Tag Archives: ZZ: Freedom From Religion Foundation v. Obama

ADF Attorney Kevin Theriot at The Speak Up Movement Church Blog: On December 12, Judge Silver, a federal judge in Arizona, threw out a claim that Arizona Governor Jan Brewer violated the Establishment Clause by issuing day of prayer proclamations in observance of the National Day of Prayer. The court cited the Seventh Circuit’s recent ruling in FFRF v. Obama, saying “hurt feelings” don’t give someone standing to bring a federal case.

The Christian Century (6/29): David Cortman, senior counsel of the Alliance Defense Fund, which argued for both the National Day of Prayer and for the Arizona tuition credit program, is not surprised about strategies to move to the state courts. “If they can’t challenge them in federal courts, they’ll certainly challenge them in states,” he said, “but we’ll also be there to defend those programs.”

Freedom From Religion Foundation: The Freedom From Religion Foundation, a national state/church watchdog based in Madison, Wis., filed a petition Friday seeking a rehearing of its National Day of Prayer challenge before the entire U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit in Chicago.

Rees Lloyd at News with Views: The Alliance Defense Fund has won an important victory in the Day of Prayer case (Freedom From Religion Foundation vs. Dobson, et al., 7th Circuit), especially on the issue of legal “standing,” which ordinarily requires a litigant to have a legally cognizable injury in order to sue. The Seventh Circuit ruled that a feeling of “alienation,” i.e., hurt feelings, taking offense at acts or symbols reflecting America’s own religious history or heritage, is not a cognizable injury conferring “standing” to sue.

ADF attorney Joe Infranco appeared on the Hugh Hewitt Show to | MP3 audio 5:50 mins | Decision Points: An Evening with President George W. Bush | ADF Media: 7th Circuit rejects lawsuit against National Day of Prayer | Website: Save the National Day of Prayer

ADF attorney Kevin Theriot at Townhall: The timing of the National Day of Prayer with the events of this week couldn’t be more appropriate if one would have planned it that way. And recent court decisions rebuffing the ability of anti-religious groups to go to court to strike down the event also couldn’t come at a better time.

ADF attorney Kevin Theriot appeared on Family Talk with James and Shirley Dobson to discuss the National Day of Prayer victory at the 7th Circuit. The show also features John Bornschein, Executive Director, of the National Day of Prayer. | MP3 audio 25:55 mins

FavStocks.com: at the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Alliance Defense Fund legal group, praised the decision. “Public officials should be able to participate in public prayer activities just as America’s founders did.”

LifeSiteNews: The Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), which filed a supporting brief as a friend of the court on behalf of the private, non-profit National Day of Prayer Task Force, said in a press release, “Public officials should be able to participate in public prayer activities just as America’s founders did.” ADF praised the court’s decision for determining that “a feeling of alienation” was not sufficient legal grounds for the atheist group to file suit. “The 7th Circuit has clearly understood that the Freedom From Religion Foundation simply had no legal standing to attack the federal statute setting a day for the National Day of Prayer simply because the group is offended by religion,” said ADF Senior Counsel Kevin Theriot.

Little Chicago Review: Alliance Defense Fund attorneys represented the private, non-profit National Day of Prayer Task Force in a friend-of-the-court brief filed with the 7th Circuit after prevailing in having then-chairperson Shirley Dobson dismissed from the lawsuit at the district court level.

Kevin Theriot at the Speak Up Movement Church Blog: It was exactly one year ago that a Wisconsin federal court incredibly ruled that our 200 year practice of praying together as a nation is unconstitutional by striking down the statute establishing the National Day of Prayer. But on April 14, 2011, the day before the anniversary of that troubling ruling, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals reversed it in a fantastic opinion holding that the anti-religious Freedom From Religion Foundation should not have been allowed past the courthouse gate because they suffered no legal injury . . . This ruling adds to the list of recent setbacks for anti-religious forces in America in Establishment Clause cases.

ADF attorney Kevin Theriot appeared on the Zeb Bell Show to discuss the National Day of Prayer Victory. | MP3 audio 12:23 mins

Catholic News Agency: Kevin Theriot, senior counsel at the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Alliance Defense Fund legal group, praised the decision. “Public officials should be able to participate in public prayer activities just as America’s founders did.”

