The Rundown: Judge rules in favor of SAFE/Save Women's Sports Act, Marijuana Goes on Sale
Center for Christian Virtue's The Rundown is the most important political and cultural news for Christians in Ohio. Thanks for reading our newsletter!
What's Happening
Ohio
Victory for women and children! Yesterday, Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Judge Michael J. Holbrook ruled in favor of the Saving Adolescents From Experimentation (SAFE) Act and Save Women's Sports Act, known as House Bill 68 (HB68). After months of being blocked, the law is now in effect and ensures girls can't be forced to compete against boys in athletics and children's hospitals can no longer perform dangerous and sterilizing "gender transition" procedures on kids. You can watch CCV's mini documentary for a behind-the-scenes look at passing the law.
Growing like weed: Following the passage of Issue 2 last November, it became legal to purchase recreational marijuana in Ohio yesterday. While mainstream media coverage has been supportive of legalization, law enforcement agencies are bracing for the decrease in road safety. Just like alcohol, marijuana impairs driving. Unlike alcohol, however, there's no accessible measure to determine impairment other than field sobriety tests as marijuana can be detected up to weeks later after ingestion. Additionally, 22 out of 27 studies on areas before and after recreational marijuana found that there were more crashes or hospital visits following legalization, while the CDC has documented a host of other negative effects.
Compelling lies: Olentangy Local Schools can continue to force students to use "preferred pronouns" that do no align with the biological reality of their classmates, according to a 2-1 decision by Cincinnati's Sixth US Circuit Court of Appeals upholding a US district court ruling. The two concurring judges argued that the district's policies–which dictate students must use preferred pronouns even off campus on personal devices or risk suspension and expulsion–do not violate students' First Amendment rights by compelling speech, though 17 states and 15 advocacy groups disagreed. In her dissenting opinion, Judge Batchelder argued that telling students they can omit all pronoun references still forces them to affirm a viewpoint with which they do not agree by requiring they conform their behavior to it with their very silence.
Intended consequences: The same day a special session was called to ban foreign money in Ohio ballot issues, the Sixteen Thirty Fund–a foreign-backed dark money group which spent millions on Ohio's abortion amendment last year–donated $6 million to a redistricting-amendment campaign fund. That redistricting amendment was recently approved to be on the November ballot, though the final language has not yet been set. The amendment, which supporters claim will end gerrymandered district maps, would actually mandate the most extreme gerrymandering. Unlike the current process, the proposed amendment would also keep the map drawers unaccountable to voters as the commission members would be appointed, ensuring a continuing preference for one political party over the other. For more information, listen to CCV President Aaron Baer break down the issue on The Narrative podcast.
No voter fraud allowed: Continuing a voter-registration database audit that began in May, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose ordered county election boards to purge nearly 500 confirmed non-citizens from their voter rolls ahead of the November 5 General Election.
US
Two extreme: Current Vice President Kamala Harris has officially won the Democratic party nomination for president this fall. Almost immediately after, Harris named Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate. Walz has an extensive history as a radically left governor, including allowing illegal aliens to get driver’s licenses, legalizing recreational marijuana, restricting gun rights, making abortion a “fundamental right,” ensuring dangerous transgender medical procedures on children can continue, permitting destructive riots, and mandating aggressive COVID measures that may have led to the state's nursing home deaths.
Border (out of) control: The US House of Representatives Judiciary Committee has just released a new report on the national security risks associated with the open border, including a 3,000 percent increase in watchlisted terrorist encounters, and more than 7.3 million known illegal aliens who have been intentionally released or are known "gotaways" into the US. In June of this year, eight ISIS terrorists were arrested, with at least four of those being released into the US.
Second chance for South Dakota: The South Dakota Supreme Court has reversed a lower court's earlier decision to dismiss a lawsuit aiming to remove an abortion measure initiative from their November ballot. The case will now proceed, though their Secretary of State has to determine which issues will be on the November ballot by August 13.
Nebraska protects children: Nebraska's Supreme Court upheld their version of the SAFE Act, as well as a measure to limit abortions to the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.
