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Washington
Opposes Pledge Ruling
Thu Jun 27,11:07 AM ET
By JESSE J. HOLLAND, Associated
Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) -
In an extraordinary show of defiance,
virtually the entire Senate showed up
for a morning prayer Thursday, heads
bowed behind their desks, to affirm that
the United State is "one nation
under God," after a federal appeals
court declared the Pledge of Allegiance
unconstitutional.
Moments later, a nearly full House
gathered to recite the pledge, with some
shouting "under God." They
followed with a sustained standing
ovation, and a few House members joined
hands to sing the first line of
"God Bless America."
Both houses of Congress start each
working day with the pledge, but
typically only a few lawmakers are in
the chambers to recite it.
"We acknowledge the separation of
sectarianism and state, but affirm the
belief that there is no separation
between God and state," Senate
Chaplain Lloyd Ogilvie said in the
morning prayer. The Senate floor
and partly filled visitors galleries
were hushed as Ogilvie proclaimed that
"we are one Senate, united under
You, to lead a nation that is free to
say confidently, 'In God we
trust.'" House members, who
rushed to steps in front of the Capitol
on Wednesday to recite the Pledge of
Allegiance immediately after the court's
decision, planned to pass a resolution
later Thursday condemning the ruling.
President Bush denounced the ruling as
"out of step with the traditions
and history of America." He
promised to appoint judges who would
overturn such rulings.
"America is a nation ... that
values our relationship with the
Almighty," Bush told reporters.
"We need commonsense judges who
understand that our rights were derived
from God."
In calling the Senate to order, its
president pro tempore, Sen. Robert C.
Byrd, D-W.Va., said Ogilvie would lead
"the prayer to almighty God, the
supreme judge of the world."
"We are one nation under God. We
affirmed that today as Americans, not as
Republicans or Democrats, and we did so
proudly," said Sen. Tom Daschle,
D-S.D., who on Wednesday called the
court's decision "nuts."
"What's next?" Rep. Roy Blunt,
R-Mo., asked Thursday. "Will our
courts, in their zeal to abolish all
religious faith from public arenas,
outlaw 'God Bless America'
too?" The House began
reciting the pledge in 1988, and the
Senate in 1999. A 9th U.S. Circuit
Court of Appeals panel ruled Wednesday
that the use of the words "under
God" violates the Constitution's
clause barring establishment of
religion. The ruling, if allowed to
stand, would bar schoolchildren from
reciting the pledge in the nine Western
states covered by the court. Less
than four hours later, senators passed a
resolution denouncing the court's
decision, which came in a lawsuit filed
by a California father who objected to
his daughter's being compelled to listen
to her second-grade classmates recite
the pledge.
"I think we need to send a clear
message that the Congress disagrees, the
Congress is going to intervene, the
Congress is going to do all that it can
do to live up to the expectations of the
American people," Daschle
said. Other lawmakers, including
Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn., a
potential 2004 presidential candidate,
called for a constitutional amendment to
make sure the words stay in the
pledge. "There may have been
a more senseless, ridiculous decision
issued by a court at some time, but I
don't remember it," Lieberman said.
If Wednesday's ruling is not overturned
by the full 9th U.S. Circuit Court of
Appeals, the Supreme Court probably will
review the case next year,
constitutional scholars said. The
decision was written by Judge Alfred T.
Goodwin, whom Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va.,
called an "atheist
lawyer." "I hope his
name never comes before this body for
any promotion, because he will be
remembered," Byrd said.
The 9th Circuit Court is known as the
most liberal appeals court in the
nation. Democrats and Republicans have
been fighting all year over the pace of
the Senate's confirmation of Bush's
conservative judicial nominations.
Democrats pointed out that it was a
Republican, President Nixon, who
appointed Goodwin to the appeals court
in 1971.
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