WorldNetDaily: “Public officials should be able to participate in public prayer activities just as America’s founders did,” said Kevin Theriot, senior counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund. “The 7th Circuit has clearly understood that the Freedom From Religion Foundation simply had no legal standing to attack the federal statute setting a day for the National Day of Prayer simply because the group is offended by religion.” The ADF represented the private, nonprofit National Day of Prayer Task Force in the case and the ACLJ represented a long list of members of Congress.

CBN (includes video): The Alliance Defense Fund also represented the non-profit National Day of Prayer Task Force in a friend-of-the-court brief. “Public officials should be able to participate in public prayer activities just as America’s founders did,” ADF Senior Counsel Kevin Theriot said. “The 7th Circuit has clearly understood that the Freedom From Religion Foundation simply had no legal standing to attack the federal statute setting a day for the National Day of Prayer simply because the group is offended by religion,” he said.

Dakota Voice: “Public officials should be able to participate in public prayer activities just as America’s founders did,” said ADF Senior Counsel Kevin Theriot. “The 7th Circuit has clearly understood that the Freedom From Religion Foundation simply had no legal standing to attack the federal statute setting a day for the National Day of Prayer simply because the group is offended by religion.”

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit rejected a lawsuit filed by the Freedom From Religion Foundation that sought to strike down the National Day of Prayer. The court determined that “a feeling of alienation” was not sufficient legal grounds for the atheist group to file suit.

Family Research Council praised the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit for its 3-0 ruling today that dismisses a lawsuit against the National Day of Prayer . . .

Freedom from Religion Foundation: A panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago today ruled 3-0 that the Freedom From Religion Foundation and its plaintiffs do not have standing to continue their historic challenge of the 1952 congressional act declaring an annual National Day of Prayer and requiring the president to issue a proclamation exhorting citizens to pray. FFRF announced immediately it will seek a rehearing by the entire Seventh Circuit (“en banc” review).

Religion Clause: “Last week, the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments in Freedom from Religion Foundation v. Obama, a case in which the district court held that the statute creating a National Day of Prayer violates the Establishment Clause. (See prior posting.) The recording of the full oral arguments in the Court of Appeals is now available from the court’s website.”

American Jewish Committee: “AJC is urging a federal appeals court to uphold a lower court ruling that the National Day of Prayer is unconstitutional.”

PR Newswire: “Today Family Research Council and The Liberty Institute announced the filing of a motion for argument in a recent National Day of Prayer (NDP) case citing the Obama Administration’s weak defense of the NDP as the cause. Last April, U.S. District Judge Barbara Crabb declared the National Day of Prayer unconstitutional. The district court’s decision is now being reviewed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.”

WorldNetDaily: “A district judge’s decision that the National Day of Prayer is unconstitutional is being challenged on the argument, submitted in friend-of-the-court briefs to the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, that never before has any court decided that “hurt feelings” are grounds for making a claim. ‘The district court in this case embraced an entirely novel – and improper – basis for standing: hurt feelings,’ said the brief submitted by the American Center for Law and Justice. “Never has the Supreme Court endorsed anything like such a wide-open concept of access to federal adjudication.”

Alliance Defense Fund attorneys filed a friend-of-the-court brief Friday in support of the federal government’s appeal of a federal judge’s ruling declaring the observance of the National Day of Prayer unconstitutional.

The Arkansas Times posts a press release from the office of the Attorney General: “Attorney General Dustin McDaniel asked a federal appeals court today to uphold a federal law that directs the president to annually declare a National Day of Prayer. McDaniel and fellow attorneys general from across the country urged the Seventh U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in an amicus brief filed today to overturn a lower-court ruling that the law violated the Constitution’s Establishment Clause.”

