Author name: Million Voices

National Affairs

State Residents May Lose All “Local Control” If Rushed Utah Senate Bill Passes

Utah’s State Legislature is currently considering Senate Bill 337, which could potentially “give state agencies total land-use authority over parts of the state they consider a significant community impact,” according to an op-ed published Monday (March 3).

SB337 “Land Use and Development Amendments” has already been met with huge backlash online, as it appears to paint the State Legislature as “just a giant real estate development corporation,” said one social media user. In its language, SB337 “would have the power to designate up to three ‘significant community impact’ projects a year in any city or county in the state” via the creative of the Beehive Development Agency, according to the Salt Lake Tribune.

“This legislation often not only usurps the conscientious, decades-long planning efforts of city planning commissions, councils and the will of residents, but it has also actually made our housing situation worse,” wrote Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs for Desert. Staggs explained how “Utah has thrived by empowering voters through local control,” noting that the needs of residents in Riverton are not the same as those in Salt Lake City.

“Utahns concerned with seemingly unfettered high-density housing construction in their neighborhoods will soon discover their local city council can do little to stop the state mandates,” should the bill pass before the end of Utah’s session on Friday, March 7.

‘Five-Alarm Fire’ In Fight For Freedom?

The bill is sponsored by Sen. Kirk Cullimore and Gov. Spencer Cox, and gives sweeping authority to those on the Beehive board.

“Every Utah taxpayer should be alarmed by this bill, which represents massive government overreach,” Utah rep. for the Center for Biological Diversity Deeda Seed, told SLTribune. “This bill could result in authorization of massive projects regardless of what the local communities think or the harm to the public interest. This bill is a five-alarm fire for Utahns.”

The bill language guarantees that local counties and cities across Utah would have no choice to state involvement in these local developments. This means local authorities and tax payers would be forced to cover the costs of things like “roads, sewer, police and fire coverage, schools or power that the county or city government would have to supply, whether the local governments support the project or not,” SLTribune added. If passed, the bill “empowers a five-member board … assigned with identifying ‘a major economic project involving job creation, housing, energy or capital investment goals.’”

Who Opposes The Bill?

Utah League of Cities and Towns and the Utah Association of Counties both oppose the bill, as do many voters and lawmakers.

Screenshot/X/CoalitionUtah

Screenshot/x/MikeCarey4CC

“Legislature should focus on massive roadway and water infrastructure improvements, policy changes to federal lands, proper incentives for out-of state businesses and ensuring owner-occupied housing is prioritized,” Staggs noted, along with outlining key ways Utah should actually address its housing and other related issues.

Visit Million Voices to read more articles like this

Entertainment

Major Updates Revealed About “The Chosen” Season 5

By The Chosen press photos (press.thechosen.tv) – https://www.press.thechosen.tv/?pgid=judjmpl7-9c4627f9-973e-483d-927e-e3f000f626c5,
CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=93752675

Details shared in mid-Feb. revealed some key things about the upcoming season of “The Chosen.”

On Feb. 20, the official trailer for “The Chosen: Last Supper” officially hit YouTube, and it will absolutely take your breath away … but not just because of Dallas Jenkin’s incredible vision. The content of this trailer will make your blood run cold.

“I think I’m more excited to deliver this trailer than any we’ve done. Which isn’t a coincidence because I feel the same way about Season Five as a whole. This is our most kick-butt content yet because we cover joy, pain, loyalty, betrayal, excitement, anger, sadness, and fear, sometimes within one episode,” Jenkins wrote in the description.

“It’s Holy Week, the most impactful and famous week in human history. Jerusalem is a powder keg with all of Jesus’ followers, enemies, and over a million Passover pilgrims packed into one small place. He shows sides of Himself we’ve never seen till now—turning over tables, literally cracking the whip, and weeping with heartbreak but also love. He also confuses His followers at every turn…and to what end?”

The Big Takeaway In Season 5?

“Can you believe and follow even when you don’t understand?” asks Jenkins.

“Yes, it’s sad and heartbreaking because we’re getting closer to the cross, but we’re also going to get to see some of the most iconic and deeply moving moments from Scripture. The triumphal entry, the turning of the tables, the betrayal by Judas, and the Last Supper…all set against the biggest backdrop and sets we’ve ever used with a new widescreen format that demands to be seen on the big screen. But of course, we continue our obsession to humanize and authenticate everyone involved.”

