WASHINGTON, D.C. — JULY 13, 2017 — This morning on News One Now, Rev. William Barber, president and senior lecturer of Repairers of the Breach spoke in earnest about his desire that the faith community step up in defending health care. Today, he and several other faith representatives rallied in protest on Capitol Hill, in an effort titled “March To Save Medicaid, Save Lives.”

“What we’re saying today as leaders is that it’s time for clergy to step up on both sides. How can clergy pray for the president yesterday and not say a word about these policies that are preying on the lives of the most vulnerable people?” said Barber of a gathering that occurred Monday in the oval office where clergy members formed a prayer circle and laid hands on President Trump in the Oval Office.

When asked if clergy has the same impact to move Congress as it did in past generations, Barber said yes, but it can’t be done by staying in the pulpit.

“There are 2500 scriptures in the Bible that talk about love, justice, and how you treat the poor. We have theological malpractice and heresy going on by the so-called evangelical right. What we’re talking about is basic orthodox faith stepping back [into] the public square. We’re talking about legislators who basically get free health care because they’re paid by the American people – not wanting the American people to have the same thing that they have. We gotta humanize this. Leaders have a tremendous responsibility to use power to uplift people and not to destroy their lives. This bill is an example of political destruction. We have to stop it.”

Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) who was also a guest on the show, said that support continues to be nonexistent as the GOP prepares to release its revised healthcare bill. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell called for recess to end early so the bill could be re-worked and hopefully passed as soon as possible.

“We’re not hearing from a single republican governor or mayor saying it’s a good thing. In the first 18 days when the senate bill came out, we had nearly 12,000 letters, calls, and emails to our office, and it was running 98 to 2, saying don’t do this. Only 2 percent of the callers were saying support this. This bill has no support other than the end of the fever swamp of a closed door republican meeting, where they’re not even willing to have hearing before the health committee,” said Kaine, a member of the committee itself. “That means we don’t get to put a patient or a doctor, or a small business or a parent with a kid who has a disability in a witness chair and ask them questions about what works, what doesn’t work, and what should be fixed. They’re shutting out the public, they’re shutting out the entire committee process – they’re trying to jam something through that will hurt millions and millions of people and we gotta stop them.”