Free Speech Slaughter Makes Way to Michigan

TRANSCRIPT
 

During the midterms in 2022, when the red wave almost entirely failed to materialize except in very isolated pockets, one of the remarkable shouldn't/wasn’t supposed-to-happen things is the flip of some states to more blue. Perhaps the biggest example of that is right here where Church Militant is headquartered: Michigan.

In one night, the entire state government went from a medium shade of purple to deep blue as the communist Democrats seized back control of the state legislature, affecting the much coveted "trifecta" — control of both chambers and the governorship. With the Gov. Gretchen "lockdown" Whitmer winning reelection — as well as her Marxist maven counterparts, Attorney General Dana Nessel and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson — the Marxist Michigan monopoly is fully complete.

And as we predicted on election night (right here on this set), that was/is a big, giant danger to everything that faithful Catholics, as well as other people of goodwill, hold dear. True to form, the Marxists have introduced a bill into the state legislature, with the full support of the commie elites, that will destroy free speech of religious and political conservatives.

Of course, it's all under the guise of stamping out so-called hate speech. And we all know what that means: a euphemism for conservative speech. Any speech about truth that Marxists despise is labeled "hate," and under the proposed law, it will be punishable with fines, prison time or both. And before someone says, "That will never hold up in court. Just sue them," consider this. 

First, going to court, even in the case of a slam dunk like our ongoing case in Baltimore, is a tremendous drain on mental and financial resources. Having lived in lawsuit land now for the past two years, even a win (and Church Militant is so far 4-0) in court drains away valuable time from the mission. We are here to promote the Faith for the salvation of souls and help turn around the culture to whatever degree we can in terms of people's thinking.

We are not here to slug it out in court for years. Going to court may sound and look easy and almost automatic on TV or in movies, but I can assure you that it is nothing like reality, again, even when you win. Likewise, remember that the State, which is who would be being sued here, has almost limitless money and time to keep filing motion after motion after motion.

The commie bastards figured out long ago that it ain't their money. So they spend and spend and spend, aiming to win the war of attrition, and often times they do. Secondly, even in what looks like a slam dunk, there is no guarantee of a win. In a blue state like Michigan, an unfriendly judge or an unsympathetic jury can totally ignore justice and rule against you, setting up another round of years of appeal cases. So going to court is never a first option.

Turning to the actual legislation before the state legislature in Lansing, House Bill 4474, which has passed the House with a unanimous vote from Dems and, of course, four GOP turncoats, is trying to incorporate the word "harassment" into the definition of a hate crime. Under the First Amendment, there are some types of speech that have never been protected: child porn, slander and libel to name a few.

What Michigan Marxists in Lansing are attempting to do is add "hate" speech to that list and deem it "unprotected." And in defining "hate," it incorporates "harassment" into the definition of "intimidation." Remember, in their attempt to silence all opposition, Marxist Democrats equate hate speech with actual violence, drawing an imaginary connection between words and words that might inspire a loose cannon to commit violence.

It's doubtful if they even actually believe that, but the goal here is to get a sufficient number of people to believe it and vote accordingly. So under the proposed law, if you are out at a restaurant with a friend and say that you think the whole pronoun thing is stupid and you are overheard by a pronoun person and then they challenge you and you repeat your opinion a couple of times to them, the law would allow them to report you to the police for "intimidating" them — the definition of which, according to the new law, includes "harassment" — and you could be arrested and charged with a felony.

The penalty per occurrence laid out in the legislation is up to five years in prison, a $10,000 fine or both — per occurrence. It's clear where this is heading and what the motivation for it is. BLM or Antifa is not who this law is aimed at. You can be sure of that. Just like Biden's Department of Justice selectively enforces laws against conservatives, that same tactic is coming to a blue state near you. And here in Michigan, it is just a few steps away from becoming a reality.

The bill as it currently exists is expected to pass through the senate without any substantial wording change and be signed into law likely before the end of the summer by Gov. Whitmer. Unless normal protocol is excused from, it would become law January 1. And as we sit here today, there is nothing to suggest it won't become law. 

And here in Michigan, there is already a problem for conservatives, especially religious nonprofits such as Church Militant, the textbook example of a religious nonprofit operating here. A recent study called Faith and Freedom concluded that of all 50 states, Michigan is dead last in being friendly to such outfits. Alabama and Texas were at the top of the list. 

Marxists don't like God, religion, people of faith, traditional values or anything that challenges their stranglehold. So none of this can come as a surprise. But the speed and efficiency with which these folks move does still amaze. They've only had complete control of the state for less than six months, and already here we are. They don't pass these kinds of laws in order not to use them.

Here's another major point to consider: In order to normally challenge a law, you have to have what's considered "standing," meaning you have to show that you personally have been injured by the law. Since this is criminal law, that means, in effect, you would have to be arrested and charged and stand trial before you could challenge the law's unconstitutionality. So you would have the ongoing criminal case and the ongoing simultaneous constitutional case, and it's a virtual guarantee those would both take quite a while to conclude. 

And another layer they have built into is, regardless of how the criminal case would go, the law provides for the "offended party" to come after you for their civil rights being violated, which would be a whole separate case aimed, ultimately, at bankrupting you. It doesn't take a genius to discern the future on this one. There is increasing scrutiny of this as word gets around, but as we know from the past, that never makes them change their goals. It just makes them tweek their means of getting to those goals.

This law is coming to Michigan. Period. That is not in question. What is in question is the cost and process of challenging it, including at least one person having to be arrested and stand trial and face prison time to gain standing before a court.

And, of course, there is looming out there the very real possibility that along the way, various judges will agree that "hate" should in fact be added to the list of speech that is not protected. Michigan has suddenly become a very dangerous state for conservative religious speech.