Season 5 will premiere on March 28 in the first of a 3-part series for theaters. The episodes will run for four weeks before the whole season opens to another 40 markets.

The series is expected to hit Amazon Prime at some point “in early to mid-June,” according to The Direct. Apparently Prime has exclusive rights to stream the series, leaving questions over whether the show will also be released via “The Chosen” app.

Read more articles like this at Million Voices

National Affairs

State Looks To Outlaw Sexually Explicit Materials In Schools & Libraries

RDNE Stock project from Pexels

North Dakota’s House received legislation Friday (Feb. 21) that could outlaw sexually explicit materials from schools and libraries in areas accessed by minors.

Senate Bill 2307 passed through North Dakota’s Senate on a second reading with a 27 – 20 vote on Feb. 20. The bill is sponsored by Republican State Sen. Keith Boehm, and requires specific safety policies to be in place to protect minors from sexually explicit materials.

The bill would also require North Dakota’s Attorney General to conduct a review of public libraries, school districts, and other state agencies to ensure compliance with the statues to protect children from sexual content. Complaints made against libraries alleging access of sexual materials to children will be investigated, and all funds to those institutions will be halted until the situation is rectified.

Pro-Family Laws Are On The Rise

Pro-family laws that protect children are on the rise across the country, and many are aimed at academic institutions. One key example is Texas Senate Bill 2, a pro-school choice legislation that is currently dividing Conservatives throughout the state, according to Politico. While many support the concept of school choice, there are concerns over a lack of accountability within the programs, particularly in relation to the allocation of funding and metrics used to rate overall success.

Speaking to the intricate nature of the bill, Families Engaged for Effective Education activist Tracy Hanes noted that “Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) and vouchers are a Trojan horse for government control. By offering taxpayer-funded subsidies to private schools, virtual learning, and homeschool families, the government will ultimately dictate the terms of education in every sector. Once public funding enters, so do regulations, mandates, and oversight—eroding the very freedoms that make private and home education viable alternatives,” to Politico. “This isn’t “choice”—it’s a complete government takeover, turning students, teachers, and their data into commodities in a system that prioritizes profit and control over genuine learning and local autonomy. Public schools are already captive markets, and universal school choice would pull private and home educators into the same bureaucratic web, ensuring no child is truly free from government influence.”

Supporters of SB2, and other school choice bills, note the importance of helping to fund private educational institutions and give low-income children the same opportunities as their higher-income peers. “We’re going to provide more funding and when this session ends we will provide more funding than ever in the history of our state for our public schools,” Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said of the bill.

Importance Of Being Politically Active In Your State

This rise in pro-family legislation centered on educational reform is coupled with a growing sentiment that Christ should be returned to our classrooms in 2025. States including North Dakota, Montana, Tennessee, Oklahoma and others are all poised to vote on bringing the Ten Commandments back to classrooms.

Legislation across multiple states would mandate that schools display a poster of the Ten Commandments in every classroom, along with an explainer of their historical significance to the founding of the U.S. The Ten Commandments would also become part of the core curriculum.

Read more articles like this at Million Voices

News

What Is Making America Sick? RFK Jr. Launches MASSIVE Investigations Into Rising Chronic Disease

Health and Human Services (HHS) Sec. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced on Feb. 18 that he will be launching investigations into the rise of chronic illness across America, but not in the way that you think.

For decades, we’ve been told that the rise in chronic illness is due to … nothing. We’ve never received a conclusive answer as to why so many people in America become ill and seemingly never heal from their ailments. Many people believe that so-called “cures” from Big Pharma are actually means of prolonging life and illness as a way to reap huge financial rewards for boards and shareholders, but these believers are also called “conspiracy theorists” by some. Even so, the actual cause of chronic illness remains unknown. But hopefully not for much longer.

To better understand the rise in chronic illness, RFK Jr. will start by investigating: ultra-processed food, electromagnetic radiation, childhood vaccine schedules, glyphosate and pesticides, artificial food additives, SSRIs and antidepressants, microplastics, and more, according to footage shared by Libs of TikTok:

“Make America Health Again” EO & Commission

On Feb. 13, President Donald Trump signed the “Establishing the President’s Make America Healthy Again Commission” executive order (EO) to “re-direct our national focus, in the public and private sectors, toward understanding and drastically lowering chronic disease rates and ending childhood chronic disease.”

