[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 11]
[House]
[Page 16224]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          ``COME AND TAKE IT''

  (Mr. POE of Texas asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, during the Texas War of Independence, 
the enemy tried to remove a cannon from the town of Gonzales. The 
defiant Texans flew a flag which stated ``Come and Take It.''
  Now, in Montana, an intolerant radical anti-religious group wants a 
statue of Jesus taken down from a mountain. The Forest Service is under 
pressure not to renew a lease for the 58-year-old statue. The statue is 
more than a religious symbol. It was erected as a memorial and a 
tribute to Montana freedom fighters during World War II for their 
bravery, dedication, and patriotism.
  What's next? Is the anti-religious crowd going to demand the 
government chisel off the crosses, the Stars of David, and other 
religious symbols on the tombstones of our war dead at Arlington 
Cemetery? The Constitution protects free speech and freedom of 
religion. As those early Texas settlers were successful in preventing 
the enemy from taking that cannon and the right to bear arms, I hope 
the people of Montana are successful in keeping the anti-religious 
bunch from taking the Jesus statue.
  And that's just the way it is.

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