Ave Maria

domino's pizza

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“Convenient mythologies require neither evidence nor logic.” —*Edward S. Herman, “Manufactured Consent: The Political Economy of Mass Media”

In a number of articles on its website, PEN America explains in striking detail the right-wing Trojan horse of “parental rights,” illuminating the threat caused by policymakers focused on this theater in the culture war.

PEN — which has gained a global reputation for standing “at the intersection of literature and human rights to protect free expression in the United States and worldwide” — argues that “parents’ rights” is not a source of freedom as claimed, but the crux of an ideological rigidity exercised by MAGA Republicans.

Replace the terms “books” and “literature” with “vaccinations” in the narratives, and the poisonous effects of “parents’ rights” and “medical freedom” on Florida’s public health system becomes clear.

Under the guise of “freedom,” the DeSantis administration including Surgeon General Joe Ladapo has established policies that have directly contributed to the measles outbreak that has spread across the state.

Yet, despite the proliferation of this disease, which has placed Florida fourth in the United States with 152 confirmed cases in 2025-26 and 145 confirmed cases so far this year, state officials have acted as if “there’s nothing to see here.”

Collier County is the center of an outbreak that began in January at Ave Maria University. The number of reported cases out of Collier has remained steady at 106, with most cases affecting those aged 15 to 24. According to the Florida Department of Health, Florida is up to 150 cases this year as of the week ending May 2. Officials note that there is “a continuing slowdown in infections after outbreaks earlier this year.”

Contagion

Measles is one of the most contagious communicable diseases on record. With the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine, measles is easy to control. The MMR vaccine is credited with saving the lives of millions of people globally over the past 50 years.

Traditional medical experts warn that unvaccinated children need to stay home after measles exposure to stop transmission of this highly contagious disease. If not, chances of a prolonged outbreak increase significantly. Among unvaccinated people, nine of 10 who’re exposed will get infected.

Gov. Ron DeSantis, Republican legislators, and some health officials might have avoided the outbreak had they treated it as a strictly health-related issue not a politically charged one. And if DeSantis and Ladapo weren’t so cavalier about tossing around inaccurate data, taking problems out of context, or selectively presenting information, Florida wouldn’t be in this situation.

Experts point to vaccine hesitancy and fear sown by MAGA Republicans as reasons why fewer parents are interested in vaccinating their children. According to Politico, vaccine hesitancy has “evolved into a central pillar of the MAGA movement’s health policy, often blending medical skepticism with a desire to dismantle public health regulations.”

Skepticism of COVID-19 vaccines, and a growing distrust of traditional childhood vaccines, are “closely tied to the “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) agenda led by figures such as Robert F. Kennedy Jr.,” Politico writes.

The publication cites a 2023 Morning Consult poll showing that “as the number of voters more doubtful of vaccines has risen — despite scientific evidence that they’re safe and effective — it has come almost exclusively from one political party. While opposition to more established vaccines is still far from a majority position among Republicans, significant numbers question their safety and say Americans shouldn’t be encouraged to get them.”

Hubris

Katelyn Jetelina and Kristen Panthagani capture perfectly the hubris surrounding Florida’s widening measles epidemic.

Jetelina, an epidemiologist, and Panthagani, an emergency physician at Yale University, have written that by ignoring common sense and medical advice, Florida’s health officials risk a mushrooming measles outbreak. Negligence by Lapado, DeSantis, and the MAHA crew has endangered citizens and inflamed the outbreak.

“This is happening in a state with a growing skepticism of vaccinations and an ongoing debate between individualism and the good of the larger population that came to a head during the COVID pandemic,” the authors write in a 2024 opinion piece in Scientific American.

“But containing measles, which can spread quickly, should not be up for debate. Yet this is what is happening in Florida, and it’s putting children’s health at risk.”

A 2025 study from the Cureus Journal of Science and Medicine, published in PubMed, examines how “declining vaccine uptake and growing vaccine hesitancy created pockets of susceptibility that enabled the outbreak.”

DeSantis and Lapado are vigorously pushing to make it easier for parents to opt their children out of mandatory school vaccines — a proposal the Florida House refused to pass in the 2026 regular session and the just-completed special session.

‘Parental rights’

“Since 2021, the Sunshine State has led the country in advancing the parental rights agenda. Contrary to its name, this agenda has used fuzzy, coded language to manufacture moral panic, and to deliver control over what students can read and learn in schools not into the hands of all parents but to a particular segment of citizens — some not even parents but community members,” PEN America officials and researchers said.

