DOJ stands against legally immigrating German family seeking political asylum

March 18, 2013

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"Do you have a right to teach your children and raise your children up in the faith of your four fathers? Do you have the right to teach your children the Bible? Do you have the right to teach your children about God and Jesus, or does Penn Jillette which the right to say there is no Jesus, there is no God? Does he have the right and do you have the right to raise your children in your personal faith?" Glenn asked this morning at the start of his radio show.

All questions that, at least in America, seem like they would have a simple answer — yes.

"This gets really tough when you're talking about faith like Westboro Baptist Church. But the Constitution really only matters when it is tough," Glenn continued. "But this is not a case that is tough. This is a story that sounds to me an awful lot like the earliest American story. Our founders, our Founding Fathers and sisters and brothers, they came here for religious freedom. They came here because the old world said you have to be a member of this faith. You have to do it this way. Remember, the old world is where they were burning people at the stake if they thought that you could read the Bible and should be allowed to read the Bible in your own home. That's not your right to read the Bible. That's not your right to print the Bible in your own language. You go to the church which was a combination of the church and the state and you'll get all of the information you need from the church and the State. The pilgrims who were mocked by calling them puritans, "Oh, you're one of those puritans." The pilgrims lost their lives, took any fortune that they might have had, they worked and worked, they were swindled, they were mocked, they were jailed and yet they held their family together and they prayed to God, "Find one place that we will go which a we can be a refuge. Find one place that we can actually stand and just worship God." It is the American story."

The story Glenn is referring to isn't one like the Westboro Baptist Church, where some could make the case you shouldn't raise your kids that way. It's one that involves a Christian family from Germany who immigrated to the United States seeking political asylum, and may soon be deported. This story is about homeschooling.

In Germany you don't have the right to educate your children at home. You don't have a right to educate your children in the way you see fit based on your faith.

"It is the oldest battle, and it is a battle unfortunately that is now raging all around the world," Glenn told his listeners.

The Romeike family are evangelical Christians from Germany who were homeschooling their children because of their religious beliefs. The State told them they couldn't and even threatened that their children would be taken away from them. This is why they came to America.

"They currently live in rural Tennessee. They did it the right way. They have their visas. They came here and asked for political asylum because if they return to Germany, the German state will take their children unless they dump them into the system where they are teaching them things about God that this family disagrees with," Glenn explained.

This family came to America the right way and for the right reasons, yet somehow the current Justice Department is not standing behind them The DOJ is arguing that the German law banning homeschooling does not violate the family's human rights. The Obama administration isn't exactly a "fan" of homeschooling, and Glenn believes that this could lead to things like restricting homeschooling happening in America.

"In other words, your children are not yours; you are not in charge of rearing your children. You are not in charge of raising and teaching your children; the State is. There's nothing that is more un‑American than this. This is truly who we are at the core," Glenn said.

The Constitution protects these rights for Americans — Germany doesn't believe in our system. But, if you're German and you come to America through the front door asking for political asylum because what the Constitution deems to be fundamental rights, America is supposed to defend them. Not with soldiers, but by letting these individuals in our borders.

"We let those people come here and make us stronger because too many of us have forgotten it," Glenn said.

"Homeschooling families in America should be paying attention to this case, but every American should be paying attention to this case because this is the end of America as we know it if our justice department stands and wins. Our justice department is fighting to have the family sent back."

After discussing the controversy, Glenn spoke with Michael Farris, Chairman of the HSLDA (Home School Legal Defense Association). The HSLDA is funding the legal defense against the Justice Department in this case and will soon being giving the oral argument for the family in front of the Sixth Circuit court.

Farris explained just how out-of-step the Justice Departments action on this case are with in comparison to similar cases.

" It's baffling frankly, and no one can figure out why they are so motivated to take this family on, especially because the initial immigration judge ruled in their favor," Michael explained. "That's the toughest hurdle in any immigration case is to win that initial battle. That's kind of the factual battle. Then after that it's, what does the law mean. And they won the factual battle. It's very clear. You know, they're a good, upright family and they were, in fact, homeschooling for religious reasons and the judge said they are being denied religious freedom by the German ban of homeschooling. Interestingly enough, of course, the German law in question was enacted during the Third Reich of Adolf Hitler and the German government hasn't adjusted it."

Michael also explained that if the family is sent back over to Germany they face real trouble. The German government goes after homeschooling families they find in their country.

"There are probably 500 people that are brave enough to even attempt this in Germany," he told Glenn.

