Any Baptists in Texas, You Ask?
Well hell, yeah.
Williamson County – north of Austin – is one of the reddest places in Texas, so they get away with crap you wouldn’t believe even if you saw it with your own eyes.
When Robert Lloyd applied for a job at the Williamson County Precinct 3 Constable’s Office, he was quizzed about his stand on gay marriage and abortion. Yeah. Constables serve civil lawsuit papers. They do not perform weddings or abortions.
Robert Lloyd was plenty pissed off.
“I was shocked,” Lloyd said, according to KVUE. “I was sick to my stomach when I left because I had never believed that things like this in government would go on.”
Lloyd’s lawyer, Wayne Krause Yang, asserted at the press conference that the commissioners refused to hire applicants who were not Baptists.
“If you don’t go to the church that they go to, you can’t have a job as a public employee in Williamson County,” Yang noted.
The commissioners have already spent $200,000 fighting for their right to hire only Baptist because, well, you know, Presbyterians are so notoriously sinful.
They are trying to deny that’s what happened.
It’s on damn tape. And one of them is proudly admitting it.
Video depositions obtained by KVUE show Williamson County Commissioner Lisa Birkman and other commissioners admitting that applicants were asked about abortion and marriage.
“I asked a question on their view on gay marriage to all the applicants for Precinct 3 Constable and their view on abortion,” Birkman says in her deposition.
I was kinda glad to see this made the news today because I made plans yesterday to go help the Williamson County Democratic Party raise money next month. Drop by if you want to. My friend Dr. Karen Carter, the Party chairman, is relentless fighting Republicans.
Thanks to Laurel for the heads up.
Nice violation of federal law.
1US Constitution, Article 6: “… no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.”
Guess they don’t feel bound to agree with the Constitution on that one.
And they’ve spent $200,000 of *whose* money defending this so far?
2The irony is strong with this one. Baptists were the reason that separation of church and state was in the first ammendment in the first place.
3Don’t know whether to pray for the Rapture or ask God to smite them.
4Trying to consolidate church and state, is gonna be like pushing that poor camel through the eye of the needle for another go after the rich folks tried it. Camel took a beating the first time around so those Southern Texas Southern Baptists might feel like they have a head start considering the critter is a little more bendy and pliable at this juncture.
5I know this is trivial – but I am worried about Lisa’s hair. Too bad she won’t be able to get JJ to help with it.
6Rhea, they rewrite the Constitution to suit themselves. Mucah as they do with the Bible.
Lucy, my own theory is the the Rapture is specifically designed to remove these people so the rest of us can live in Heaven on earth.
7Lucy,
8Smite them.
This country would be a nicer place.
The rest of us could then concentrate on the economy, the poor and global warming.
I looked at her hair and I think she has had it Trumpafied. The front flippy-do has sagged a bit but you can still make out the sad remains. At least the color has stayed true to form and is as brassy as The Donald’s ownself is
9I know it’s Texas, but how the heck do they get away with that?
10Have there not been lawsuits or penalties imposed? Time for a class action, doncha think?
Come on out to Klein ISD. The Champion Forest Baptist Church and the Mormons run it. I was surprised when a trustee decided not to run against. He posted his announcement on the ISD site. He, a lawyer, said this seat I am leaving is a Mormon seat. The Mormon lost to the Baptist. The district had no place to hold large meetings for years. They leased the church. Talk about incestuous. At a meeting to discuss hiring a new superintendent years ago, the Pastor Emeritus kept referring to the new hire as he. DH asked if he included women. He responded that he would never consider a woman for that job.
11an to be superintendent. We left the meeting stunned.
I try very hard to not make negative comments about someone’s appearance when I disagree with their opinions….but damn…that is a bad hairstyle.
12Black hair, streaked with grey, spruced up with a screaming yellow (not blonde mind you —yellow!) plume. And butch cut to boot. There have got to be tattoos there somewhere. And maybe membership in a biker bar. And yeah, she locks and loads. Lovely. Praise Jesus!!
13AliceBeth, if you can’t(in your most sincerest,religiousest beliefs) say something nice about someone,by all means say something nasty. They would. You have my permission. 🙂
14Cheryl,
Ain’t no hair do from any beauty salon gonna fix Lisa’s sour puss.
Not even a high-end plastic surgeon (are there any low dollar plastic surgeons?) could do much with that theocratic beotch’s ‘shoulders up’ appendages, cheeks, jowls, whatever, blecchhh.
It might take a guillotine to fix that one (only snarking that because I know damn well (like somebody remarked) that if these theocratic mofo’s ever gain complete control of our nation they will begin an Inquisition and beyond like never before).
15They wouldn’t hire applicants who weren’t Baptists? Actually that is pretty liberal.
Real wing-nuts wouldn’t hire applicants who weren’t the right sort of Baptists.