“The cumulative effect has been to privilege some parents’ ideological preferences above all others, tie the hands of educators, and limit students’ access to information through curricular prohibitions and book bans.”

The same dynamic applies to health care and vaccines.

In its report on “parental rights” legislation, PEN cautioned that despite the fact that encouraging greater parental involvement in schools can seem like common sense, “these bills have an ulterior motive driving them: to empower a vocal and censorship-minded minority with greater opportunity to scrutinize public education and intimidate educators with threats of punishment.”

In Florida, the DeSantis administration and Republicans in the Legislature have taken up the battle cry. Ladapo and DeSantis announced in a press conference their intention of eliminating childhood vaccine mandates. Medical experts note that all 50 states enforce childhood vaccine mandates, with all states allowing medical exemptions and more than half — including Florida — allowing religious exemptions

Lyndon Haviland of the CUNY School of Public Health and Health Policy blames the “perfect storm” of vaccine skepticism, failed leadership, and broken trust as the core reasons for the outbreak.

The eruption of measles in Texas, Florida, and elsewhere, she contends, aren’t isolated events.

Manufactured distrust

“Cases have also surfaced in Alaska, California, New Mexico, New York City, Georgia, Rhode Island, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Concern that reports will continue to grow is rising,” she writes.

“It’s especially worrisome considering that the measles virus was completely eliminated in the U.S. as recently as the year 2000. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention attributed this achievement to a “highly effective vaccine program in the United States, as well as better measles control in the Americas region.”

So, how did we get here?

“The answer: distrust. Distrust in health experts, who years ago were revered as national authorities on serious medical issues. Distrust in public health agencies, the CDC, and the Food and Drug Administration specifically, once respected as credible information resources. Distrust in the strength and rigor of vaccine testing protocols, the pharmaceutical industry itself and the broader politicization of public health.”

Haviland and other health experts fear ‘America, which was once considered a world leader in public health, has lost decades of progress in preventing the spread of a deadly disease with a provably safe therapy that has successfully saved millions of American lives.”

The focus on vaccine hesitancy “underplays the significant backlash against vaccines and the flood of anti-vaccine misinformation to which many Americans have been subjected,” Haviland continues.

“The reality is that Americans are increasingly adopting a more dismissive mindset in the way they view vaccine efficacy. Skepticism, rather than hesitancy, is a more accurate term to describe America’s perception of vaccines — and it shows no sign of slowing down.”

A certain arrogance

There is a certain arrogance the MAGA multitude carry. They act as though they have a direct line to God and the divine right to determine what’s best for the rest of us. Hence, the series of seemingly endless toxic, selfish crusades that former youth pastor and author John Pavlovitz argues “amplify baseless anti-science propaganda.”

This poisonous mindset has a human cost. Almost 90,000 people in the Sunshine State have died because of COVID; others have succumbed to preventable diseases like the flu.

There’s no telling when this measles outbreak will end but many in health circles and elsewhere will not stop fighting to protect America’s people against this destructive public health crisis.

Kevin Griffis, the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy’s director for media relations and public affairs, in an April 22 opinion piece wrote, “Americans can handle hard truths. What they should not have to tolerate is selective concern dressed up as science. … Public health depends on trust. Trust depends on honesty.”

“When the nation’s top health official pretends otherwise — or claims ignorance when it is politically convenient, so as not to raise the ire of MAHA activists — it is not public health leadership. It is yet another example of politics and ideology trumping evidence.”

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About the Author

Matt Schlapp is married to Mercedes Schlapp, and they are raising five daughters outside of Washington, DC. Matt is Chairman of CPAC, which hosts the largest annual political conference in America and has brought CPAC to Japan, Australia, Korea, and Brazil, with plans to ramp up in Jerusalem, Hungary, and many other countries. CPAC scores the votes of all elected legislators and engages in politics and media regularly. Schlapp is a conservative voice who battles on all major media platforms and advises conservative elected offices across the country.

Deal W. Hudson, PhD, is the host of Church and Culture on the Ave Maria Radio Network. Hudson is the former editor ofCrisis Magazineand former head of Catholic Outreach for the presidential campaigns of George W. Bush.A convert to Catholicism at the age of thirty-four, Hudson taught philosophy for fifteen years before entering the world of Catholic publishing and politics.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ TAN Books (February 22, 2022)

Feb 19, 2022Matt Schlapp, chair of the American Conservative Union, has written a new book called "The Desecrators," about the forces working to undermine Western Civilization. He says he found out that he was working on the wrong side of the political divide when the very corporationshe was working with as a lobbyist started trying to destroy the Judeo-Christian culture and the roots of America.

