ERLC’s Public Policy Priorities for 2021

Public policy advocacy is one of the many ways the ERLC fulfills its ministry in the public square. We recently released our 2021 Legislative Agenda, which focuses on more than three dozen policy issues we will advocate before the U.S. Congress.

Below is a sample of our policy priorities in the areas of sanctity of human life, religious liberty, family and marriage, justice, and international engagement.

Some of these issues have been a part of the ERLC’s legislative agenda for the last several years; other issues are new and a product of the political moment in which we find ourselves. Legislatively, with two surprise results in the Georgia senatorial runoff elections, both chambers of Congress will be controlled by the Democratic Party during the 117th Congress, although with razor-thin margins. The Senate is divided 50-50 between the party caucuses, with Vice President Kamala Harris breaking any ties. In the House, the Democratic Party holds control by a handful of votes.

Although Senate Democrats will have some procedural tools to pass legislation on partisan lines, broadly speaking, only legislation with substantial bipartisan consensus will be able to pass both chambers and be signed by President Biden. It will therefore be difficult to pass legislation within many of the areas of most concern for the ERLC, which do not enjoy broad bipartisan support, such as protecting the human dignity of the preborn, religious liberty, and comprehensive immigration reform. Nevertheless, the ERLC will work to advance and make progress on our public policy agenda in these divided times at the federal level.

This Week at the ERLC

What You Need to Read

When President Washington voluntarily gave up the presidency after two terms in office, he began a tradition, now enshrined in the Constitution, to which the world was left in wonderment. This peaceful transfer of power reminds every American watching that the presidency is, above all, a stewardship. And in this stewardship, leaving is just as important as entering. This is a virtue at the heart of our republic.

The progressive policies favored by the new administration concerning human sexuality are distressing to us. And they should be. As Christians we believe that God, at creation, established a pattern for human life. That pattern is clear and easily discerned. He made us male and female, which is to say that he made each person male or female (Gen. 1:27). For Christians, the Bible’s anthropology correlates directly with our lived experience in the world in terms of sex and gender. Sex is tied to biology; gender is tied to sex. And none of these things are fungible.

It might seem like our isolation is out of our control, but we can be purposeful about escaping our online bubbles. We don’t need the world to go back to normal to change the way we interact with others. In an online world designed to pull us apart, let’s choose to break out of our bubbles. In 2021, let’s scroll less and talk more. We might “like” fewer posts, but we’ll be free to love more people in the real world.

News From Capitol Hill

On Wednesday, Joseph R. Biden, Jr. was sworn in as the 46th President of the United States. President Biden immediately began signing a flurry of executive orders (EOs), memoranda, directives, and letters. These actions came in a week when the United States surpassed 400,000 lives lost to COVID-19. On that note, President Biden made clear with a memorial Tuesday night that combatting the pandemic is the top priority for his administration.

In a new piece on President Biden’s first week of executive actions, the ERLC's public policy team discusses a few of the actions taken Wednesday and those expected soon. The list of administrative actions related to the ERLC's work includes:

Every election brings new opportunities and new challenges. The ERLC will continue to work with the executive branch to advance issues of concern to Southern Baptists and will bear witness to policies pursued by the government that run contrary to biblical principles.

At the start of a new presidency and new Congress, stay up to date with the ERLC’s work in Washington, D.C. by signing up for the weekly Policy Newsletter at ERLC.com/policy.

Featured Podcasts

This week on WeeklyTech, Jason Thacker is joined by David French, the senior editor at The Dispatch and a columnist for Time. French discusses his new book Divided We Fall: America’s Secession Threat and How to Restore Our Nation and the role of social media in the divisions we face.

On Capitol Conversations, Jeff Pickering, Chelsea Patterson Sobolik, and Travis Wussow reflect on two historic Wednesdays at the U.S. Capitol and what it all means for our democracy, our public policy work, and for Christians in the public square.

From The Public Square

Biden picks transgender doctor as assistant health secretary
Politico

President-elect Joe Biden on Tuesday nominated Pennsylvania health secretary Rachel Levine for assistant secretary of health at HHS, making her the first openly transgender federal official to be up for Senate confirmation.

U.S. officially declares China's human rights abuses against Uighurs a genocide
Tim O'Donnell, The Week

The United States on Tuesday officially declared China's campaign against Uighurs, a predominantly Muslim ethnic group, as well as other ethnic and religious minorities in the western Xinjiang province, a genocide.

Massachusetts Legislature Overrides Governor’s Veto, Allowing Minors to Obtain Abortions without Parental Consent
Alexandra Desanctis, National Review

It’s little surprise that even a lawmaker who supports legal abortion might have a problem with the ROE Act, which has made Massachusetts one of the most permissive states in the country when it comes to abortion policy.

Polarized Americans Still Support Religious Freedom
Jayson Casper, Christianity Today

Survey sets benchmarks to measure US commitment to First Amendment rights.