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☆ Brazil's Lula vows to Evangelical voters he would respect religious freedom
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRASILIA, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Leftist presidential candidate Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva assured Brazil's Evangelical Christians that he would not restrict religious freedoms if he is elected on Oct. 2, and praised the dedication to their beliefs. His adversary Bolsonaro has strong backing from Brazil's fast-growing Evangelical churches due to his conservative agenda based on pro-life and family values, and rejection of gay marriage and the legalization of drugs. With one in four Brazilians believed to be Evangelical today in this predominantly Catholic country, a recent poll by PoderData said 62% of evangelical voters are for Bolsonaro, and only 38% back Lula, who has the support of 51% of Catholics. Lula, who governed Brazil from 2003-2010, said he always maintained absolute respect for religious freedom during his eight years as president, passing laws and decrees protecting religious diversity. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Anthony Boadle; editing by Richard PullinOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

In one line of attack, Lula allies dug up a 2016 interview in which Bolsonaro said he was willing to eat human flesh in an unspecified indigenous ritual. In another, they circulated old images of Bolsonaro speaking at Masonic lodges, considered pagan temples by some of his evangelical Christian allies. The president won court injunctions that took that attack ad off the air and kept the subject out of a debate with Lula last Sunday. But every week that passes without Bolsonaro gaining ground is a battle won by Lula, who was Brazil's president from 2003 to 2010. "The focus now is to attack Lula and trigger fears of him returning to power," said a second Bolsonaro campaign source.

☆ The head of the ADL slams Trump's comments as 'disgusting' after the former president said American Jews 'have to get their act together'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Trump on Sunday wrote that US Jews "have to get their act together" on matters relating to Israel. "Support for the Jewish state never gives one license to lecture American Jews," the AJC tweeted. The American Jewish Committee also criticized Trump's post. Those remarks were also criticized by the American Jewish Committee, which called the comments antisemitic. "His past support for Israel doesn't give him license to traffic in radioactive antisemitic tropes — or peddle unfounded conclusions about the unbreakable ties that bind American Jews to Israel.

☆ Trump attacks American Jews, says they must 'get their act together' on Israel 'before it's too late'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-16 | by ( Summer Concepcion | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

Former President Donald Trump attacked Jews in the U.S. on his Truth Social platform Sunday, writing that they need to “get their act together” and “appreciate” Israel “before it is too late.”“No President has done more for Israel than I have. Trump has issued similar remarks in the past about U.S. Jews, a majority of whom typically vote Democratic. In an interview last year, Trump said' “The Jewish people in the United States either don’t like Israel or don’t care about Israel," adding: “There’s people in this country that are Jewish no longer love Israel. “I’ll tell you, the evangelical Christians love Israel more than the Jews in this country,” said Trump, who won strong support from white evangelical voters in 2016 and 2020, according to the Pew Research Center. Trump drew criticism as president for referring to Israel as “your country” in addressing American Jews at a Hanukkah event at the White House in 2018.

☆ University of Florida students protest against Ben Sasse’s anti-LGBTQ past
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-12 | by ( Zachary Schermele | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +8 min

Hundreds of University of Florida students held protests this week criticizing the anticipated appointment of Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., to lead the school. Sasse has said that as university president, he would do his best to represent the views of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer students. But for some, his candidacy has called to mind the university’s anti-LGBTQ history and the extent to which many of them feel it continues to sideline their needs and experiences, four LGBTQ students told NBC News. The university’s LGBTQ+ Affairs office, for example, has a high staff turnover rate, he said. He said a “silver lining” of the protests was that many LGBTQ students made their concerns more widely known.

☆ The GOP dealt conservative Georgia voters a dud with Herschel Walker
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-10 | by ( Arick Wierson | Arick Wierson Is A Six-Time Emmy Award-Winning Television Producer | A Former Senior Aide To Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. He Advises Political | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

The bold way that the GOP — the pro-life party — continues to support Georgia Senate candidate Herschel Walker, who allegedly urged an ex-girlfriend to have an abortion and paid for the procedure, is eyebrow-raising to say the least. However, it’s not the first time Walker has been involved in a deal in which he has failed to live up to expectations. If you are an ardent Vikings fan, the Walker trade was a raw deal that still stings to this day. In this lopsided trade, it’s former President Donald Trump and the Republican Party attempting to present Walker as a Senate candidate with deeply held anti-abortion convictions to conservative Georgia voters. According to a Survey USA poll of likely voters, conducted Sept. 30 through Oct. 4, Warnock leads Walker 50% to 38%.