“American life expectancy significantly lags behind other developed countries, with pre‑COVID-19 United States life expectancy averaging 78.8 years and comparable countries averaging 82.6 years.  This equates to 1.25 billion fewer life years for the United States population.  Six in 10 Americans have at least one chronic disease, and four in 10 have two or more chronic diseases.  An estimated one in five United States adults lives with a mental illness,” the EO reads.

It appears that no area of health is off-limits, including explorations into the soaring rates of cancers, autoimmune diseases, autism, so-called “behavioral disorders,” as well as fatty liver disease, diabetes, and more. “This poses a dire threat to the American people and our way of life.  Seventy-seven percent of young adults do not qualify for the military based in large part on their health scores.  Ninety percent of the Nation’s $4.5 trillion in annual healthcare expenditures is for people with chronic and mental health conditions.  In short, Americans of all ages are becoming sicker, beset by illnesses that our medical system is not addressing effectively.  These trends harm us, our economy, and our security,” the EO continues.

What Will The New Policies Be?

According to the EO:

“It shall be the policy of the Federal Government to aggressively combat the critical health challenges facing our citizens, including the rising rates of mental health disorders, obesity, diabetes, and other chronic diseases.  To do so, executive departments and agencies (agencies) that address health or healthcare must focus on reversing chronic disease.  Under this policy:

(a)  all federally funded health research should empower Americans through transparency and open-source data, and should avoid or eliminate conflicts of interest that skew outcomes and perpetuate distrust;

(b)  the National Institutes of Health and other health-related research funded by the Federal Government should prioritize gold-standard research on the root causes of why Americans are getting sick;

(c)  agencies shall work with farmers to ensure that United States food is the healthiest, most abundant, and most affordable in the world; and

(d)  agencies shall ensure the availability of expanded treatment options and the flexibility for health insurance coverage to provide benefits that support beneficial lifestyle changes and disease prevention.”

Initial Focal Points

Childhood chronic disease is the first mountain the Commission is directed to climb, hopefully dismantling it on the way up. The plan is to investigate “any potential contributing causes, including the American diet, absorption of toxic material, medical treatments, lifestyle, environmental factors, Government policies, food production techniques, electromagnetic radiation, and corporate influence or cronyism[.]”

Transparency of all data and “unpublished analyses” related to the investigations “consistent with applicable law” suggests we’re going to get another front-row seat to the revelations of what’s been in our food, water, soil, and eventually into our bodies.

Read more articles like this at Million Voices

Election

One State Could Decide America’s Entire Future In 2025 Should Voters Refuse To Act

Wisconsin voters have the potential to decide the fate of all Americans in April, a situation finally getting some of the attention it deserves (but probably not enough).

Voters in Wisconsin will head to the polls on April 1 to decide the ideological balance of the state’s Supreme Court, which could have a direct impact on every future presidential election. The “highly consequential” race will further dictate the future of issues such as life, religious freedom, as well as election integrity, and more.

The current balance in Wisconsin’s Supreme Court is a 4-3 liberal majority after Justice Janet Protasiewicz won in 2023. Justice Ann Walsh Bradley is officially retiring her position, allowing for either an even balance or a significant liberal majority to dictate the future of Wisconsin’s legislation, according to Breitbart. 

“It’s probably going to be just as competitive as the last couple of presidential and gubernatorial elections and Senate elections here,” said former Wisconsin Republican Gov. Scott Walker, according to NBC News. Though the race is supposed to be nonpartisan, Walked noted the situation is promised to “reach a level that much more like what you see in partisan elections.”

Who Are The Candidates?

Left-wing billionaires like George Soros, Silicon Valley’s Reid Hoffman, and more, are pouring millions into Dane County Circuit Court judge Susan Crawford. “I believe people in Wisconsin deserve to feel safe as they go about their lives…My top priority in making decisions is always to make our communities safer,” said Crawford of her policies, according to Ballotpedia. Other liberal judges have also endorsed Crawford’s campaign.

The Milwaukee Police Association officially endorsed Waukesha County Circuit court judge Brad Schimel’s campaign. He says he’s running to “restore confidence in the people of Wisconsin that the justice system will be fair and impartial…I will be honest about my principles, but will never prejudge a case.” Support is rolling into both campaigns, including $1 million from a group with ties to technology billionaire Elon Musk, according to Politico.