Listen Up
Dr. Jay Richards–Director of the DeVos Center for Life, Religion, and Family at The Heritage Foundation–breaks down Project 2025 and why the left has been so upset over it, how gender ideology attacks what it means to be human, and why he's optimistic that the cultural transgender tide will turn.
Listen anywhere you get your podcasts!
Worldview Development
As a Christian, knowing how to engage in social-political conversations can be hard. Here is our top recommendation this week for developing your worldview to be equipped to tackle today's top issues:
Voting: Lesser of Two Evils vs. Lessening Evil by John Stonestreet
Often, Christians and other citizens of conscience describe voting as choosing between “the lesser of two evils.” My former colleague Kevin Bywater suggests a better approach. Christians, he said, should think of voting as a way of “lessening evil.” Not only does this approach better fit the political realities of our particular context, it recognizes the inherent limits of politics even while maintaining principle. Also, voting to lessen evil acknowledges the moral inadequacies of candidates while still seeking to accomplish good through voting.
Legislative Update
The legislature is still on summer break and won't resume session again until after the November election, so legislation will not move at the Statehouse until then. However, Governor DeWine did sign the RED Act into law!
HB214–The Religious Expression Days (RED) Act
Originally sponsored by Sen. Michele Reynolds (R-Canal Winchester) as SB49, the House version was sponsored by Rep. Adam Holmes (R-Nashport) and requires each public school to adopt a policy that reasonably accommodates the sincerely held religious beliefs and practices of students.
Take a moment to review where all of the CCV-backed bills currently stand in the 135th General Assembly.
View the August 7 Legislative Tracker
Click here to learn how a bill becomes a law in Ohio.
Resources & Opportunities
Vital Signs Ohio Abortion Report
Vital Signs is CCV’s report on the November 2023 election results, the exit poll, and other key abortion-related statistics in Ohio. This report’s purpose is to provide a sober-minded assessment of the state of Ohio’s culture so that all who are concerned about protecting innocent life can begin rebuilding what has been broken. Go to CCV.org/VitalSigns to access the report online.CCV's Nonpartisan Voter Guide–coming next month!
CCV is bringing back our free, nonpartisan voter guide with a new twist to make it even more helpful to know where your candidates stand on a variety of key issues. Keep an eye out for more information in the coming weeks!
Don't Miss
Cleveland Celebration Gala with Kayleigh McEnany
Kayleigh McEnany–former White House Press Secretary during the Trump Administration and current Co-Host of Outnumbered on Fox News–is the keynote for CCV's Cleveland Celebration Gala on Saturday, September 14. Table sponsorships and tickets are available now! Learn more at CCV.org/ClevelandGala.The First Annual Essential Summit
Hosted by CCV, The Essential Summit will take place Thursday, October 3. Join us to hear from speakers like Dr. Ben Carson, Babylon Bee CEO Seth Dillon, Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts, Hillsdale College President Larry Arnn, and more. Get your tickets now at EssentialSummit.org.Ohio March for Life
Co-hosted by CCV and the national March for Life, this annual pro-life protest in the heart of Downtown Columbus will take place Friday, October 4. For more information, go to MarchForLife.org/Ohio.
Prayer
Scripture calls us to pray for those in authority and to have confidence that God hears our prayers. Join the CCV team this week in praying for the below intentions.
Our elected officials: Rep. Kevin Miller (R-Newark), US Rep. Max Miller (R-Rocky River), Rep. Melanie Miller (R-Ashland), Rep. Jessica Miranda (D-Forest Park), Rep. Ismail Mohamed (D-Columbus), Sen. Sandra O'Brien (R-Rome), and Rep. Scott Oelslager (R-Canton).
As we face another crucial election and anticipate millions of dollars pouring into Ohio to manipulate voters, we cannot let the Church's voice be silenced. Pray for the Lord's favor upon CCV's nonpartisan election work to equip Christians to be educated voters.
As Ohio’s largest Christian public policy organization, Center for Christian Virtue seeks the good of our neighbors by advocating for public policy that reflects the truth of the Gospel.
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