☆ Neither Bolsonaro nor Lula is the best choice for Brazil
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-02 | by ( Arick Wierson | Arick Wierson Is A Six-Time Emmy Award-Winning Television Producer | A Former Senior Aide To Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. He Advises Political | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

Although Brazil is a multi party country, Sunday’s election has been distilled down to a choice between which of the two viable candidates running is capable of doing the least amount of harm. Sadly, no matter which way the Brazilian electorate decides to go, it will almost certainly mark a wrong turn. The end result is a large number of reluctant voters who cast a vote for a candidate begrudgingly. In many respects, these pressing problems are the result of the policies and actions of Brazilian leadership over the past two decades — inextricably linked to both the Lula and Bolsonaro administrations. While Lula’s track record on the environment is mixed at best, Bolsonaro’s anti-environmental agenda has never been a secret.

☆ Bolsonaro's outsider aura dims after Brazil's four tough years
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-29 | by ( Gabriel Stargardter | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Brazil's President and candidate for re-election Jair Bolsonaro attends a campaign rally in Santos in Sao Paulo state, Brazil, September 28, 2022. REUTERS/Amanda PerobelliRIO DE JANEIRO, Sept 29 (Reuters) - Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro once said only God could remove him from power. A career politician turned self-styled outsider, the tough-talking Bolsonaro was elected in 2018 on vows to clean up Brazil's graft-stained politics and modernize its economy. Prior to becoming president, Bolsonaro was known as a fringe conservative congressman, popular among police and soldiers in his Rio de Janeiro base. But with hunger still haunting some 33 million Brazilians, Bolsonaro is not getting much credit.

The Supreme Court in June announced it would hear the case in its new term, which begins on Monday. This showed the increasing willingness of its 6-3 conservative majority take on divisive issues as it steers the court on a rightward path. According to Irv Gornstein, executive director of Georgetown University Law Center's Supreme Court Institute, Kavanaugh now wields outsized influence over the speed and limits of the court's rightward shift. In its most recent term, there were 14 rulings decided on a 6-3 tally with the conservative justices on one side and the liberals on the other. The court appears likely to continue to take up cases particularly important to conservatives, Feldman said.

☆ Trump asked British Prime Minister Theresa May to 'imagine if some animals with tattoos raped your daughter' in conversation about abortion: book
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

A new book from Maggie Haberman details Trump's first meeting with UK Prime Minister Theresa May. He reportedly brought up abortion, saying "imagine if some animals with tattoos raped your daughter." The graphic statement suggests a private sympathy with abortion rights, despite his record. "Imagine if some animals with tattoos raped your daughter and she got pregnant?" As president, Trump often sought to satisfy his evangelical base, most of whom are strongly opposed to abortion rights.

☆ Lula challenges Bolsonaro's grip on Brazil evangelical vote
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( Jimin Kang | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterShe is far from the only evangelical Christian in Brazil dancing around that delicate matter. Although Bolsonaro and his allies have worked to transform Brazil's fast-growing evangelical churches into the bedrock of his political base, this year's campaign has shown the limits of that electoral strategy. After Bolsonaro won the evangelical vote two-to-one in 2018, many more evangelicals — especially poorer women — are weighing a vote for Lula, whose legacy of generous social programs speaks powerfully to Brazil's less affluent evangelical voters. Even as Bolsonaro has built up an advantage over Lula in the heat of the campaign, he struggled to break past 50% of the evangelical vote in recent Datafolha surveys. Looking to bolster the 'shy' Lula vote among evangelicals, the Workers Party (PT) is partnering with leftist pastors like Paulo Marcelo Schallenberger, whose sermons aim to counter the party's "demonization" in evangelical circles.

☆ Cuba approves same-sex marriage in unusual referendum
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

The code would allow surrogate pregnancies, broader rights for grandparents in regard to grandchildren, protection of the elderly and measures against gender violence. President Miguel Díaz-Canel, who has promoted the law acknowledged questions about the measure as he voted on Sunday. The measure had been approved by Cuba’s Parliament, the National Assembly, after years of debate about such reforms. But there is a strong strain of social conservatism in Cuba and several religious leaders have expressed concern or opposition to the law., worrying it could weaken nuclear families. That has meant a greater opening not only the once-dominant Roman Catholic Church, but also to Afro-Cuban religions, protestants and Muslims.