"They find you, they jail you, but, you know, ultimately at the end of the day, they remove your children from your custody," he added. " That's the progression. And this family has been fined substantially. Police have shown up at their house and taken their children to the public schools and they were well down the road…the threats were coming that they would remove custody of your family if you don't relent."

Basically Germany's stance is that this if one of the good things Hitler did — although they ignore the fact it derived from when he was in power.

Glenn went on to explain that while some are "baffled" by the Obama administration's reaction to the case, this is a road we've been headed down for awhile.

"As we get into Common Core and we see just the data collection on our children that they are planning, there is no way that homeschooling is going to be allowed, there's no way that this country is going to allow you to deviate and actually raise your children the way you want to raise your children. I mean, it makes sense to me: Isn't the justice department by arguing that the German law banning homeschooling does not violate the family's human rights, doesn't that fundamentally transform the United States of America if they win that battle here? Will they not then have a card and a way to strengthen that argument in later battles against the American people?" Glenn asked.

"Absolutely correct," Michael responded. "Human rights is really equivalent to constitutional rights in this particular context. We will not survive as a nation if the government wins, and it's even more insidious than might be apparent because their contention is not only are parental rights not valid, not only is religious freedom not valid on an individual basis but they really take the position that no individual liberty is the subject of human rights protection. The only thing that qualifies you for asylum, our government is arguing, is if your group is discriminated against. They don't care about individual liberty at all. They write it off in the way they argue this particular case and they say "This family has no liberty because they don't belong to a church that forces them to homeschool. Other Christians don't homeschool in Germany. Other Christians don't homeschool in the United States." And so it's unless some kind of a group, this government doesn't get it. But our law and human rights law is based on two principles: Individual liberty and equal protection. Well, they have just thrown individual liberty out of the equation entirely, both for human rights law and arguably for American law as well. I mean, they are setting a precedent that's incredibly dangerous. They don't really believe in individual liberty and they are doing everything they can to stomp it out."

Glenn's charity, Mercury One, has set up a fund to help support the HSLDA in their defense of the Romeike family. Mercury One will be making a $50,000 donation to their firm. 100% of the proceeds donated to this fund will go directly to the HSLDA. If you would like to donate, you can do so HERE.

How private stewardship could REVIVE America’s wild

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The left’s idea of stewardship involves bulldozing bison and barring access. Lee’s vision puts conservation back in the hands of the people.

The media wants you to believe that Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) is trying to bulldoze Yellowstone and turn national parks into strip malls — that he’s calling for a reckless fire sale of America’s natural beauty to line developers’ pockets. That narrative is dishonest. It’s fearmongering, and, by the way, it’s wrong.

Here’s what’s really happening.

Private stewardship works. It’s local. It’s accountable. It’s incentivized.

The federal government currently owns 640 million acres of land — nearly 28% of all land in the United States. To put that into perspective, that’s more territory than France, Germany, Poland, and the United Kingdom combined.

Most of this land is west of the Mississippi River. That’s not a coincidence. In the American West, federal ownership isn’t just a bureaucratic technicality — it’s a stranglehold. States are suffocated. Locals are treated as tenants. Opportunities are choked off.

Meanwhile, people living east of the Mississippi — in places like Kentucky, Georgia, or Pennsylvania — might not even realize how little land their own states truly control. But the same policies that are plaguing the West could come for them next.

Lee isn’t proposing to auction off Yellowstone or pave over Yosemite. He’s talking about 3 million acres — that’s less than half of 1% of the federal estate. And this land isn’t your family’s favorite hiking trail. It’s remote, hard to access, and often mismanaged.

Failed management

Why was it mismanaged in the first place? Because the federal government is a terrible landlord.

Consider Yellowstone again. It’s home to the last remaining herd of genetically pure American bison — animals that haven’t been crossbred with cattle. Ranchers, myself included, would love the chance to help restore these majestic creatures on private land. But the federal government won’t allow it.

So what do they do when the herd gets too big?

They kill them. Bulldoze them into mass graves. That’s not conservation. That’s bureaucratic malpractice.

And don’t even get me started on bald eagles — majestic symbols of American freedom and a federally protected endangered species, now regularly slaughtered by wind turbines. I have pictures of piles of dead bald eagles. Where’s the outrage?

Biden’s federal land-grab

Some argue that states can’t afford to manage this land themselves. But if the states can’t afford it, how can Washington? We’re $35 trillion in debt. Entitlements are strained, infrastructure is crumbling, and the Bureau of Land Management, Forest Service, and National Park Service are billions of dollars behind in basic maintenance. Roads, firebreaks, and trails are falling apart.

