For the last three years, right-wing Christian groups have been distributing Bibles to students in the Orange County, Florida, public schools system every January on "National Freedom of Religion Day." This year, after atheist groups and Satanists sought to likewise distribute materials to students, the school system suspended the program and Glenn Beck is predictably furious.
On his television program last night, Beck insisted that not allowing Christianity to have a preferred place in American society is a violation of the very principles upon which this nation was founded.
"We are clearly a Judeo-Christian nation," he said while warning that society has now begun to "coddle those who disagree with Judeo-Christian values."
"We are becoming openly hostile to our own foundation," Beck said. "We have tolerated and excused and embraced the ideals that are in direct opposition to our founding principles."
After slamming the Florida school system for not even having "enough spine left to stand up to Satanists," Beck insisted that this is not an issue of equal treatment or free speech.
"We lie to ourselves and we say it's our principles, we believe in free speech," he said. "It's not our principles of free speech. This is national suicide":