If the FACE Act Is Abused, Why Is It Still Law?

In May 2023, when Rep. Mike Johnson was still a House member serving as chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, he sounded the alarm. Through a series of hearings, he warned of a real and growing threat: the weaponization of the federal government against the American people. He didn’t treat it as speculation. He treated it as urgent. In those hearings, he declared that “the FACE Act has been stripped of its intent” and was being used “to prosecute pro-life individuals.” He likewise warned that “churchgoers should be able to exercise their First Amendment right to religious freedom at places of worship without being terrorized.”

If the FACE Act has truly been “stripped of its intent,” as Speaker Johnson himself said, then the question is: Why hasn’t it been repealed?

Mike Johnson has been Speaker of the House since October 2023. He holds the gavel. He controls the agenda. Sure, votes are tight, but votes can be won for priority bills. Former Democrat Speaker Nancy Pelosi certainly knew how to do that.

Passed in 1994, the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act was pitched by Democrats as a tool to prevent violence and obstruction at abortion facilities and places of worship equally. The measure was signed into law by Democrat President Bill Clinton to “diffuse the intense anger and animosity” and to encourage people on both sides of the abortion issue to “start listening to each other again and talking with each other again and trying to honestly deal with these problems again.”

Fine sentiments. But under the Biden administration, the FACE Act was used to unfairly and selectively target peaceful pro-life Americans. Parents and pastors like Mark Houck and Paul Vaughn saw their homes and families terrorized by FBI SWAT teams for doing nothing more than praying and living out their convictions.

A newly released, nearly 900-page Department of Justice (DOJ) report brings these concerns into sharp focus. According to the DOJ, FACE Act enforcement patterns suggest a troubling imbalance: disproportionate prosecution of pro-life activists, coordination between federal officials and outside advocacy groups, and even concerns about juror screening based on religious beliefs.

The American justice system cannot survive a double standard. Laws cannot be used as political weapons. But that is what has happened with the FACE Act, which is why it needs to be repealed.

Legislation (H.R. 589) to do that was introduced in January 2025 by Rep. Chip Roy and 42 cosponsors. It passed out of committee in June 2025 by a vote of 13-10. Almost a year later, it has yet to come up for a vote on the House floor.

Republicans still hold the majority. The path forward is not being blocked by procedural moves or by a potential filibuster.

When Democrats held unified power, they didn’t hesitate. Under Nancy Pelosi, they advanced their agenda with discipline and urgency. Speaker Johnson should match that resolve — not to mirror their ideology, but to protect the American people from a law that has been used to punish political opponents and chill constitutionally protected activity.

If Congress is serious about restoring trust, defending civil liberties, and lowering the temperature in an increasingly volatile political climate, it cannot ignore laws, like the FACE Act, that do the opposite.

Without a full repeal, Democrats won’t just deploy the FACE Act against their political enemies — they’ll use it more aggressively, more frequently, and against a broader set of targets to silence dissent. That means more law-abiding citizens facing the weight of federal power for exercising their First Amendment rights.

That is why this moment matters. Hesitate, and we’ll miss it.

Speaker Johnson has already identified the problem. He has already warned about the dangers of weaponized government. He still holds the authority to do something about it, but that window may be closing.

Some will argue that repealing the FACE Act is pointless — that the Senate would never take it up. That may be true. But leadership is not measured by predicting defeat or what you say when you are in the minority. Leadership is measured by what you do when you hold power. It is measured by doing what is right.

A leader who recognizes the danger of a law being used as a political weapon does not wait for permission from the other chamber. He acts. And there is no clearer place to start than by repealing the FACE Act.

READ MORE by Andrea Gomez:

Why Congress Must Act to Halt UN Funding

READ MORE:

New Planned Parenthood Report Has a Disturbing Takeaway

Hawley Pushes Bill to Ban ‘Inherently Dangerous’ Abortion Pill Nationwide

Aundrea Gomez is a policy research associate for AFA Action, the government affairs affiliate of American Family Association.

By kevin