[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 88 (Tuesday, June 28, 2005)]
[House]
[Page H5260]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SUPREME COURT'S RULING ON THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
(Ms. FOXX asked and was given permission to address the House for 1
minute.)
Ms. FOXX. Madam Speaker, I rise to voice my strong disapproval with
the Supreme Court's ruling yesterday that barred individual States from
displaying the Ten Commandments in courthouses. The five justices who
voted for this ruling displayed extreme hypocrisy. As they outlawed
this practice, they sat directly underneath our Ten Commandments.
In 1950, the Florida Supreme Court stated: ``A people unschooled in
the sovereignty of God, the Ten Commandments, and the ethics of Jesus
could never have evolved the Bill of Rights, the Declaration of
Independence, and the Constitution. There is not one solitary
fundamental principle of our democratic policy that did not stem
directly from the basic moral concepts of the Ten Commandments . . . ''
The Ten Commandments are found more often in public buildings than in
individual churches, demonstrating that Americans from all faiths and
walks of life recognize their impact on our laws and culture.
Yesterday's ruling sets a dangerous precedent. What is next? Are we
going to remove references to God from our pledge, remove the Bible
from our court proceedings, and so forth?
Madam Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to look into ways to prevent
this type of abusive judicial power. I also encourage the five justices
to exercise better judgment in the future.
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