Why This Matters To People Outside Of Wisconsin

“Wisconsin is the only state that was one of the closest three margins in the last three Presidential elections. It was critical in deciding who became president each of the last three elections.  The margins have been by less than 30,000 with over 3,000,000 votes cast,” Million Voices’ John Graves explains. “The four liberal justices overruled the three conservative justices after the liberal took over the court in 2023, and reversed the ruling on drop boxes and other critical election integrity rulings. That’s why it’s the most important state right now, and that’s why this election is so important.”

The Wisconsin election isn’t just about what happens for state residents. The issues that matter most to you ultimately, as they trickle upwards from the local level, end up in the hands of those who run this nation. Wisconsin basically chooses the president every four years. Do you want policies related to noncitizen voting, ballot drop boxes, and more, to be part of Wisconsin’s electoral system?

It is essential to tell your friends, family, pastor, anyone you know who may have ties to Wisconsin, to get out and vote in April. We’ll be bringing you the latest updates on the races, so be sure to share them with your kin.

Read More at Million Voices

Border

“This Is A Big One”: Trump Breaks 20-Year Trend

For the first time in 20 years, Americans feel like the country is going in the right direction.

A survey published in mid-February from Rasmussen Reports revealed that for the first time in 20 years, respondents felt that the country was finally going in the right direction. “This is a big one,” the organization wrote in a caption revealing the data. The poll found that 47% of Americans felt the country was on the right track, with 46% felt we’re still on the wrong track. 

The data dropped less than a month into Trump’s second term. Since taking office, Trump has signed a series of Executive Orders at whiplash-inducing speed, many of which are focused on fulfilling promises he made during his campaign.

Screenshot/X/@Rasmussen_Poll

Trump Compared To Predecessors

At the time of writing, Trump has signed more than 68 Executive Orders since starting his second term, compared to roughly a dozen he signed during his first term, according to the Daily Wire. Former President Joe Biden signed 32 EO’s by the first Presidents’ Day of his administration. Here are some other areas where Trump is beating out his predecessors, according to DW.

  • Overall, Trump’s approval rating is higher than his first term
  • He’s secured the release of at least 12 hostages held by terrorists from the Hamas organization, Taliban, Russia, Venezuela, and Belarus
  • Trump has also seen more confirmed cabinet nominees than Presidents Obama, Bush, Clinton, and Reagan (but the last two had fewer to appoint!)

Read More at Million Voices

News

World’s Response To Trump’s Funding Cuts Suggests We’ve Been Footing The Bill Forever

By now, you’ve no doubt seen headlines and heaps of coverage on President Trump’s ‘Reevaluating and Realigning United States Foreign Aid’ Executive Order (EO), which has predominantly impacted the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). You’ve probably read about these tariffs too, or at least heard of them.

With so much noise on this issue, we thought we’d dig into how the world’s response to these funding cuts sheds light on a much bigger problem than just government spending.

The Foreign Aid Executive Order

On Jan. 20, 2025, Trump signed the ‘Reevaluating and Realigning United States Foreign Aid‘ EO, claiming that the U.S. “foreign aid industry and bureaucracy are not aligned with American interests and in many cases antithetical to American values.” Instead, these bodies “serve to destabilize world peace by promoting ideas in foreign countries that are directly inverse to harmonious and stable relations internal to and among countries,” the EO continued.

As a result, Trump implemented:

  1. 90-day pause in United States foreign development assistance for assessment of programmatic efficiencies and consistency with United States foreign policy.  All department and agency heads with responsibility for United States foreign development assistance programs shall immediately pause new obligations and disbursements of development assistance funds to foreign countries and implementing non-governmental organizations, international organizations, and contractors pending reviews of such programs for programmatic efficiency and consistency with United States foreign policy, to be conducted within 90 days of this order.  The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) shall enforce this pause through its apportionment authority.
  2. Reviews of United States foreign assistance programs.  Reviews of each foreign assistance program shall be ordered by the responsible department and agency heads under guidelines provided by the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Director of OMB.
  3. Determinations.  The responsible department and agency heads, in consultation with the Director of OMB, will make determinations within 90 days of this order on whether to continue, modify, or cease each foreign assistance program based upon the review recommendations, with the concurrence of the Secretary of State.
  4. Resumption of paused development assistance funding.  New obligations and disbursements of foreign development assistance funds may resume for a program prior to the end of the 90-day period if a review is conducted, and the Secretary of State or his designee, in consultation with the Director of OMB, decide to continue the program in the same or modified form.  Additionally, any other new foreign assistance programs and obligations must be approved by the Secretary of State or his designee, in consultation with the Director of OMB.”

