Religious liberty becomes a main focus for conservatives in Supreme Court nomination – The Washington Post

Raymond Kethledge, one of President Trump’s finalists for the U.S. Supreme Court, has never explicitly stated his views on abortion or same-sex marriage. But he has spoken loudly on an issue that is just as important to conservative court-watchers.In April, Kethledge ruled in favor of Cathedral Buffet, a church-run Ohio restaurant being sued by the government because of claims that congregants were “spiritually coerced” by their pastor to work without pay. Kethledge went further than his fellow judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit in arguing that the restaurant’s Christian affiliation shielded it from federal labor laws.While liberals are working to define Trump’s second nomination to the high court as an epic battle over the future of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling that cemented abortion rights, conservatives inside and outside the White House have embraced the broader issue of religious freedom as a central priority and are assiduously probing judges’ sympathies in cases such as the one involving Cathedral Buffet.

Source: Religious liberty becomes a main focus for conservatives in Supreme Court nomination – The Washington Post