A War of Choice

Excellent article from Joseph Bottum for Weekly Standard; click Title for full article

A War of Choice: The Little Sisters of the Poor are headed to the Supreme Court this year, seeking escape from the contraception mandates of Obamacare — under which they fall, the government claims, as insurance providers for the employees in their nursing homes. The Justice Department is fighting the Little Sisters tooth and nail, determined not to allow them to evade the law's requirements, because .  .  . because .  .  .
Um, in truth, the Obama administration has never made entirely clear why it's so desperate to rope nuns into bureaucratic schemes for providing contraception. After all, the administration has let other organizations slip through the cracks. Unions have their exemptions, Congress has its exemptions, and the politically connected seem able to get Obamacare waivers for the price of a postage stamp. Nearly every other party who asked for protection from the mandate has been given it, says Mark Rienzi, a senior counsel for the Becket Fund. It made no sense for the Little Sisters to be singled out for fines and punishment. .  .  . The government has lots of ways to deliver contraceptives to people — it doesn't need to force nuns to participate.