A former Department of Justice official went on Fox & Friends over the weekend to discuss the passage of a Madison, Wisconsin city ordinance that prohibits businesses from discriminating against atheists.

According to J. Christian Adams, the campaign to pass the ordinance was spearheaded by the Freedom From Religion Foundation, a “very powerful” group that “hectors governments to pass anti-Christian, anti-religious ordinances. They team up with government, for example, they were behind getting the IRS to monitor sermons and homilies by Christian pastors.”

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“This is a group that’s filled with hostility toward people of faith,” he added.

“That’s right,” Fox News host Tucker Carlson replied. “It’s never just about tolerating their views, it’s about attacking other people’s views.”

He then quoted Madison City Councilwoman Anita Weier, who said that the protections are “only fair,” because “if we protect religion, in all its varieties, we should also protect non-religion from discrimination.”

“That does, in some sense,” Carlson said, “seem fair. But that’s not exactly their aim, is it?”

“No,” Adams replied, “and it never works out that way. Not only does it bring in lawsuits, but don’t forget — this is a local ordinance, Tucker. That means that a whole body of bureaucrats will spring up [and be] tasked with hectoring people of faith, badgering people of faith in Wisconsin who might not want to hire somebody.”

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“There’s a lot of reasons why Christians or Jews might not want to hire an atheist,” he continued. “In fact, it’s in the New Testament. It says things like avoid them and disassociate with them. You might have a job, for example, where you want someone who believes in a higher power.”

“For example,” Adams said, “maybe you’re an airline and hiring pilots who you prefer they maybe believe in Hell. To tell people that you can’t only hire people of faith intrudes on their free exercise of faith.”

After being read a statement from the Freedom From Religion Foundation in which it implored atheists and agnostics “to work to introduce and replicate this protection at their city, county or even state levels,” Adams said that he knows that people will attempt to do just that.

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“These people are so committed to their own very of theology. They have such hatred of Christians and Jews publicly exercising their faith,” he said. “Christians and Jews have been putting up with this for thousands of year — people who don’t like that they believe. We’re pretty much used to it by now.”

“There’s a political element here,” Carlson added. “If there’s no God, then the highest authority is government.”

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Watch the entire segment with J. Christian Adams below via Fox News.