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As Hudson and Schlapp lay bare the Desecrators' path of destruction, they also lay out a plan for the faithful to turn things around. Here is a book that will embolden all people of faith and good will to make their voices heard once again in the public square and political realm by countering the enemy with reason, faith, and hope.

https://www.bookdepository.com › Desecrators-Matt-Schlapp › 9781505120097

The Desecrators : Matt Schlapp : 9781505120097 - Book Depository

Feb 22, 2022The Desecrators by Matt Schlapp, 9781505120097, available atBook Depository with free delivery worldwide. We use cookies to give you the best possible experience. ... As Hudson and Schlapp lay bare the Desecrators' path of destruction, they also lay out a plan for the faithful to turn things around. Here is a book that will embolden all people ...

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The Desecrators: Defeating the Cancel Culture Mob and Reclaiming One ...

Feb 22, 2022As Hudson and Schlapp lay bare the Desecrators' path of destruction, they also lay out a plan for the faithful to turn things around. Here is a book that will embolden all people of faith and good will to make their voices heard once again in the public square and political realm by countering the enemy with reason, faith, and hope.

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In this powerfully provocative book, Deal W. Hudsonand Matt Schlapp provide firsthand accounts of the Desecrators' actions and intentions, including their remarkably angry and uncharitable treatment of President Donald Trump, which Hudson and Schlapp uniquely observed. ... The book calls out the destruction of private property by Antifa and ...

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Feb 11, 2022As Hudson and Schlapp lay bare the Desecrators' path of destruction, they also lay out a plan for the faithful to turn things around. Here is a book that will embolden all people of faith and good will to make their voices heard once again in the public square and political realm by countering the enemy with reason, faith, and hope.

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https://www.c-span.org › video › ?513283-118 › discussion-destruction-history-holiness-cpac

Discussion on "Destruction of History and Holiness" at CPAC

Jul 10, 2021Mercedes and Matt Schlapp, along with Ave Maria Radio's Deal Hudson, engaged in a talk titled, "Columbus, the Constitution, and the Consecrated: The Left's Destruction of History and Holiness" at ...

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Mar 2, 2022In this powerfully provocative book, Deal W. Hudson and Matt Schlapp provide firsthand accounts of the Desecrators' actions and intentions, including their remarkably angry and uncharitable treatment of President Donald Trump, which Hudson and Schlapp uniquely observed. The authors also describe how Catholics have been stifled for years ...

According to his profile on the National Right to Work website,Raudabaugh "hold's [sic] the Reed LarsonProfessorship of Labor LawatAve Maria School of Law.The Professorship was jointly established by the Foundation and Ave Maria to offer courses on workplace litigation and employee freedom." The NRTWLDF press release issued to announce his hiring states that Raudabaugh splits his time between providing legal assistance to anti-union workers and teaching at the "jointly established" professorship at Ave Marie law school, where law students work with Raudabaugh on research and the writing of briefs on behalf of the NRTWLDF.

Both the Ave Maria University and the the town of Ave Maria are owned by former Domino's pizza owner and extreme right-wing billionaire Thomas Monaghan, who financed the construction as part of his dream to create an insulated conservative Catholic community. According to the Wall Street Journal, Monaghan's medieval vision for this project, which has cost him hundreds of millions of dollars, is to create a town in which he can "control what goes on there" and residents "won't be able to buy a Playboy or Hustler magazine" and businesses are specifically forbidden from selling "the pill or the condoms or contraception." Thanks to a special law passed by the Florida state government at the behest of Monaghan, he and the Barron Collier development corporation not only own a majority of the town's property but arethe ultimate government authority in Ave Maria, and can remain so forever. Empowered by the state government to a dictatorial reign, Monaghan's Catholic corporate dystopia has become a reality and Ave Maria has been described as a "miniature theocratic fiefdom" and compared to"fascist regimes." It's not hard to see why the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation would feel right at home.

http://www.avemarialaw.edu/faculty/john-raudabaugh/

bs bio

rofessor Raudabaugh teaches labor law and a labor law practicum. He practiced law for nearly 40 years in the areas of labor law, employee relations, comparative labor and employment law, international labor standards, social responsibility initiatives and compliance, strategic counseling, appropriate unit design, collective bargaining and arbitration, union organizing and corporate campaigns, representation and unfair labor practice litigation, and strikes and injunction proceedings and related litigation. He represents employees before the U.S. National Labor Relations Board and federal appellate courts as staff attorney with the National Right To Work Legal Defense Foundation.