Indigenous Sonia Guajajara, head of the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil (APIB) organisation and candidate for federal deputy, takes part in an interview in Sao Paulo, Brazil, September 21, 2022. REUTERS/Amanda PerobelliSAO PAULO, Sept 22 (Reuters) - A record number of indigenous leaders, most of them women, are running for federal office in Brazil's election next month, in a backlash against the policies of President Jair Bolsonaro. "This election is crucial," said Sonia Guajajara, head of Brazil's main indigenous umbrella organization, the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil (APIB), who is running for Congress. "Today, it is the women who are taking up the fight and leading the struggle of indigenous people in Brazil." Four decades passed before the election of another indigenous representative in Congress – a woman, Joenia Wapichana, from the state of Roraima.

And rather than worship the divine, the crowd was there to herald the malign: Donald Trump and his brand of hateful, intentionally divisive politics. Similar to a creed, Trump shared his litany of election-denial lies that have come to constitute the Republican Party platform. The intentional coupling of MAGA politics with religious imagery isn’t merely a rhetorical act, either. Trump’s Ohio rally is hardly the only recent example of a politician appropriating religious symbols to seize power. Here, too, Christians are speaking out against his hijacking of the church for right-wing politics.

☆ Rep. Lauren Boebert said humanity is in its 'last days' and Christians should 'rise up,' invoking Christian nationalist imagery that's linked to violence
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-18 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Boebert echoed Christian nationalist talking points and invoked the end times in a recent speech. Christian nationalism experts say such rhetoric has been linked to violence. But by invoking the end times, Boebert is tapping into a side of Christian nationalism that has been associated with violence. Though Boebert's comments aren't new among proponents of Christian nationalism, such rhetoric has rarely, if ever, been deployed by a member of Congress. Christian nationalist ideals were also espoused by the suspects in the 2018 Pittsburgh synagogue shooting and the 2019 New Zealand mosque shootings.

☆ Meet Matt Krause, the man who critics say helped make Texas a national leader in book bans
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-18 | by ( Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Texas now has the highest number of book bans in the US. Texas is now a leader in book bans, and one influential politician — along with pressure from the GOP — may have been the driving force, a Houston Chronicle investigation found. By April 2022, a PEN America analysis found that Texas had 713 bans, nearly half of all book bans in the US. Some politicians and parent groups disagreed with the inquiryKrause denies any political motivations behind the book list, but critics disagree. For Foote, the book bans represent GOP political motivations, citing school board officials and lawmakers who have begun their own book challenges.

☆ Satanic panic is making a comeback, fueled by QAnon believers and GOP influencers
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-15 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Brandy-Zadrozny-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Brandy Zadrozny | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +23 min

Utah County Attorney David O. Leavitt speaks on July 31, 2019, in Provo. The accusations were part of a new case from Utah County Sheriff Mike Smith. Discussion about satanism and satanic abuse has increased in recent years, according to data provided to NBC News by Zignal Labs, which analyzes social media conversations. Popular culture and social media have also ferried ideas about satanism and widespread child abuse from fringe to the mainstream. (Anti-LGBTQ politicians and activists have equated LGBTQ people with predators who abuse children as part of a “gay agenda,” the well-worn panic that the gay rights movement’s true motivation is recruitment.

They strategized on what they want to do next: elect their own candidates to school boards, pass state legislation and diminish the influence of teachers unions. “It’s been said we’re some political powerhouse,” said Tiffany Justice, who co-founded Moms for Liberty in January 2021 with Tina Descovich. Moms for Liberty founders Tiffany Justice, left, and Tina Descovich present the Liberty Sword to Gov. “When I’m going up there by myself, the school board overlooks you,” said Ken Davenport, a father from a chapter in Orange County, Florida, who is running for state representative. Ron DeSantis, is joined by her 5-year-old daughter, Madison, after a question and answer session at the Moms for Liberty Summit.

☆ 'Barrett is like Jesus' for evangelical voters: Why confirming a new Supreme Court justice before the election mattered more to Republicans than another coronavirus stimulus
▼ + stars: | 2020-10-28 | by ( Oma Seddiq | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

It pales in comparison to getting the Supreme Court justice," an expert told Insider. The federal judge — now a newly minted Supreme Court Justice — is the first nominee in US history to be confirmed this close to an Election Day. McConnell's 'leave no vacancy behind' mindset about the courtsAnd the timing couldn't have been more ideal for the party, experts told Insider. In total, the top Republican has overseen 220 confirmations, including three Supreme Court justices. The Supreme Court offers them a shortcut "to enforce these kinds of values that they're really concerned about."

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