The following commentary by Jay Michaelson was posted on the Daily Beast webstie January 26, 2018:
The post is partially symbolic, but it has significant power to affect the lives of millions of religious minorities, women, and LGBT people outside the U.S.
Sam Brownback is now the United States Ambassador at Large for Religious Freedom. Because of Brownback’s extreme views on religion and civil rights, his confirmation took six months, resulted in a 49-49 tie broken by Vice President Mike Pence, and has alarmed women’s and LGBT activists.
But what can Brownback really do in his new post? Actually, more than you might think. Dr. Shaun Casey, who served as director of the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Religion and Global Affairs (RGA), told the Daily Beast that Brownback weaponizing the State Department against Muslims, women, LGBT people, and human rights activists is “a real possibility here and a terrifying prospect.” Continue reading “Trump’s New Ambassador Sam Brownback Could Weaponize ‘Religious Freedom’ Around the World”