Professional Experience

Professor Raudabaugh served as an Aide and Flag Lieutenant to the Senior Admiral in the U.S. Navy Supply Corps. He was nominated by President George H.W. Bush and confirmed by the U.S. Senate and served as a Member of the U.S. National Labor Relations Board. He practiced labor law in nationally and internationally recognized law firms, represented U.S. employers at the International Labor Organization, assisted the U.S. State Department in international discussions regarding trade agreements and labor law compliance and in advising foreign governments regarding domestic labor law.

Honors and Professional Affiliations

American, District of Columbia, Georgia, and Michigan Bar Associations.
University of Pennsylvania, Cornell University, and University of Virginia Alumni Associations.
Senior Advisor, Federalist Society Labor and Employment Practice Group

Key Works

Publications
- “Labored Law: Bilateralism or Pluralism, Ossification or Reformation?,” 87 Indiana L.J. 105 (2012).
- Response on behalf of Society for Human Resource Management to U.S. National Labor Relations Board’s December 22, 2010 Notification of Proposed Rulemaking Governing Notification of Employee Rights Under the National Labor Relations Act.
- Amicus Brief on behalf of Center for Union Facts regarding right of access to employer private property by nonemployees.
- Amicus Brief on behalf of United States Senator Orrin G. Hatch regarding voluntary recognition bar and card-check.
- Amicus Brief on behalf of the National Association of Manufacturers and 41 additional trade associations regarding voluntary recognition bar and card-check.
- Response on behalf of Society for Human Resource Management to U.S. Department of Labor’s March 19, 2010 Notification of Proposed Rulemaking implementing Presidential Executive Order 13495, “Nondisplacement of Qualified Workers Under Service Contracts.”
- Response on behalf of Society for Human Resource Management to U.S. Department of Labor’s August 3, 2009 Notification of Proposed Rulemaking implementing Presidential Executive Order 13496, “Notification of Employee Rights Under Federal Labor Laws.”
- “Labor’s Law Reform,” Canadian Association of Counsel to Employers.
- Statement of John N. Raudabaugh, “Protecting Private Ballot Rights for American Workers,” U.S. Senate Republican Conference.
- Statement of John N. Raudabaugh, “NLRB Representation Elections and Initial Collective Bargaining Agreements: Safeguarding Workers’ Rights?” U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies of the Committee on Appropriations.
- “National Labor Relations Board 2007 Year in Review: Fueling Union’s Demand for Euro-Centric Labor Law Reform,” CCH Labor Law Journal, Spring 2008, pp. 16–25.
- “Employee Free Choice Act…or…Global Outsourcing Act?” 2007.
- “Contract Modification and Unilateral Change—Bath Iron Works,” ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law.
- Statement of John N. Raudabaugh, “Secret Ballot Protection Act of 2004,” U.S. House Subcommittee on Employer-Employee Relations of the Committee on Education and the Workforce.
- Amicus Brief on behalf of U.S. House of Representatives Chairman and Ranking Republican Members of Committee on Education and the Workforce regarding card-check agreement.
- “Foreward,” A Guide to Sources of Information on the National Labor Relations Board.
- “Employee Voting Rights: Industrial Stability vs. Employee Free Choice,” ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law.
- “Electromation: An Opportunity Lost or Just Postponed?” Chapter 29, Non-Union Employee Representation.
- “Employee Relations Law Reform,” Industrial Relations Research Associations 50th Anniversary Volume, Government Regulation of the Employment Relationship.
- “One Former Board Member’s Recommended Changes to the National Labor Relations Act,” IRRA.

