WASHINGTON, DC— Congressman Chris Cannon (R-UT) today joined with his House colleagues to pass H.R. 2389, the Pledge Protection Act. Introduced by Rep. Todd Akin (R-MO) the legislation places final authority over a state’s Pledge of Allegiance policy in the hands of the state’s themselves. The bill is aimed at preventing federal judges from ruling that the phrase “under God” is unconstitutional.
“If different states come to different decisions regarding the constitutionality of the Pledge, then their decisions hold sway only within those states, and not on the whims of activist federal judges,” Cannon said.
In June of 2002, the Ninth Circuit Court concluded that voluntary, teacher-led recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance violates the Establishment Clause. Although the U.S. Supreme Court dismissed the case, it did so on the grounds that the plaintiff lacked legal standing to bring the case.
The Pledge Protection Act removes the Pledge from the jurisdiction of Federal courts. State courts are not under the authority of Congress and may still rule on the Pledge. The power of Congress to limit the jurisdiction of lower federal courts is granted in Article III of the Constitution.
Similar legislation passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 247-173 in the 108th Congress, but died in the Senate.
