Carnage In Charleston 

Last night, Dylann Storm Roof walked into the Emmanuel AME church in Charleston, South Carolina, during a Wednesday evening Bible study. According to a church elder, Roof was there "not so much as a participant, but as a brief observer who then stood up and then started shooting."

Nine people were killed, including the church's pastor, State Senator Clementa Pinckney. A five year-old girl reportedly survived the attack by pretending to be dead. Thankfully, this thug, with two prior convictions for drugs and trespassing, is now in police custody. 

Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church was founded in 1816. In 1822, it was burned by rioters who feared its pastor, Denmark Vesey, was plotting a slave revolt. The church was rebuilt, destroyed by an earthquake and rebuilt again. 

Just as it has overcome so much adversity in the past, I am confident that this congregation, secure in the love of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, will overcome this tragedy.

The murders last night were horrifying, no matter where they happened. But taking place in a church, where people were praying and studying God's word, makes them even more horrendous. 

Police are calling the murders a hate crime and few would dispute that -- not only because of Roof's racial bigotry, but because of his religious bigotry. Roof didn't target just blacks. He targeted Christians in a historic church as they were studying the Bible and praying. 

Please join me in prayer for the victims' families, the community of Charleston, the state of South Carolina and this hurting nation, whose founders hoped would be one nation under God. 

Save The Whales, Kill The Babies? 

Pope Francis' encyclical on climate change has been released. In the days ahead, I'll talk with Catholic scholars to more fully understand all its implications. As you know, the pope has weighed in on the idea that the climate is changing because of man-made activity. 

The usual anti-Catholic left was celebrating its new ally earlier this week when selected portions of the draft were leaked. But some left-wing activists may be doing a double-take right now because Pope Francis did not limit his remarks to climate change. 

For example, the pope wrote that you cannot be in favor of saving the planet and worried about what is happening to various animal species while at the same time embracing the idea that unborn babies can be disposed of for the sake of convenience. Consider these excerpts:
 

"A sense of deep communion with the rest of nature cannot be real if our hearts lack tenderness, compassion and concern for our fellow human beings. . . . At times we see an obsession with denying any pre-eminence to the human person; more zeal is shown in protecting other species than in defending the dignity which all human beings share. . . . 

"How can we genuinely teach the importance of concern for other vulnerable beings, however troublesome or inconvenient they may be, if we fail to protect a human embryo, even when its presence is uncomfortable and creates difficulties?"

Sidney Strikes Out 

Members of Congress heard nine hours of testimony Tuesday from Clinton confidant Sidney Blumenthal as part of the ongoing investigation into the Benghazi scandal. Blumenthal recently surrendered scores of emails he sent to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, which Rep. Trey Gowdy said were entirely new. 

In other words, they had not been previously turned over by the State Department or Mrs. Clinton in response to prior requests or subpoenas. Strike one! 

Not all of the information came solely from Blumenthal. Some so-called intelligence memos forwarded by Blumenthal to then-Secretary Clinton were reportedly written by former CIA agent Tyler Drumheller. According to Rep. Gowdy, Drumheller "may have had a financial interest" in Libya. 

Gowdy continued: "Anytime someone has a financial interest, then you need to look at the material . . . their interest in the outcome with scrutiny. [Hillary] couldn't do it and [Blumenthal] couldn't do it. So, how did they vet the information that was being passed on to our top diplomat?" Strike two! 

Moreover, others contained crucially important information, such as the suspected whereabouts of Libyan dictator Moammar Gaddafi. That clearly indicates that Hillary Clinton was getting very sensitive information on her private email server -- precisely the kind of information that requires the use secured government servers. Strike three! 

The former secretary of state's use of a personal email server fits the cavalier attitude of this administration toward national security. Not only was she conducting a rogue operation outside the rules of normal government channels, it's also obvious from the massive hack at the Office of Personnel Management that the Obama Administration has been asleep at the wheel in safeguarding government data. 

Here's some irony: If there's another "Edward Snowden" lurking in the government hoping to expose our secrets, it may be impossible for that leaker to come up with secrets that our enemies don't already have!