-Caveat Lector-
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From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Date: March 6, 2007 4:06:47 PM PST
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Cc: [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Fwd: DefCon: ESTABLISHMENT CLAUSE UNDER ATTACK
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From: "Jim S." <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Date: March 6, 2007 12:59:34 PM PST
Subject: DefCon: ESTABLISHMENT CLAUSE UNDER ATTACK
Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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DefCon: Campaign to Defend The Constitution
ESTABLISHMENT CLAUSE UNDER ATTACK
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If the federal government gives money directly to a religious
school or organization in a manner that clearly violates the
Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, can anyone sue to stop
it? The answer should be obvious: any taxpayer should be able to
sue to prevent his or her tax dollars from being used in a manner
that is an unconstitutional establishment of religion.
Unfortunately, President Bush and the religious right disagree.
On Wednesday, February 28, the Supreme Court heard arguments in
Hein v Freedom from Religion Foundation, a case that threatens to
make the federal government completely immune from challenges when
it spends money to support religion.
In a 1968 court case, Flast v Cohen, the Supreme Court recognized
an exception to the usual rule that a person cannot sue as a
taxpayer to stop the spending of money that violates the
Constitution. In that case, the Court said that the Establishment
Clause of the First Amendment was meant to be a limit on Congress's
taxing and spending power and that therefore taxpayers do have
standing to enforce its commands.
Hein v Freedom from Religion Foundation is a challenge to the Bush
administration's unprecedented attempt to funnel money to religious
entities providing social services. In his first days as
President, George W. Bush created an Office of Faith-Based and
Community Initiatives for the purpose of giving money to religious
institutions. The question is whether a taxpayer can bring a
challenge to this as violating the Establishment Clause.
It is to be hoped that the Supreme Court will reaffirm Flast v
Cohen and allow taxpayers to challenge this effort to support
religion with federal tax dollars. But there is a real possibility
that the Court could narrow or even overrule Flast.
If that happens, then there would be no way to sue to stop the
federal government from giving any form of assistance to churches,
synagogues, mosques, or other religious entities. The
Establishment Clause could be ignored by the federal government and
no one could stop it.
This possibility reaffirms the importance of our nations's
commitment to the separation of church and state and our fight
against the religious right's war on this American principle.
Sincerely,
Erwin Chemerinsky
DefCon advisory board member
Alston & Bird Professor of Law and Political Science, Duke University.
P.S.-- Stay tuned to the DefCon Blog for updates on this case and
the Court's final decision:
http://ga3.org/ct/G72_o561SXRx/
*******************************************
(c) 2007 DefCon: Campaign to Defend The Constitution
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