ADF: Court should not hear Pledge of Allegiance case
http://www.alliancedefensefund.org/news/story.aspx?cid=4391
ALLIANCE DEFENSE FUND NEWS RELEASE
February 8, 2008 – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT ADF MEDIA RELATIONS: (480) 444-0020
ADF: Court should not hear Pledge of Allegiance case
ADF attorneys, Cornerstone Policy Research submit friend-of-the-court brief
opposing lawsuit filed to remove “under God” from Pledge
BEDFORD, N.H. — Alliance Defense fund attorneys filed a friend-of-the-court brief Friday defending the use of the words “under God” as part of the Pledge of Allegiance, after an atheist group filed a federal lawsuit challenging the long-standing patriotic tradition. ADF attorneys, along with Cornerstone Policy Research, are asking that the suit be dismissed because the group lacks standing to sue.
“Those who disregard America’s heritage have no right to demand that America abandon its traditions simply to appease their political agenda,” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel David Cortman. “The phrase ‘one nation under God,’ was first used in President Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg address, long before Congress added it to the Pledge. Further, the filers of this lawsuit have not shown that they have suffered any legal harm.”
The Freedom from Religion Foundation, represented by well-known atheist Michael Newdow, and other unnamed individuals filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Hampshire to challenge the inclusion of the words “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance. Both FFRF and Newdow have a long-standing history of attempting to eradicate religion from the public square.
ADF attorneys have been involved in thwarting similar challenges against the Pledge of Allegiance, including Elk Grove Unified School District v. Newdow (www.telladf.org/news/story.aspx?cid=2750). ADF also assisted students in Tucson, Ariz., who were prohibited from reciting the Pledge (www.telladf.org/news/story.aspx?cid=3993).
According to a 2004 ABCNEWS.com/Washington Post poll, eighty-nine percent of Americans say the phrase “under God” should remain in the Pledge of Allegiance.
A copy of the friend-of-the-court brief filed by ADF attorneys and local counsel Michael J. Compitello in The Freedom from Religion Foundation v. The Congress of the United States of America is available at www.telladf.org/UserDocs/PledgeAmicus.pdf.
ADF is a legal alliance defending the right to hear and speak the Truth through strategy, training, funding, and litigation.
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