The Biden administration quietly embraced something called the “30 by 30” initiative, a plan to lock up 30% of all U.S. land and water under federal “conservation” by 2030. The real goal is 50% by 2050.

That entails half of the country being taken away from you, controlled not by the people who live there but by technocrats in D.C.

You think that won’t affect your ability to hunt, fish, graze cattle, or cut timber? Think again. It won’t be conservatives who stop you from building a cabin, raising cattle, or teaching your grandkids how to shoot a rifle. It’ll be the same radical environmentalists who treat land as sacred — unless it’s your truck, your deer stand, or your back yard.

Land as collateral

Moreover, the U.S. Treasury is considering putting federally owned land on the national balance sheet, listing your parks, forests, and hunting grounds as collateral.

What happens if America defaults on its debt?

David McNew / Stringer | Getty Images

Do you think our creditors won’t come calling? Imagine explaining to your kids that the lake you used to fish in is now under foreign ownership, that the forest you hunted in belongs to China.

This is not hypothetical. This is the logical conclusion of treating land like a piggy bank.

The American way

There’s a better way — and it’s the American way.

Let the people who live near the land steward it. Let ranchers, farmers, sportsmen, and local conservationists do what they’ve done for generations.

Did you know that 75% of America’s wetlands are on private land? Or that the most successful wildlife recoveries — whitetail deer, ducks, wild turkeys — didn’t come from Washington but from partnerships between private landowners and groups like Ducks Unlimited?

Private stewardship works. It’s local. It’s accountable. It’s incentivized. When you break it, you fix it. When you profit from the land, you protect it.

This is not about selling out. It’s about buying in — to freedom, to responsibility, to the principle of constitutional self-governance.

So when you hear the pundits cry foul over 3 million acres of federal land, remember: We don’t need Washington to protect our land. We need Washington to get out of the way.

Because this isn’t just about land. It’s about liberty. And once liberty is lost, it doesn’t come back easily.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

EXPOSED: Why the left’s trans agenda just CRASHED at SCOTUS

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You never know what you’re going to get with the U.S. Supreme Court these days.

For all of the Left’s insane panic over having six supposedly conservative justices on the court, the decisions have been much more of a mixed bag. But thank God – sincerely – there was a seismic win for common sense at the Supreme Court on Wednesday. It’s a win for American children, parents, and for truth itself.

In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court upheld Tennessee’s state ban on irreversible transgender procedures for minors.

The mostly conservative justices stood tall in this case, while Sotomayor, Kagan, and Jackson predictably dissented. This isn’t just Tennessee’s victory – 20 other red states that have similar bans can now breathe easier, knowing they can protect vulnerable children from these sick, experimental, life-altering procedures.

Anna Moneymaker / Staff | Getty Images

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the majority opinion, saying Tennessee’s law does not violate the Equal Protection Clause. It’s rooted in a very simple truth that common sense Americans get: kids cannot consent to permanent damage. The science backs this up – Norway, Finland, and the UK have all sounded alarms about the lack of evidence for so-called “gender-affirming care.” The Trump administration’s recent HHS report shredded the activist claims that these treatments help kids’ mental health. Nothing about this is “healthcare.” It is absolute harm.

The Left, the ACLU, and the Biden DOJ screamed “discrimination” and tried to twist the Constitution to force this radical ideology on our kids.

Fortunately, the Supreme Court saw through it this time. In her concurring opinion, Justice Amy Coney Barrett nailed it: gender identity is not some fixed, immutable trait like race or sex. Detransitioners are speaking out, regretting the surgeries and hormones they were rushed into as teens. WPATH – the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, the supposed experts on this, knew that kids cannot fully grasp this decision, and their own leaked documents prove that they knew it. But they pushed operations and treatments on kids anyway.

This decision is about protecting the innocent from a dangerous ideology that denies biology and reality. Tennessee’s Attorney General calls this a “landmark victory in defense of America’s children.” He’s right. This time at least, the Supreme Court refused to let judicial activism steal our kids’ futures. Now every state needs to follow Tennessee’s lead on this, and maybe the tide will continue to turn.

Insider alert: Glenn’s audience EXPOSES the riots’ dark truth

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Glenn asked for YOUR take on the Los Angeles anti-ICE riots, and YOU responded with a thunderous verdict. Your answers to our recent Glennbeck.com poll cut through the establishment’s haze, revealing a profound skepticism of their narrative.

