Why it matters: Trump is steadily rolling back Obama-era nondiscrimination policies across the entire federal government - including health care, housing and the military.
Details: Obama banned adoption and foster-care agencies from receiving federal funding if they refused to work with same-sex couples. Religious organizations have consistently bristled at that policy, arguing that they're being forced to contradict their beliefs.
- Administration officials said the White House is weighing two options: either rescinding those rules altogether, or adding an explicit exemption for religious organizations.
- The debate is mainly about which approach would hold up better in court, the officials said. A religious exemption seems to have the upper hand for now, but that could change.
- The process is now far enough along that an announcement could happen by early July, the officials said.
- The director of that office, Roger Severino, would not directly address questions about the adoption policy during a brief interview, pointing instead to other actions his office has already taken.
- Just this morning, OCR said it will scrap an Obama-era policy that says doctors can't discriminate against transgender patients. (That policy had already been frozen by a federal judge.) It has also expanded health care workers' legal right to refuse to perform services that violate their religious beliefs.
Comment: A number of US states have already taken the lead in allowing religious exemptions for adoptions. And judging from the recent Supreme Court ruling, there is support for faith-based objections to forced obeisance to all 'nondiscrimination' rules.