Centre Daily Times: “Today, Liberty Institute filed an amicus brief in the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in support of the National Day of Prayer in Freedom from Religion Foundation v. Obama. Among those Liberty Institute represents in the brief include Dr. James Dobson, the Family Research Council (FRC), Focus on the Family Action (Citizenlink), the American Civil Rights Union (ACRU), Let Freedom Ring, and Liberty Counsel, along with 28 family policy councils located in states nationwide.” | Liberty Institute Press Release (Google Viewer) | Brief (Google Viewer)

ADF attorney Jeffery J. Ventrella appeared on Kor Kast Radio with Ryan Dobson to discuss the National Day of Prayer litigation. | MP3 – 40:39 mins | Freedom From Religion Foundation v. Obama resource page

Pasadena Star-News: “Usually fairly subdued, the event, along with the city’s Day of Prayer at the Rose Bowl, triggered some concern among city officials this year, following a U.S. District Court judge’s ruling in Wisconsin last month that the National Day of Prayer violates the constitutional separation of church and state. That prompted Mayor Bill Bogaard to write to the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), which provides legal defense and advocacy for religious causes, to make sure the breakfast and prayer day could be held legally. ‘You can be confident that your participation in and acknowledgment of the National Day of Prayer are constitutionally protected activities,’ wrote ADF attorney [J. Michael Johnson] in an April 30 response.”

The Joplin Globe: “Groups gathered Thursday at the Dr. Donald E. Clark Public Safety and Justice Center in Joplin and at the Praying Hands Monument in Webb City to celebrate the National Day of Prayer by praying for their cities and country . . . ‘Public officials should be able to participate in public prayer activities just as America’s founders did, and a recent federal judge’s ruling does not prevent America’s cities from lawfully observing the National Day of Prayer,’ ADF senior legal counsel [Mike Johnson] said in a statement.”

Sioux City Journal: “The ruling can’t take effect until all appeals are exhausted, but organizers of the local National Day of Prayer event say it only makes tonight’s gathering in Sioux City more meaningful . . . ‘Public officials should be able to participate in public prayer activities just as America’s founders did, and a recent federal judge’s ruling does not prevent America’s cities from lawfully observing the National Day of Prayer,’ ADF Senior Legal Counsel [Mike Johnson] said in a statement.”

ADF attorney Erik Stanley appeared on the Vicki McKenna Show to discuss the National Day of Prayer ruling. | MP3 audio file 15:26 mins

Charisma: “The NDOP Task Force has partnered with the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) for a Save the National Day of Prayer campaign, which has more than 250,000 supporters on its Facebook page . . . ‘The tradition of our nation has been to allow different official prayer proclamations … and there are just a lot of groups out there that do not like that history, and so they’re actively seeking to change our history,’ said [ADF Attorney Joel Oster], who was part of the ADF team that represented NDOP Task Force Chairman Shirley Dobson in the 2008 lawsuit, which named her as a defendant.”

The Tampa Tribune: “Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-president of the Freedom From Religion Foundation, isn’t surprised that some politicians are ignoring the federal court ruling . . . Gaylor compared her group’s battle over National Day of Prayer as a ‘David versus Goliath fight.’ The National Day of Prayer Task Force has up to 40,000 volunteers on its side and millions of dollars at its disposal from the Alliance Defense Fund, an Arizona-based group of Christian lawyers. Conversely, her group has eight paid staff members and spent $50,000 on the first round of litigation – draining nearly its entire annual legal budget. Nonetheless, the group plans to fight the administration’s appeal of the ruling.”

Crosswalk: “Last month, a federal judge from Wisconsin struck down the National Day of Prayer, ruling that it violates the constitutional ban on government-backed religion . . . [Joel Oster], senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund said, ‘The National Day of Prayer provides an opportunity for all Americans to pray voluntarily according to their own faith and does not promote any particular religion or form of religious observance.’”

Associated Baptist Press: “President Obama has followed through on his promise to declare May 6 the National Day of Prayer despite a controversial April 15 ruling by a federal judge who said the government encouraging its citizens to pray violates the First Amendment . . . Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the Interfaith Alliance both said the decision was well-reasoned and sensitive to the true nature of uncoerced faith. The Alliance Defense Fund and American Center for Law and Justice criticized the decision and said it would likely be overturned.”

ADF attorney Mike Johnson appeared on the Zeb Bell Show to discuss the National Day of Prayer litigation. | The MP3 runs just under 17 minutes. | Related ADF resources.

Fayette County News: “The day after Judge Crabb’s ruling the Alliance Defense Fund, a group of Christian lawyers, fired off letters to mayors telling them the ruling has no bearing on prayer day activities. ‘Public officials should be able to participate in public prayer activities just as America’s founders did, and a recent federal judge’s ruling does not prevent cities from lawfully observing the National Day of Prayer,’ the letter said.”

