Praying for Our Leaders in Government
Executive Branch: Pray for the President and his Administration
At a global climate summit hosted by President Biden, the U.S. joined other attending nations in renewing their commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The president unveiled the goal to cut emissions by 50 percent. The summit kicked off Earth Day and was attended virtually by leaders of 40 countries, including China, India, and Russia.
Climate Envoy John Kerry said the U.S. will join an international effort to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 in the global shipping industry. “We’re going to look to the ocean to continue to help reduce pollution,” he said. Governments and the private sector must work together on all climate issues, he said.
Pray for the leaders in the administration who are dealing with issues of climate and the environment.
Legislative Branch: Pray for Senators and Representatives in Congress
Representative Lisa McClain of Michigan said that she is deeply concerned that the federal government is not doing enough to address human trafficking at the border. She added that some of the policies may be inadvertently benefiting human traffickers by resettling migrant children. After touring a holding facility in her home state, she said, “What I saw, quite honestly, was sophisticated, organized illegal immigration. I chose those words very, very carefully because the system and the process that I observed was unbearable.” Her office said the facility she toured is one of more than 200 facilities housing 19,789 unaccompanied alien children across America.
A counter-proposal to the president’s infrastructure plan has been released by legislators in the Senate’s minority party. It proposes a $568 billion infrastructure program that includes spending on highways, roads, transit systems, and broadband internet over five years but does not provide specifics on costs. The proposal calls for collecting user fees for electric vehicles and repurposing existing federal spending. The administration’s $2.3 trillion plan proposed tax increases on businesses.
Pray for more cooperation between members of the House and Senate as they work on legislation critical to America’s wellbeing.
Judicial Branch: Pray for Supreme Court Justices and Federal Judges
The Supreme Court reduced the Federal Trade Commission’s ability to seek monetary rewards in courts, restricting a legal tool the consumer protection agency has often used to collect funds in fraud cases. The court was unanimous in its decision but did leave the door open for the FTC to seek restitution for consumers, but not directly through federal courts.
A three-judge panel of the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a district court must consider giving faith-based hospitals and doctors an exemption from a mandate requiring them to perform elective sex-change operations under the Affordable Care Act. The panel remanded the case back to the district court level, although they did not rule on the merits of the litigation. The regulation under consideration requires healthcare providers to perform gender transition procedures, including on minors, even if they held religious objections.
Pray for the Supreme Court justices as they accept or reject cases for the fall term. Pray that courts at every level will rule according to the Bill of Rights in matters of religious liberty.
