[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 8 (Monday, February 9, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S523-S524]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      PROHIBITING THE DESECRATION OF THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES

  Mr. KEMPTHORNE. Mr. President, I rise today to express my strong 
support for S.J. Res. 40, a resolution to propose a Constitutional 
amendment to prohibit the desecration of the flag of the United States. 
I am pleased to be an original cosponsor of this resolution.
  The people of Idaho have told me, quite clearly, that they feel we 
must take steps to protect the Stars and Stripes. By way of a 
resolution passed by the Idaho State Legislature approximately three 
years ago, my constituents let it be known that Idahoans want the 
opportunity to ratify an amendment to the Constitution which would 
prohibit the desecration of the flag. The resolution stated, ``. . .the 
American Flag to this day is a most honorable and worthy banner of a 
nation which is thankful for its strengths and committed to curing its 
faults, and a nation which remains the destination of millions of 
immigrants attracted by the universal power of the American ideal. . 
.''.
  Perhaps nowhere is the desire to protect the American ideal exhibited 
better than in the men and women who serve this nation in our armed 
forces. As a member of the Armed Services committee, I have had the 
opportunity to visit with many of these outstanding Americans who serve 
our nation

[[Page S524]]

both on our own soil and in foreign lands around the globe. These men 
and women stand ready, at a moments notice, to put their lives on the 
line so that U.S. citizens here and abroad may live in peace and 
safety. They are prepared to protect, at any cost, the rights and 
freedoms which we all hold so dear, and for which so many have 
sacrificed so much during the more than 220 years of our nation's 
history. As they serve, even on foreign ground, they serve under Old 
Glory, the symbol of all that we value and cherish about the United 
States of America. The flag serves as a constant reminder of the land 
they call home, of their family and friends, and of all the values that 
make the United States of America the beacon of liberty and justice 
throughout the world.
  In trying to define what the flag of the United States means, I was 
particularly moved by the words of Henry Ward Beecher. In his essay, 
``The Meaning of Our Flag,'' he wrote, ``Our Flag carries American 
ideas, American history and American feelings. Beginning with the 
Colonies, and coming down to our time, in its sacred heraldry, in its 
glorious insignia, it has gathered and stored chiefly this supreme 
idea: divine right of liberty in man. . . .That it meant, that it 
means, and, by the blessing of God, that it shall mean to the end of 
time!''
  Mr. President, by supporting S.J.Res. 40, we honor the meaning of the 
flag. By acknowledging that the flag of the United States is more than 
just a piece of cloth, more than just a physical entity devoid of 
value, we indicate our understanding of those things for which it 
stands. I hope my colleagues will join me, and the resolution's 
sponsors and cosponsors, in taking the first step toward protecting the 
flag and everything it represents.

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