Publications
- “80th Anniversary of the National Labor Relations Act – Time to Evaluate and Renovate,” 2015 National Lawyers Convention, Federalist Society, Speaker.
- “Recess Appointments: Implications of Noel Canning,” 2013 National Lawyers Convention, Federalist Society, Speaker.
- “Unionizing Through Regulation,” Heritage Foundation, Speaker.
- “Labor and Employment Law under the Obama Administration,” Indiana University Maurer School of Law; Speaker.
- “Organized Labor and the Obama Administration,” 2011 National Lawyers Convention, Federalist Society, Speaker.
- “Avoiding the National Labor Relations Board,” Nixon Peabody, LLP Webinar; Speaker.
- “HR’s Response to New Union Organizing: Countering Social Media, Employee Handbooks and EFCA-lite,” M. Lee Smith; Speaker.
- “New Process Steel v. National Labor Relations Board,” Scotuscast, Federalist Society.
- “Bargaining With Unions: Effective Techniques for Today’s Unique Issues, Including Healthcare Reform,” American Conference Institute; Speaker.
- “Labor’s Law Reform,” Canadian Association of Counsel to Employers; Speaker.
- “Ensuring Employee Free Choice—Learning from the Canadian Experience,” U.S. Chamber of Commerce; Speaker.
- “Rethinking Sourcing Strategies—The Impact of New and Proposed Labor and Immigration Laws on Outsourcing and Offshoring,” Sourcing Interests Group; Speaker.
- “The Employee Free Choice Act: Who Benefits?” audio event, Federalist Society.
- “Labor and Employee Relations Law Outlook,” The Knowledge Congress; Speaker.
- “Impact of Labor Reform Legislation on Outsourcing and Offshoring,” Everest Research Institute; Speaker.
- “Re-unionizing America—EFCA, RESPECT, PATRIOT…and MORE!,” SHRM Annual Legislative Conference; Speaker.
- “Labor Law Changes in the Obama Administration,” LERA; Speaker.
- “The Proposed Employee Free Choice Act: Be Prepared for a New “New Deal,” Global Auto Industry; Speaker.
- Guangzhou and Shanghai, China, U.S.—China Labor Law Cooperation Project, Center for China Employment and Labor Relations, Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations, University of Michigan, U.S. Department of Labor and China Ministry of Labor and Social Security; Lecturer.
- “The National Labor Relations Board: Past, Present, and Future,” National Right To Work Legal Defense Foundation; Speaker.
- “Employee Free Choice Act…or Global Outsourcing Act?” Federalist Society; Speaker.
- “Organized Labor’s Campaign for Survival and Resurgence,” Uniform & Textile Service Association, Annual Convention; Speaker.

John N. Raudabaugh

Naples, FloridaHigher Education

Education

University of Virginia School of Law

500+

connections

View John N.’s Full Profile

Skills

Traditional Labor LawNational Labor RNLRBLabor EconomicsLabor RelationsCollective BargainingArbitrationInternational Labour LawComplianceStrategic PlanningLabor LitigationEmployment LawPolicyLitigationLaborSee 16+

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Volunteer Experience & Causes

Adjunct Professor

Emory University School of Law

1984 – 1988 (4 years)Education

Adjunct Professor of Employment Law

Adjunct Professor

Georgia State University

1990 – 1990 (less than a year)Education

Adjunct Professor of Labor Relations

Adjunct Professor

University of Chicago Law School

1994 – 1996 (2 years)Education

Adjunct Professor of Labor Law

Northwestern University School of Law

Adjunct Professor of Labor Law

Northwestern University School of Law

1997 – 2003 (6 years)Education

Adjunct Professor of Labor Law

Ave Maria School of Law

Adjunct Professor of Labor Law

Ave Maria School of Law

2004 – 2005 (1 year)Education

Adjunct Professor of Labor Law

Michigan State University

Adjunct Professor of Collective Bargaining

Michigan State University

2005 – 2005 (less than a year)Education

Adjunct Professor of Collective Bargaining

Northwestern University School of Law

Adjunct Professor of Labor Law

Northwestern University School of Law

2006 – 2009 (3 years)Education

Adjunct Professor of Labor Law

Publications

"Labored Law: Bilaterlism or Pluralism, Ossification or Reformation?", 87 Ind. L.J. 106 (2012)

Indiana Law Journal

January 2012

A review and critique of U.S. labor law and recommendations for overhaul and modernization.

Authors:

John N. Raudabaugh

Education

University of Virginia School of Law

1974 – 1977

Cornell University

M.S.

1972 – 1974

University of Pennsylvania - The Wharton School

B.S.

1964 – 1968

Ave Maria School of Law

Raymond LaJeunesse

Vice President & Legal Director at National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, Inc.

Marja Winters

Commercieel en administratief medewerker bij Beleggingsmaatschappij Butot B.V.

Jack Seaver

Alison Snyder SPHR

Personnel Director at East Penn Manufacturing

Joan Riggs

Project Manager at Get Real Health

Kate Welborn

District Defender at Missouri State Public Defender, Ava Trial Office

Barbara Allen

Corporate Paralegal at Dorsey & Whitney LLP

Ethan Zelizer

Attorney, Founder at HR Law Counsel, LLC

Susan van Maldegem - van der Wal

Projectleider Magna Charta at Academie voor de Rechtspraktijk

Billy Creech

Director Labor and Employee Relations at Honeywell International