In The Gainesville Sun, Rick Allen asks whether prayer matters. He begins with a recent LifeWay Research study which found that 72% of Millenials (18- to 29-year-olds) are “more spiritual than religious.” That is “tomorrow’s challenge,” Allen writes; today’s is whether prayer is more properly public or private: “A judge in Wisconsin last month ruled the law requiring the president to proclaim a National Day of Prayer is unconstitutional . . . Defenders, however, argue the NDP is ‘America’s heritage,’ says [Joel Oster], senior counsel of the Alliance Defense Fund. ‘The National Day of Prayer provides an opportunity for all Americans to pray voluntarily according to their own faith.’”

Wausau Daily Herald: “[Joel Oster], attorney for the Alliance Defense Fund, a defender of our religious freedoms, had this to say about Judge Crabb’s ruling: ‘The National Day of Prayer provides an opportunity for all Americans to pray voluntarily according to their own faith and does not promote any particular religion or form of religious observance,’”

BeliefNet (RNS): “The letter was spearheaded by the Family Research Council and the Alliance Defense Fund. ADF lawyers sent a letter with similar concerns to Obama and Gates in February.”

Wendy Kaminer writing in The Atlantic: “Judge Crabb cited numerous complaints from members of minority faiths about the ‘hi-jacking’ of Prayer Day by conservative Christians. Joel Oster, Senior Legal Counsel of the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), disputes the prevalence of these complaints, suggesting that they are isolated incidents instigated by “special interest groups that create their own devisiveness’ . . . What’s the harm of National Prayer Day? It equates prayerfulness and patriotism, as its congressional history makes clear; it sends a ‘message of exclusion’ to religious minorities and other heretics, and, again, it threatens sectarian divisiveness.”

Virtue Online: ‘The judge has, in effect, declared 250 years of American Christian heritage is unconstitutional,’ declared [Alan Sears], President of the Alliance Defense Fund.”

ADF attorney Mike Johnson on Grassroots America hosted by George Stephenson to discuss the National Day of Prayer litigation.

The MP3 runs approximately 24 minutes.

The Optimist: “Joel Oster, senior counsel to the Allied Defense fund, spoke out against the ruling. ‘The National Day of Prayer provides an opportunity for all Americans to pray voluntarily according to their own faith,’ he said. ‘It does not violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, and this decision should be appealed.’”

Regent Law Family Restoration: “Despite this ruling, President Obama, at the urging of the Alliance Defense Fund, will issue a prayer proclamation to allow Americans to pray together nationally.”

CitizenLink: “[Mike Johnson], an attorney with ADF, said letters to city officials were designed to allay any fears. ‘Local observances of the National Day of Prayer are both lawful and appropriate, particularly since the event simply provides an opportunity for all Americans to pray voluntarily according to their own faith.’” | ADF News Release

Shirley Dobson writing in the Spartanburg Herald Journal: “My team and I are grieved that a day honoring our country’s heritage of faith and freedom has come under such blatant and unfounded attack. As [Joel Oster], senior counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund, explained: ‘It’s important to remember this about the National Day of Prayer: It’s America’s heritage, and this day belongs to Americans — the court should not have struck down this statute. The administration has done the right thing in appealing this terrible decision that not only undermines the National Day of Prayer but the underlying heritage and tradition of the American people which dates back to the nation’s founding.’”

The Columbus Dispatch: “The National Day of Prayer Task Force has launched a petition and fundraising campaign to “save” the event. Members are appealing to Obama to appeal the ruling, task-force spokesman John Bornschein said. The money raised will go to the task force’s legal firm, the Alliance Defense Fund, to try to mount legal challenges and gain congressional support, he said. ‘Like it or not, we are a nation under God.’”

Associated Press: “The ruling can’t take effect until all appeals are exhausted, but that’s not stopping atheists and prayer advocates from firing off letters, e-mails and even planning to put up billboards to convince state and local leaders across the country to see things their way . . . ‘Public officials should be able to participate in public prayer activities just as America’s founders did, and a recent federal judge’s ruling does not prevent America’s cities from lawfully observing the National Day of Prayer,’ ADF Senior Legal Counsel [Mike Johnson] said in a statement.”

