take an oath or affirmation to support the Constitution. This clause contains the only explicit reference to religion in the original seven articles of the U.S. Constitution.

H.R. 1 clearly states that religious affiliation and membership in religious organizations and groups must be divulged to participate with the redistricting agency. This is unambiguously unconstitutional. The “For The People Act” must be stopped.

‘The Purge’ by Big Tech targets conservatives, including us

Just when we thought the Covid-19 lockdowns were ending and our ability to stay afloat was improving, censorship reared its ugly head.

For the last few months, NOQ Report has appealed to our readers for assistance in staying afloat through Covid-19 lockdowns. The downturn in the economy has limited our ability to generate proper ad revenue just as our traffic was skyrocketing. We had our first sustained stretch of three months with over a million visitors in November, December, and January, but February saw a dip.

It wasn’t just the shortened month. We expected that. We also expected the continuation of dropping traffic from “woke” Big Tech companies like Google, Facebook, and Twitter, but it has actually been much worse than anticipated. Our Twitter account was banned. One of our YouTube accounts was banned and another has been suspended. Facebook “fact-checks” everything we post. Spotify canceled us. Why? Because we believe in the truth prevailing, and that means we will continue to discuss “taboo” topics.

The 2020 presidential election was stolen. You can’t say that on Big Tech platforms without risking cancelation, but we’d rather get cancelled for telling the truth rather than staying around to repeat mainstream media’s lies. They have been covering it up since before the election and they’ve convinced the vast majority of conservative news outlets that they will be harmed if they continue to discuss voter fraud. We refuse to back down. The truth is the truth.

The lies associated with Covid-19 are only slightly more prevalent than the suppression of valid scientific information that runs counter to the prescribed narrative. We should be allowed to ask questions about the vaccines, for example, as there is ample evidence for concern. One does not have to be an “anti-vaxxer” in order to want answers about vaccines that are still considered experimental and that have a track record in a short period of time of having side-effects. These questions are not allowed on Big Tech which is just another reason we are getting cancelled.

There are more topics that they refuse to allow. In turn, we refuse to stop discussing them. This is why we desperately need your help. The best way NOQ Report readers can help is to donate. Our Giving Fuel page makes it easy to donate one-time or monthly. Alternatively, you can donate through PayPal as well. We are on track to be short by about $5300 per month in order to maintain operations.

The second way to help is to become a partner. We’ve strongly considered seeking angel investors in the past but because we were paying the bills, it didn’t seem necessary. Now, we’re struggling to pay the bills. We had 5,657,724 sessions on our website from November, 2020, through February, 2021. Our intention is to elevate that to higher levels this year by focusing on a strategy that relies on free speech rather than being beholden to progressive Big Tech companies.

During that four-month stretch, Twitter and Facebook accounted for about 20% of our traffic. We are actively working on operating as if that traffic is zero, replacing it with platforms that operate more freely such as Gab, Parler, and others. While we were never as dependent on Big Tech as most conservative sites, we’d like to be completely free from them. That doesn’t mean we will block them, but we refuse to be beholden to companies that absolutely despise us simply because of our political ideology.

We’re heading in the right direction and we believe we’re ready talk to patriotic investors who want to not only “get in on the action” but more importantly who want to help America hear the truth. Interested investors should contact me directly with the contact button above.

As the world spirals towards radical progressivism, the need for truthful journalism has never been greater. But in these times, we need as many conservative media voices as possible. Please help keep NOQ Report going.

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