Despite claiming to be an advocate for constitutionally-guaranteed religious freedom, Jody Hice, a Southern Baptist minister and Republican House of Representatives candidate from Georgia, has said that Islam should not be protected by the First Amendment, as it is not a true religion.
According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Hice said in his 2012 book “It’s Now or Never” that “Although Islam has a religious component, it is much more than a simple religious ideology. It is a complete geo-political structure and, as such, does not deserve First Amendment protection.”
Hice, who also hosts a syndicated talk-radio show, said, “Most people think Islam is a religion, It’s not. It’s a totalitarian way of life with a religious component. But it’s much larger. It’s a geo-political system that has governmental, financial, military, legal and religious components. And it’s a totalitarian system that encompasses every aspect of life and it should not be protected [under U.S. law].”
Founder of The Cultures and Values Network, which claims its purpose is to “confront our society and engage in America’s cultural war focusing primarily on moral, constitutional and religious liberties issues,” Hice also believes the Muslim Brotherhood are trying to infiltrate the United States and impose Sharia law on its citizens, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
In 2011, The Citizen quoted Hice at an event sponsored by the Coweta County Tea Party Patriots as saying “It’s about controlling your behavior, when and where you can worship and legal issues. The number one threat is to our worldview and whether we chunk it for secularism or Islam.”
Hice also told The Athens Banner Hearald in 2004 that he had no problem with women in positions of political power, as long as “the woman’s within the authority of her husband.” He believes that homosexuals are trying to convert today’s youth to homosexuality and that “homosexuals have a right to be married; they just don’t have the right to marry each other” according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
These comments are just another example of the Republican party veering even further to the extreme right, and how the GOP has been hijacked by the Tea Party. By alienating Muslims, homosexuals, and even women, Hice proves that the GOP is only here to work for like-minded white, Christian males.