The results are undeniable: 98% of you believe taxpayer-funded NGOs are bankrolling these riots, a bold rejection of the claim that these are grassroots protests. Meanwhile, 99% dismiss the mainstream media’s coverage as woefully inadequate—can the official story survive such resounding doubt? And 99% of you view the involvement of socialist and Islamist groups as a growing threat to national security, signaling alarm at what Glenn calls a coordinated “Color Revolution” lurking beneath the surface.

You also stand firmly with decisive action: 99% support President Trump’s deployment of the National Guard to quell the chaos. These numbers defy the elite’s tired excuses and reflect a demand for truth and accountability. Are your tax dollars being weaponized to destabilize America? You’ve answered with conviction.

Your voice sends a powerful message to those who dismiss the unrest as mere “protests.” You spoke, and Glenn listened. Keep shaping the conversation at Glennbeck.com.

Want to make your voice heard? Check out more polls HERE.

EXPOSED: Your tax dollars FUND Marxist riots in LA

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Protesters wore Che shirts, waved foreign flags, and chanted Marxist slogans — but corporate media still peddles the ‘spontaneous outrage’ narrative.

I sat in front of the television this weekend, watching the glittering spectacle of corporate media do what it does best: tell me not to believe my lying eyes.

According to the polished news anchors, what I was witnessing in Los Angeles was “mostly peaceful protests.” They said it with all the earnest gravitas of someone reading a bedtime story, while behind them the streets looked like a deleted scene from “Mad Max.” Federal agents dodged concrete slabs as if it were an Olympic sport. A man in a Che Guevara crop top tried to set a police car on fire. Dumpster fires lit the night sky like some sort of postapocalyptic luau.

If you suggest that violent criminals should be deported or imprisoned, you’re painted as the extremist.

But sure, it was peaceful. Tear gas clouds and Molotov cocktails are apparently the incense and candles of this new civic religion.

The media expects us to play along — to nod solemnly while cities burn and to call it “activism.”

Let’s call this what it is: delusion.

Another ‘peaceful’ riot

If the Titanic “mostly floated” and the Hindenburg “mostly flew,” then yes, the latest L.A. riots are “mostly peaceful.” But history tends to care about those tiny details at the end — like icebergs and explosions.

The coverage was full of phrases like “spontaneous,” “grassroots,” and “organic,” as if these protests materialized from thin air. But many of the signs and banners looked like they’d been run off at ComradesKinkos.com — crisp print jobs with slogans promoting socialism, communism, and various anti-American regimes. Palestinian flags waved beside banners from Mexico, Venezuela, Cuba, and El Salvador. It was like someone looted a United Nations souvenir shop and turned it into a revolution starter pack.

And guess who funded it? You did.

According to at least one report, much of this so-called spontaneous rage fest was paid for with your tax dollars. Tens of millions of dollars from the Biden administration ensured your paycheck funded Trotsky cosplayers chucking firebombs at local coffee shops.

The same aging radicals from the 1970s — now armed with tenure, pensions, and book deals — are cheering from the sidelines, waxing poetic about how burning a squad car is “liberation.” These are the same folks who once wore tie-dye and flew to help guerrilla fighters and now applaud chaos under the banner of “progress.”

This is not progress. It is not protest. It’s certainly not justice or peace.

It’s an attempt to dismantle the American system — and if you dare say that out loud, you’re labeled a bigot, a fascist, or, worst of all, someone who notices reality.

And what sparked this taxpayer-funded riot? Enforcement against illegal immigrants — many of whom, according to official arrest records, are repeat violent offenders. These are not the “dreamers” or the huddled masses yearning to breathe free. These are criminals with long, violent rap sheets — allowed to remain free by a broken system that prioritizes ideology over public safety.

Photo by Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg | Getty Images

This is what people are rioting over — not the mistreatment of the innocent, but the arrest of the guilty. And in California, that’s apparently a cause for outrage.

The average American, according to Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, is supposed to worry they’ll be next. But unless you’re in the habit of assaulting people, smuggling, or firing guns into people’s homes, you probably don’t have much to fear.

Still, if you suggest that violent criminals should be deported or imprisoned, you’re painted as the extremist.

The left has lost it

This is what happens when a culture loses its grip on reality. We begin to call arson “art,” lawlessness “liberation,” and criminals “community members.” We burn the good and excuse the evil — all while the media insists it’s just “vibes.”

But it’s not just vibes. It’s violence, paid for by you, endorsed by your elected officials, and whitewashed by newsrooms with more concern for hair and lighting than for truth.

This isn’t activism. This is anarchism. And Democratic politicians are fueling the flame.