ADF attorney Doug Napier appeared on KTVK 3 TV to discuss the National Day of Prayer ruling. This video is a few days old, but it does provide a good overview about the National Day of Prayer. The Obama administration has since announced that it will appeal the ruling. | The MP4 Video runs just over 4 minutes.

Religion and Values: “The Alliance Defense Fund has sent letters to mayors across the country telling them that it is OK to observe the National Day of Prayer on May 6.” | ADF News Release

Pew Forum (RNS): “On Thursday (April 22), the Justice Department said it would appeal the decision, capping a week of political uproar from conservatives after Judge Barbara Crabb of Madison, Wis., issued her April 15 ruling. The Alliance Defense Fund . . . has sent an update to mayors saying Crabb’s ruling “should not disrupt your local observance” of the prayer day . . . ‘I think observances like this can and will continue, but it would be a real shame if the government couldn’t acknowledge the importance of it,’ [ADF Attorney Mike Johnson] said.”

ADF attorney Mike Johnson appeared on the Hugh Hewitt Show to discuss the National Day of Prayer ruling. | The MP3 runs just over 5 minutes.

Jim Daly, CEO of Focus on the Family, has this commentary at the Washington Post on the National Day of Prayer ruling. He writes: “To even the casual observer, Judge Crabbs’s decision was a curious and perplexing one. After all, there have been federally recognized days of prayer in America for as long as there have been stars on the flag . . . ”

The Alliance Defense Fund sent follow-up letters to mayors across America Friday, informing them that a federal judge’s decision striking down the National Day of Prayer statute as unconstitutional in no way impedes their observance of this year’s 59th annual observance. The Obama administration appealed the judge’s decision Thursday.

“In a ‘Notice of Appeal’ filed in the Western District of Wisconsin on Thursday, Justice Department lawyers said that, on behalf of President Barack Obama and White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs, they were asking the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit to overturn the judge’s ruling . . ”

Christian Pop Culture Examiner: “Attorneys with the Christian legal firm Alliance Defense Fund urged President Barack Obama to appeal the decision of a federal judge’s ruling that National Prayer Day is unconstitutional recently . . . But ADF Senior Legal Counsel Joel Oster argues that the national prayer day is ‘America’s heritage’ and ‘belongs to Americans.’ He added, ‘The National Day of Prayer provides an opportunity for all Americans to pray voluntarily according to their own faith – and does not promote any particular religion or form of religious observance.’”

ADF attorney Erik Stanley appeared on True News with Rick Wiles to discuss the attack on Franklin Graham’s invitation to speak at a Pentagon event. They also discuss the National Day of Prayer Ruling. | The MP3 runs just under 25 minutes.

ADF attorney Mike Johnson appeared on the Michael Medved Show to discuss the court ruling holding that the National Day of Prayer is unconstitutional. | The MP3 runs approximately 33 minutes.

ADF attorney Mike Johnson appeared on the radio with Roland Letner to discuss the recent court decision holding that the National Day of Prayer is unconstitutional.

The MP3 runs approximately 23 minutes.

WORLD Magazine: “Attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) want President Obama to appeal the decision. ‘The National Day of Prayer provides an opportunity for all Americans to pray voluntarily according to their own faith—and does not promote any particular religion or form of religious observance,’ said ADF senior legal counsel Joel Oster. ‘It does not violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, and this decision should be appealed.’”

ADF attorney Doug Napier vs. Rob Boston of Americans United for Separation of Church and State on CNN HLN.

The MP4 runs approximately 7 minutes.

One News Now: “Attorney Jordan Sekulow of the American Center for Law & Justice says Crabb’s decision is ‘flawed.’ ‘The Establishment Clause is to mandate the federal government from establishing a national church, to say that you have to read a specific Bible or to say a specific prayer,’ he clarifies. ‘That’s not what’s done in this National Day of Prayer Proclamation. Here, we are again just signifying and looking back on our history, respecting our history of the founding of the Judeo-Christian country.”

