July 19, 2006 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE H5397 The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Walsh Westmoreland Wolf XVIII, the Chair declares the House in question is on the resolution. Wamp Whitfield Young (AK) the Committee of the Whole House on Weldon (FL) Wicker Young (FL) The question was taken; and the Weldon (PA) Wilson (NM) the State of the Union for the consider- Speaker pro tempore announced that Weller Wilson (SC) ation of the bill, H.R. 2389. the ayes appeared to have it. NAYS—168 b 1225 Mr. GINGREY. Madam Speaker, on Abercrombie Hinojosa Owens IN THE COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE that I demand the yeas and nays. Ackerman Holden Pallone The yeas and nays were ordered. Allen Holt Pascrell Accordingly, the House resolved Andrews Honda The vote was taken by electronic de- Payne itself into the Committee of the Whole Baird Hooley Pelosi House on the State of the Union for the vice, and there were—yeas 257, nays Baldwin Hoyer Pomeroy consideration of the bill (H.R. 2389) to 168, not voting 7, as follows: Barrow Inslee Price (NC) Bean Israel amend title 28, United States Code, [Roll No. 383] Rangel Becerra Jackson (IL) Rothman with respect to the jurisdiction of Fed- YEAS—257 Berman Jackson-Lee Roybal-Allard Bishop (NY) (TX) eral courts over certain cases and con- Ruppersberger Aderholt Foxx Miller (FL) Blumenauer Jefferson troversies involving the Pledge of Alle- Rush Akin Franks (AZ) Miller (MI) Boswell Johnson, E. B. Sabo giance, with Mr. LATOURETTE in the Alexander Frelinghuysen Miller, Gary Boucher Jones (OH) Sa´ nchez, Linda chair. Baca Gallegly Mollohan Brady (PA) Kanjorski T. Bachus Garrett (NJ) Moran (KS) Brown (OH) Kaptur The Clerk read the title of the bill. Baker Gerlach Murphy Brown, Corrine Kennedy (RI) Sanchez, Loretta The CHAIRMAN. Pursuant to the Barrett (SC) Gibbons Musgrave Butterfield Kildee Sanders rule, the bill is considered read the Bartlett (MD) Gilchrest Myrick Capps Kilpatrick (MI) Schakowsky Barton (TX) Gillmor Neugebauer Capuano Kind Schiff first time. Bass Gingrey Ney Cardin Kucinich Schwartz (PA) The gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Beauprez Gohmert Norwood Cardoza Langevin Scott (GA) BLUNT) and the gentleman from New Berkley Goode Nunes Scott (VA) Carnahan Lantos York (Mr. NADLER) each will control 30 Berry Goodlatte Nussle Carson Larsen (WA) Serrano Biggert Gordon Ortiz Case Larson (CT) Shays minutes. Bilbray Granger Osborne Clay Lee Sherman The Chair recognizes the gentleman Bilirakis Graves Otter Cleaver Levin Skelton from Missouri. Bishop (GA) Green (WI) Oxley Clyburn Lewis (GA) Slaughter Bishop (UT) Green, Al Pastor Mr. BLUNT. Mr. Chairman, I yield Conyers Lipinski Smith (WA) Blackburn Green, Gene Paul Cooper Lofgren, Zoe Snyder myself such time as I may consume. Blunt Gutknecht Pearce Costa Lowey Solis As we approach this bill today, Mr. Boehlert Hall Pence Costello Lynch Spratt Chairman, I want to make the point Boehner Hart Peterson (MN) Crowley Maloney Bonilla Hastings (WA) Peterson (PA) Stark that clearly the Pledge of Allegiance is Cummings Markey Strickland Bonner Hayes Petri Davis (AL) Matsui well understood by this body and the Bono Hayworth Pickering Stupak Davis (CA) McCarthy Tauscher Members of this body. It is repeated Boozman Hefley Pitts Davis (FL) McCollum (MN) Taylor (MS) here every day. The words of the Boren Hensarling Platts Davis (IL) McDermott Thompson (CA) Boustany Herger Poe DeFazio McGovern Pledge are words that we have learned Thompson (MS) Boyd Herseth Pombo DeGette McNulty since our childhood: Tierney Bradley (NH) Higgins Porter Delahunt Meehan ‘‘I pledge allegiance to the Flag of Brady (TX) Hobson Price (GA) DeLauro Meek (FL) Towns Brown (SC) Hoekstra Pryce (OH) Dicks Meeks (NY) Udall (CO) the United States of America, and to Brown-Waite, Hostettler Putnam Dingell Michaud Udall (NM) the Republic for which it stands, one Ginny Hulshof Radanovich Doggett Millender- Van Hollen nation under God, indivisible, with lib- Burgess Hunter Rahall Vela´ zquez Doyle McDonald erty and justice for all.’’ Burton (IN) Hyde Ramstad Engel Miller (NC) Visclosky Buyer Inglis (SC) Regula Eshoo Miller, George Wasserman When Congress passed the bill adding Calvert Issa Rehberg Etheridge Moore (KS) Schultz the words ‘‘under God,’’ Congress stat- Camp (MI) Istook Reichert Farr Moore (WI) Waters ed its belief that those words in no way Campbell (CA) Jenkins Renzi Fattah Moran (VA) Watson Cannon Jindal Reyes Filner Murtha Watt run contrary to the first amendment, Cantor Johnson (CT) Reynolds Frank (MA) Nadler Waxman but recognize ‘‘only the guidance of Capito Johnson (IL) Rogers (AL) Gonzalez Napolitano Weiner God in our national affairs.’’ Carter Johnson, Sam Rogers (KY) Grijalva Neal (MA) Wexler Two words, ‘‘under God,’’ in the Castle Jones (NC) Rogers (MI) Harman Oberstar Woolsey Chabot Keller Rohrabacher Hastings (FL) Obey Wu Pledge helped define our national her- Chandler Kelly Ros-Lehtinen Hinchey Olver Wynn itage as the beneficiaries of a Constitu- Chocola Kennedy (MN) Ross Coble King (IA) Royce NOT VOTING—7 tion sent to the States for ratification ‘‘in the year of our Lord,’’ as the ratifi- Cole (OK) King (NY) Ryan (WI) Evans Harris Ryan (OH) Conaway Kingston Ryun (KS) Ford McKinney cation statement said, 1787, by a found- Cramer Kirk Salazar Gutierrez Northup ing generation that saw itself as guided Crenshaw Kline Saxton Cubin Knollenberg Schmidt b 1223 by a providential God. These two words Cuellar Kolbe Schwarz (MI) were added to the Pledge in the 1950s, Culberson Kuhl (NY) Sensenbrenner So the resolution was agreed to. and at that time President Eisenhower Davis (KY) LaHood Sessions The result of the vote was announced made the point that in those days of Davis (TN) Latham Shadegg as above recorded. Cold War, those days after World War Davis, Jo Ann LaTourette Shaw A motion to reconsider was laid on Davis, Tom Leach Sherwood II, that it was important that we real- the table. Deal (GA) Lewis (CA) Shimkus ize that there was something bigger Dent Lewis (KY) Shuster f Diaz-Balart, L. Linder Simmons than ourselves and that our country Diaz-Balart, M. LoBiondo Simpson GENERAL LEAVE was guided by that. Doolittle Lucas Smith (NJ) For decades children have been recit- Drake Lungren, Daniel Smith (TX) Mr. BLUNT. Madam Speaker, I ask Dreier E. Sodrel unanimous consent that all Members ing the Pledge of Allegiance in class- Duncan Mack Souder may have 5 legislative days in which to rooms across America. The Pledge of Edwards Manzullo Stearns revise and extend their remarks on Allegiance is an important civic ritual. Ehlers Marchant Sullivan It binds us together as Americans. But Emanuel Marshall Sweeney H.R. 2389. Emerson Matheson Tancredo The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there last year that daily ritual was halted English (PA) McCaul (TX) Tanner objection to the request of the gen- in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. Everett McCotter Taylor (NC) The court actually told teachers and Feeney McCrery Terry tleman from Missouri? Ferguson McHenry Thomas There was no objection. children in Alaska and Arizona, in Fitzpatrick (PA) McHugh Thornberry f California and Hawaii, in Idaho and Flake McIntyre Tiahrt Montana, in Nevada, Oregon, and Foley McKeon Tiberi PLEDGE PROTECTION ACT OF 2005 Washington that they could not recite Forbes McMorris Turner Fortenberry Melancon Upton The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursu- the Pledge of Allegiance as they had Fossella Mica Walden (OR) ant to House Resolution 920 and rule for decades in their classrooms. VerDate Aug 31 2005 07:11 Nov 16, 2006 Jkt 059060 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 4634 Sfmt 0634 E:\RECORDCX\T37X$J0E\H19JY6.REC H19JY6 CCOLEMAN on PROD1PC71 with CONG-REC-ONLINE H5398 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE July 19, 2006 The Court’s reasoning? The words it was against his or her religion. In been able to find any other case like ‘‘under God’’ constituted a violation of 1943, the Supreme Court in West Vir- this. They report, ‘‘We found one in- the establishment clause of the first ginia Board of Education v. Barnette stance of a bill, a joint resolution, be- amendment. According to the court, it held that children, in that case Jeho- tween the 100th Congress and the cur- was unconstitutional to lead students, vah’s Witnesses, had a first amendment rent Congress, in which a committee even voluntarily, in the Pledge of Alle- right not to be compelled to swear an specifically voted not to report a meas- giance because it included the phrase oath or recite a pledge in violation of ure that was later considered by the ‘‘under God.’’ their religious beliefs. House.’’ That measure was a 1996 agri- Any of the phrases in the Pledge do This legislation would, of course, culture bill that was rejected in com- not need to be subject to this kind of strip those families of the right to go mittee and later folded into a rec- court interpretation. The Pledge of Al- to court and to defend their religious onciliation bill. legiance, an act of Congress, modified liberty. Schools would be able to expel Now the Republican majority exceeds by the Congress in 1950s, still continues children for acting according to the to be the Pledge of Allegiance said by dictates of their religious faith, and even that arrogance. We are asked to school students and Members of this Congress will have slammed the court- vote on a bill that guts our system of body and others all over the country house door in their faces. government and guts the protection of today. Judges should not be able to re- As dangerous as this legislation is, our individual rights when the com- write the Pledge. Passing this bill will even for an election season, it is part of mittee tasked with the consideration protect the Pledge from Federal judges a more general attack on our system of of this bill rejected it.