Posted on 08/29/2005 2:51:53 PM PDT by F14 Pilot
HONOLULU, August 24, 2005 - Delegates to the nations largest wartime veterans organization meeting here during their 87th annual national convention forged their solidarity against legal abuse and secular cleansing of American family values and religious symbols by the ACLU and other organizations.
Four thousand delegates representing 2.7 million members unanimously passed Resolution 139 that calls upon Congress to amend the practice of using taxpayer-funded attorney fees by claims under the Equal Access to Justice.
The 1976 Civil Rights Attorneys Fee Awards Act was much needed legislation, but in recent years, certain groups have abused the congressional intent of this public law in Establishment Clause lawsuits against the Boy Scouts of America, the Ten Commandments, and now veterans memorials, said Thomas P. Cadmus, National Commander of The American Legion. And its time to fix it!
Exorbitant attorney fees awarded by Courts to be paid by American taxpayers has become the newest Sword of Damocles strategically employed by organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) to coerce settlements by cities, counties, states, and large organizations like the Boy Scouts of America and the Department of Defense by suits and threats of lawsuits against any public expression of Americas religious history, heritage, and values, Cadmus said. When out-of-court settlements are more cost effective than the judicial process, then the system is clearly broken.
Cadmus lauded the introduction of HR 2679, the Public Expression of Religion Act (PERA), by Rep. John Hostettler and urged all Americans to strongly support this long overdue legislation.
Long time civil rights attorney Rees Lloyd spoke to the delegation earlier in the day on what he calls the ACLUs aggressive secular cleansing of our America heritage through the elimination of our religious symbols and our core values of decency, citizenship and Americanism.
Lloyd, a past commander of American Legion San Gorgonio Post 448 in Banning, Calif., worked for the ACLU at one time and is very familiar with how the ACLUs mind-set and litigation strategies work.
Using taxpayers dollars to pay these court-ordered attorney fees, especially when attacking established, traditional American values is absurd, Lloyd said. The list of victims continues to grow - Los Angeles County, the cities of San Diego and Redlands in California, the school boards in Chicago, Ill., and Portland, Or. the Village of Castleton, Department of Housing and Urban Development, Department of Defense, Ten Commandments cases in Kentucky, Texas, and Alabama, and even a Veterans Memorial in the Mojave Desert. Who will be the next victim?
When the mere threat of attorneys fee is so severe that large organizations fear the consequences, then imagine the power and chilling effect it has on local elected officials faced with the threat of court-ordered, taxpayer-paid attorney fees if they do not surrender to ACLU demands to cease sponsorship of Boy Scouts, or to destroy religious symbols like the Ten Commandments, Lloyd said.
Bless the legion.
VFW (Volunteers for Welfare)
Why stop there? Kick out the whole ACLU!
ditto. About time the ACLU got a live grenade shoved up its ass.
Here is one American Legion member who stands four square behind the Legion on this one.
What is needed now is for more large groups to come forward and fight the ACLU.
bump
Just repeal the Civil Rights Act.
As one of those 2.7 million members, that pleases me very much. It's a start.
ping
A writer for the local fishwrap suggested suing the ACLU in every state of the union. There's no way they could afford to defend all the suits and pay their court costs. It would bankrupt those communists and put them out of business for good.
I'm suprised the article got past the editors.
Oh, yeah... thanks for posting this. My non-FR friends will appreciate this.
Heres how you can support the passage of HR 2679:
http://www.ipetitions.com/campaigns/ACLU/
I always thought the VFW were typically more conservative. They endorsed Reagan over Carter, while the Legion remained neutral.
This is just WRONG! The ACLU is being allowed to act as an UN-ELECTED tyranny at TAX-PAYER EXPENSE.
Something needs to be done NOW, to stop this. It's THE issue of our time.
CHECK THIS OUT
( Post 14-it's about a religious symbol and the property it was on, that Thomas Jefferson protected and contains a letter from him-8th paragragh).
Again VFW (Volunteers for Welfare).
bttt
Support the passage of HR 2679. Phone, E-mail, or personally confront your representatives to support this bill. The ACLU is an enemy of America. If your representatives do not support this bill, VOTE THEM OUT OF OFFICE!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.