Trump's Rule

Trump's rule on contraception, no matter how the Tory-picked Supreme Court rule on it, demonstrates his ignorance of the constitution of a democratic Republic--which the USA is in aspiration if not in fact.

To allow a publicly chartered business that serves the public and provides health coverage to its employees to abandon a health procedure on religious grounds denies religious liberty. A public business may not discriminate in hiring or serving customers on a cultural (e.g. religious, ethnic) basis as long as employees and customers follow the contracts by which they were hired or served. A public business should not prevent an employee the freedom to choose contraception because its owners find it against their religion.

Religious liberty, as Thomas Jefferson taught, is not only the right to practice religion in private, it is also freedom from religion in public. No one should be forced to use contraception or have an abortion if they have conscientious objections. But that should not exclude persons because of their gender or their morality from receiving full health benefits that are legal. And no law should be made to restrict a practice publicly on religious grounds.

Here again is the confusion of politics with culture (including religion). The public realm, is founded on the principle of the dignity of all persons and mutual respect for all cultures, moralities, lifestyles, sexes, orientations, ethnicities, backgrounds. Individual, associations, or corporations that promote or follow the Trump rule should not be considered citizens of a democratic Republic whether they have legal standing or not.

Inclusionary identity politics is that of a democratic Republic. Exclusionary identity politics is not.