What Happened Next?

According to the press, Trump’s EO immediately led to a disruption in the “global fight against modern slavery,” evidently “women and girls” are most “at risk” as a result of these temporary cuts, while “millions will be affected” across the world. The Amazon rainforest will collapse, HIV is going to explode, Russian influence is going to takeover, and marginalized communities around the world won’t have anyone to help them, at least, that’s if you read the Associated Press reports.

In reality, Sec. of State Marco Rubio signed a waiver allowing core “life-saving” humanitarian needs to be met, according to the Center for American Progress. And if all of these programs are essential, they’ll be back on the books within the 90 day window. More than that, if these programs are this essential, why are they dependent on just American funding to sustain themselves entirely?

Work Doesn’t Have To Halt

Christian groups across “Uganda, Tanzania, and Ethiopia,” have all continued to work, despite the suspension. “We have chosen this course for the time being because as a Christian organization, we center our decisions on the worth and dignity of ALL people—the people we serve and our staff,” Medical Teams International told TIME Magazine.

How Do The Tariffs Relate To These Issues?

Technically, Trump’s tariffs don’t really relate to the work of USAID, but more to the larger global response to Trump’s moves since reentering office.

Trump has threatened huge tariffs against nations who many feel are doing harm to the U.S. For example, Trump threatened China, Mexico and Canada with tariffs as a result of the “extraordinary threat posed by illegal aliens and drugs, including deadly fentanyl.”

“Chinese tariffs on US coal, gas, and oil are unlikely to have a significant impact or a negative impact on the US economy,” Hudson Institute fellow John Lee told DCNF. “These are commodities which the US can sell to other markets quite easily. For example, the US is the world’s largest exporter of LNG and can sell more to the UK and EU. Chinese tariffs on agricultural machinery, trucks and large cars are also not overly significant because China is not a major buyer of these American products.” Within days of Trump’s tariff threats against China, Taiwan promised to invest more in the U.S. This is just one example of how using America’s financial strength can benefit us all. China also almost-immediately opened up talks in order to avoid another set of Trump’s tariffs. 

Canada’s soon-to-be ex-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau buckled to Trump’s tariffs shortly after they were threatened, promising at least #1.3 billion toward increasing our northern border security. Cartels were also designated terrorist organizations by Canada. Together, the U.S and Canada will now work to combat “organized crime, fentanyl and money laundering,” Trudeau revealed on social media.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum gave into Trump within hours of the tariffs being announced, promising to deploy $10,000 National Guard soldiers along the border in exchange for a 30-day pause on the tariffs.

Read More at Million Voices

News

Here’s How Trump’s “Anti-Christian Bias” Task Force Will Work

In early February, President Donald Trump announced the creation of an anti-Christian bias task force within the federal government, according to Life News and the Trump administration.

Attorney General Pam Bondi was appointed to lead the initiative, which aims to reduce discrimination against Christians in various government agencies. These agencies include the Department of Justice, Internal Revenue System, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The purpose is to “immediately halt all forms of anti-Christian targeting and discrimination within the federal government,” Trump said at the National Prayer Breakfast.

Executive Order

Trump signed the “Eradicating Anti-Christian Bias” executive order last week. “It is the policy of the United States, and the purpose of this order, to protect the religious freedoms of Americans and end the anti-Christian weaponization of government,” the order states. “The Founders established a Nation in which people were free to practice their faith without fear of discrimination or retaliation by their government.”

”For that reason, the United States Constitution enshrines the fundamental right to religious liberty in the First Amendment.  Federal laws like the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, as amended (42 U.S.C. 2000bb et seq.), further prohibit government interference with Americans’ rights to exercise their religion.  Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.), prohibits religious discrimination in employment while Federal hate-crime laws prohibit offenses committed due to religious animus,” it continues.

https://twitter.com/gracesaldanaa/status/1887513658193797416

The EO comes in backlash to what the Trump administration called ” an egregious pattern of targeting peaceful Christians, while ignoring violent, anti-Christian offenses” by various government agencies during the previous administration.