Baptist Press: “‘The lawsuit against Mrs. Dobson was based on the ridiculous argument that a private citizen can violate the law by praying, and it is just another example of one radical organization’s allergic reaction to anything involving God,’ [Joel Oster], senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund, which advocated for Dobson, said.” | ADF News Release

Catholic News Agency: “A federal judge’s ruling that the National Day of Prayer is unconstitutional had no legal basis and was not in keeping with American traditions of expressing ‘dependence on the Almighty,’ critics said . . . [Joel Oster], senior counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), said the Day of Prayer was ‘America’s heritage.’” | ADF News Release

Ashby Jones writing at the WSJ Law Blog: “The Obama administration said in a Twitter message on Thursday that Obama intends to recognize this year’s National Day of Prayer, which is May 6 . . . ‘The National Day of Prayer provides an opportunity for all Americans to pray voluntarily according to their own faith and does not promote any particular religion or form of religious observance,’ said [Joel Oster], senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund.” | ADF News Release

Cookeville Times: “As President Obama is urged to appeal federal judge Barbara Crabb’s Wisconsin decision striking down a federal statute setting a day aside as a National Day of Prayer, Cookeville citizens continue planning for the May 6 event . . . [Joel Oster], ADF senior counsel, stated to media that it is his position that the National Day of Prayer does not violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, and that the decision should be appealed.” | ADF News Release

ADF attorney Mike Johnson appeared on the Janet Mefferd Show to discuss yesterday’s National Day of Prayer ruling. Click “National Day of Prayer” or case name tag below for related posts.

The MP3 runs approximately 13 minutes.

ADF attorney Doug Napier appeared on the Bob Dutko Show to discuss the National Day of Prayer ruling.

The MP3 runs just over 7 minutes.

Related:

ADF on striking down of National Day of Prayer statute: “It’s America’s heritage, and this day belongs to Americans”

WI: Federal Court declares National Day of Prayer unconstitutional

CNN: “A federal judge on Thursday struck down the federal statute that established the National Day of Prayer, ruling that it violates the constitutional ban on government-backed religion . . . ‘The National Day of Prayer provides an opportunity for all Americans to pray voluntarily according to their own faith and does not promote any particular religion or form of religious observance,’ said [Joel Oster], senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund.”

Christian Post: “Just weeks away from the annual National Day of Prayer, a federal judge ruled on Thursday that the day is unconstitutional . . . ADF Senior Legal Counsel [Joel Oster] argues that the national prayer day is ‘America’s heritage’ and ‘belongs to Americans.’ ‘The National Day of Prayer provides an opportunity for all Americans to pray voluntarily according to their own faith – and does not promote any particular religion or form of religious observance,’ Oster contends. ‘It does not violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, and this decision should be appealed.’” | ADF News Release

CNN Newsroom: “Conservative religious groups have criticized the decision. [Joel Oster], senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund says, ‘The National Day of Prayer provides an opportunity for all Americans to pray voluntarily according to their own faith and does not promote any particular religion or form of religious observance.”’” | ADF News Release

CitizenLink: “A federal judge in Wisconsin has declared the National Day of Prayer unconstitutional . . . ‘The National Day of Prayer provides an opportunity for all Americans to pray voluntarily according to their own faith – and does not promote any particular religion or form of religious observance,’ said ADF Senior Legal Counsel [Joel Oster]. ‘It does not violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, and this decision should be appealed.’” | ADF News Release

National Day of Prayer Task Force (ChristianNewsWire): “The National Day of Prayer Task Force (NDPTF) and Attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) are urging President Obama to appeal federal judge Barbara Crabb’s decision in Wisconsin that struck down a federal statute that sets a day for the National Day of Prayer . . . [Joel Oster], ADF senior counsel, echoed these sentiments saying, ‘It’s important to remember this about the National Day of Prayer: It’s America’s heritage, and this day belongs to Americans — the court should not have struck down this statute. ADF urges the Obama administration to appeal this terrible ruling that not only undermines the National Day of Prayer, but the underlying heritage and tradition of the American people which dates back to the nation’s founding.’”

Associated Press: “A federal judge in Wisconsin ruled the National Day of Prayer unconstitutional Thursday, saying the day amounts to a call for religious action . . . The Alliance Defense Fund, an Arizona-based group of Christian lawyers, issued a statement saying Crabb’s ruling undermines American tradition dating back to the nation’s birth.” | ADF News Release