16I’m in favor of the Rapture, myself. If their God smites them they might just hang around all smitten and such. And griping about it. And blaming Obama. Let them be Raptured and out of our hair already!
17two crows, if only! This part of the world sure would be a better place/
18Old Mayfly, “Real wing-nuts wouldn’t hire applicants who weren’t the right sort of Baptists,” I nearly died laughing, but then I remembered living in Texas. Then I remembered I moved to Georgia, then I cried.
19Sandridge, there are low dollar plastic surgeons. You can tell by the square boob jobs they do.
I think Idaho is right down there with the church is the state thing. For years, federal dollars have been used to build onto public schools largely for Mormon usage.
And of Mitt had made the White House, its a good bet that he wouldn’t have done a thing about that situation except blow it off.
20According to the Williamson County Sun, Senior U.S. DistrictJudge David Ezra in the Austin Division of the Western District of Texas, on Sept. 2 denied the county’s request to dismiss this civil suit, which clears the case to go to trial at some point. In the story in its Sunday eEdition, the Sun reports:
“County commissioners have said that, due to the political nature of the constable post, the candidates’ views on such charged topics were important because whoever was eventually selected would have to run for re-election …
“… Two other plaintiffs, Fred Churchill and Robert Goodrich, settled with the county in January for a combined sum of $100,000.”
This action has been grinding along since 2013. http://www.statesman.com/news/news/local-govt-politics/lawsuit-pending-over-williamson-county-constable-i/nXyj7/
Since the Texas Civil Rights Project is pursuing this particular suit on Lloyd’s behalf, we can expect that the county commissioners won’t get off with a pre-trial settlement to make it disappear.
Good, because the commissioners have done so many things wrong by inserting both the religious and political tests into the employment process. One has to wonder if their lawyers are as mentally defective as the numbnuts advocating for Kim Davis in Kentucky. The commissioners and the airheads representing them deserve a real good bitch-slap at the hands of the federal bench.
21In retrospect I realize that the term “bitch slap” has unintended gender connotations, so I’ll try to eliminate that from my vocabulary in the future. Instead, let me say that I hope the judge kicks these dummies’ asses up around their ears.
22As Molly Ivins once said, the trouble with baptists is they didn’t hold them under long enough. Oh, how I miss her.
23the photo caption
well when the baptists quit hanging quakers in boston they were left with a large pool of aggression that eventually came to texas. religious oppression is the hallmark of proper government. and proper, severely repressed, government can be orgasmic, check the stock of whips and chains in those baptist basements. the handcuffs are free from the county.
24Well, the Methodists should feel discriminated against. On the other hand, I don’t know if any Methodists would be willing to go to work with yellow feathers in her hair.
25Just out of curiosity,
Do Baptists usually come in more than one color, or ancestry from south of the Rio Grande?
26I thought this was all supposed to be settled earlier this year.
http://kxan.com/2015/01/30/williamson-co-settles-suit-over-controversial-hiring-practices/
27@Alan. It ain’t over till the fat lady sings. Or in this case the fat commissioner.
28Leave the hairdo alone. Perhaps she was aiming at an “undercover” assignment. She would fit right in, raiding the trailer parks.
29This demos Jefferson’s worse decisions…to allow state power, and remember that quoted amendment is FEDERAL not states or cities. When a religion gains enough power you have a theocracy. Iran, midEast, or texas; isLame or Slaves O’jesus it is all the same basic bigoted Sorry-ass Law. And because of the bigotry I have no problem faking xtian as I will try hard to get the same benefits as lying is not against my morals.
30There are quite a few automobile dealers in Williamson County. Specifically in Georgetown And Round Rock. Consumers in Austin and other cities should consider shopping elsewhere for their vehicles. Why pay considerable taxes and fees to Williamson county to continue fighting to keep religious bigotry alive. Let the residents of Williamson County bear the brunt of the insanity on the part of their County Commission. They elected them.
31And, incidentally, this was the situation years and years ago in Canada. Toronto was blatantly known as a Protestant city. Montreal & Quebec were Catholic. If you were not a part of the dominant crowd, your luck at getting ahead in business or any other trade or profession was rather poor. But as I said, that was years ago and since then the lessons have been learned and there was a lot of growing up. Is this too much to ask of Williamson or any other biased place?
32But Maggie, THAT is CANADA.
33Of course if your aren’t a member of their church and they accidentally hire you, you will probably eat your own shoes in frustration while on the job.
34Don’t forget those pinko-commie methodists, all they want to do is subvert or way of life & make liquor illegal . . . . oh, wait . . . .
35All I can think to myself is, “Of all the GD nerve those knuckle draggers have.”
36maggie,
37I guess I didn’t get around enough, never ran across any square ones…
Dayum! I wonder if her keys ever get picked up at one of those secret Baptist Key parties??
38And to think I wanted a job there…wow. A shout out to Karen Carter, a voice of sanity.
39