The Task Force

The task force will be established within the DOJ, and include the following:

(a)  There is hereby established within the Department of Justice the Task Force to Eradicate Anti-Christian Bias (Task Force).
(b)  The Attorney General shall serve as Chair of the Task Force.
(c)  In addition to the Chair, the Task Force shall consist of the following other members:
(i)     the Secretary of State;
(ii)    the Secretary of the Treasury;
(iii)   the Secretary of Defense;
(iv)    the Secretary of Labor;
(v)     the Secretary of Health and Human Services;
(vi)    the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development;
(vii)   the Secretary of Education;
(viii)  the Secretary of Veterans Affairs;
(ix)    the Secretary of Homeland Security;
(x)     the Director of the Office of Management and Budget;
(xi)    Representative of the United States of America to the United Nations;
(xii)   the Administrator of the Small Business Administration;
(xiii)  the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation;
(xiv)   the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy;
(xv)    the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency;
(xvi)   the Chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission; and
(xvii)  the heads of such other executive departments, agencies, and offices that the Chair may, from time to time, invite to participate.

Task Force Functions

(a)  The Task Force shall meet as required by the Chair and shall take appropriate action to:
(i)    review the activities of all executive departments and agencies (agencies), including the Department of State, the Department of Justice, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Labor, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Education, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, over the previous Administration and identify any unlawful anti-Christian policies, practices, or conduct by an agency contrary to the purpose and policy of this order;
(ii)   recommend to the head of the relevant agency steps to revoke or terminate any violative policies, practices, or conduct identified under subsection (3)(a)(i) of this section and remedial actions to fulfill the purpose and policy of this order;
(iii)  share information and develop strategies to protect the religious liberties of Americans and advance the purpose and policy of this order;
(iv)   solicit information and ideas from a broad range of individuals and groups, including Americans affected by anti-Christian conduct, faith-based organizations, and State, local, and Tribal governments, in order to ensure that its work is informed by a broad spectrum of ideas and experiences;
(v)    identify deficiencies in existing laws and enforcement and regulatory practices that have contributed to unlawful anti-Christian governmental or private conduct and recommend to the relevant agency head, or recommend to the President, through the Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy and the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, as applicable, appropriate actions that agencies may take to remedy failures to fully enforce the law against acts of anti-Christian hostility, vandalism, and violence; and
(vi)     recommend to the President, through the Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy and the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, any additional Presidential or legislative action necessary to rectify past improper anti-Christian conduct, protect religious liberty, or otherwise fulfill the purpose and policy of this order.
(b)  In order to advise the President regarding its work and assist the President in formulating future policy, the Task Force shall submit to the President, through the Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy and the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy:
(i)    a report within 120 days from the date of this order regarding the Task Force’s initial work;
(ii)   a report within 1 year from the date of this order that summarizes the Task Force’s work; and
(iii)  a final report upon the dissolution of the Task Force.

The task force is anticipated to run for two years, unless otherwise extended by the President. The order will stand with all applicable law. “My Administration will ensure that any unlawful and improper conduct, policies, or practices that target Christians are identified, terminated, and rectified,” Trump noted. 

Read More at Million Voices

News

Medicaid Work Requirement Could Be Coming Soon to Arkansas

Republican Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders sent a letter and waiver to President Donald Trump’s nominee for Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. that, if signed, would allow the state to implement a work requirement for certain Medicaid recipients.

The Full Letter

Dear Mr. Kennedy,

President Trump declared it in his inaugural address: a new American golden age has begun. But our country cannot unleash unprecedented prosperity if able-bodied, childless adults sit on the sidelines. And we won’t slash our deficit if our welfare programs pay people to stay on the sidelines.

Today, I am submitting a waiver on behalf of the State of Arkansas to allow us to implement a work requirement for all able-bodied, working-age recipients of Arkansas’ Medicaid expansion program, ARHOME. Under the prior Trump Administration, Arkansas was successfully implementing a work requirement before federal litigation halted our progress. This new waiver reduces administrative hurdles and other issues for legitimate Medicaid expansion recipients while still achieving our policy goal: to have Medicaid serve as a safety net rather than a poverty trap.

Our goal is never to take services away from those who need it but to help people stand on their own two feet so they don’t have to count on the government. 

There are 220,000 able-bodied, working-age adults in Arkansas receiving free healthcare courtesy of the taxpayer, costing us more than $2.2 billion each year – and growing. Of those recipients, estimates show nearly 90,000 have no job. Most Arkansans work hard to pay for their health insurance while these healthy adults do not work at all. That is a backward, broken system.

Work is more than just a steady paycheck. It is a way to build responsibility and learn skills. It is an escape from the compounding problems – crime, fatherlessness, hunger – facing our poorest communities. It is a way to get off the path to poverty and get on the path to prosperity. And with Arkansas’ record low unemployment rate, it’s not hard to find.

President Trump has laid out a clear vision for America: one of smaller government, greater prosperity, stronger families, and better communities. All Americans can contribute to that great future, but not if they are watching from the economic sidelines. I ask that you approve this waiver when you become Secretary and let us get to work.

Respectfully,
Sarah Huckabee Sanders
Governor of Arkansas

Read More at Million Voices

Religion

South Dakota Ten Commandments Bill Moves Forward After Close House Vote

South Dakota’s House Education Committee passed a bill Friday mandating the Ten Commandments be displayed in every public school classroom, as well as being taught as part of the core curriculum.

Senate Bill 51 passed through the House Education Committee on a vote of 8 to 7 on Feb. 7, according to the Rapid City Journal. The bill will now move to the House Floor, where legislators will vote whether to move it forward once again. Should the bill clear the floor, it’ll go directly to the state’s Republican Gov. Larry Rhoden.

The bill was introduced by Republican Sen. John Carley, who “said his goal is to provide students a greater understanding of how the Ten Commandments shaped the moral and legislative pillars of founding documents,” the outlet reported. Should the legislation pass, it would require every classroom to have a three-part, roughly 225-word statement near an 8-by-14 inch poster of the Ten Commandments.

“I am thankful the Ten Commandments has been passed through the South Dakota Legislature. This foundational content has been so instrumental in the foundations of America – it’s great to see this come back to our public square. I appreciate the support of all of those still encouraging this to move forward,” Carley told Million Voices when asked for a statement.

If the legislation is passed and signed by Rhoden, there are concerns it’ll be followed by heavy litigation, as it has in states like Louisiana. Such potential cases have to fight against a massive change in our legal system that happened in June 2022. This change shifted America back on track to religious freedoms.

In June 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court voted 6-to-3 in favor of high school football coach Joseph Kennedy’s right to pray at the 5-yard line at the end of each game, claimed NPR. “Respect for religious expressions is indispensable to life in a free and diverse Republic. Here, a government entity sought to punish an individual for engaging in a personal religious observance, based on a mistaken view that it has a duty to suppress religious observances even as it allows comparable secular speech. The Constitution neither mandates nor tolerates that kind of discrimination. Mr. Kennedy is entitled to summary judgment on his religious exercise and free speech claims,” wrote Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch at the time. 

The decision overturned a short-held legal precedent regarding the constitutionality of public religious displays. It’s believed the Ten Commandments were a prominent part of American education for almost three centuries prior to 1980, when the prior legal precedent was held against it. The first purely American educational textbook “New England Primer” was published by Benjamin Harris in Boston in 1690, featuring an in-depth section on the Ten Commandments.

In the context of American history, 45 years, from 1980 to 2025, without having the Ten Commandments in our education system doesn’t seem like a very long time, especially when you take into account it was part of our curriculum from at least 1690 to 1980 (that’s 290 years). But ask yourself: how do the last 45 years compare to the previous 290?

North Dakota, Montana, Tennessee, Oklahoma and more are all poised to bring God back into their classrooms in 2025. In Louisiana, the law requires a poster-sized printout of the Ten Commandments in all K-12 public school classrooms and state-funded universities, according to the First Liberty Institute.

The legal challenge in Louisiana was brought by several families with children in public schools, all of whom are represented by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the ACLU of Louisiana, Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the Freedom from Religion Foundation.

“Unfortunately for the ACLU, their entire case is built on sand. Stone v. Graham is a relic of a previous time when the Lemon test censored religion from public life and is no longer good law,” First Liberty general counsel Hiram Sasser said in a statement.

Read More at Million Voices


Scroll to Top