Free Republic

WASHINGTON D.C.— A constitutional amendment that would protect public expressions of faith and religion was introduced, after a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling removed the Ten Commandments from a Kentucky courthouse, reported CNSNews.com. Buoyed by pro-family groups, more than 100 congressmen proposed the Religious Freedom Amendment."Intolerant people have been attacking the Ten Commandments, the Pledge of Allegiance, voluntary prayers at school, and other religious expression, but this amendment will halt those attacks," said Rep. Ernest Istook (R-Okla.) in a statement. The Supreme Court has sent the clear message to public officials that “they will face an onslaught of expensive litigation...

Rep. Ernest Istook (R-Okla.) is expected to introduce a constitutional amendment to protect religious expression in schools and on other public property soon after the Supreme Court decides two landmark cases about the displaying the Ten Commandments on public grounds. The court is expected to announce its decision by Monday. This is the first time the Supreme Court has ruled on a case regarding the Ten Commandments since 1980, when the court banned them from display in public-school buildings. Istook’s amendment, the “Pledge and Prayer Amendment,” could be the next chapter in an ongoing battle over the propriety of religious...

After exerting its influence on the budget, the conservative Republican Study Committee is gearing up to flex its muscle politically. The group has created a new political action committee, the House Conservatives Fund (HCF), with the aim of electing more conservatives to Congress. HCF’s first fundraiser is scheduled for later this month. Organizers of the effort, which is being led by Rep. Ernest Istook (R-Okla.), said that, with conservatives now billing themselves as the “majority of the majority” after wins in the last election, a greater political presence was overdue. “There had been a lot of discussion about the need...

Deep in the transportation section of this year’s omnibus spending bill, Rep. Ernest Istook (R-Okla.) dispensed a little appropriator’s justice, punishing 21 Republicans who wrote him a letter in support of $1.8 billion for Amtrak. Istook, chairman of the Subcommittee on Transportation, Treasury and Independent Agencies, drastically reduced, or entirely excised, the transportation earmarks that those lawmakers were expecting to receive, making good on a little-noticed threat he issued in a letter last February. Istook’s anti-Amtrak retribution hit several of the Republican majority’s most vulnerable members, including Reps. Rob Simmons (R-Conn.) and Jim Gerlach (R-Pa.), two Northeastern centrists who won...

FLASH: Rep. Istook, R-Okla. was responsible for the insertion of the provision... Developing... -- Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said Sunday that "accountability will be carried out" against whoever slipped a provision into an omnibus spending bill that would have allowed two committee chairmen to view the tax returns of any American.

WASHINGTON (BP)--An Oklahoma congressman introduced a bill July 22 that goes a step beyond current law by banning same-sex "marriage" nationwide -- including in Massachusetts -- and unlike a constitutional amendment, requires only a simple majority to pass. Called the National Marriage Law, the bill, if passed, would supercede state laws, thereby voiding Massachusetts' law legalizing same-sex "marriage." In addition, the law would prevent state courts or lower federal courts from hearing challenges to it. Only the Supreme Court would be able to review it. Sponsored by Rep. Ernest Istook, R.-Okla., the bill has 37 co-sponsors. "This is the only...

Istook Endorses Coburn Humphreys Campaign Says Endorsement Not Surprising POSTED: 11:04 pm CDT July 20, 2004 UPDATED: 11:12 pm CDT July 20, 2004 OKLAHOMA CITY -- U.S. Rep. Ernest Istook, R-Okla., said Tuesday that he is endorsing former Congressman Tom Coburn in the GOP race for the U.S. Senate. Istook urged Oklahoma Republicans to avoid a runoff by uniting behind the Muskogee physician. The endorsement came just a week before the July 27 primary. Coburn, former Oklahoma City Mayor Kirk Humphreys and Corporation Commissioner Bob Anthony are battling for the top spot on the Republican side. U.S. Rep. Brad Carson...

After failure of the Federal Marriage Amendment in the Senate, a congressman has proposed passing a federal law defining marriage as between a man and a woman. Rep. Ernest Istook, R.-Okla., wants a law that would over-ride all state laws, granting the U.S. Supreme Court original jurisdiction over any legal challenge against it, reports Human Events online. That means any challenge would bypass all lower courts and go straight to the high court. The Senate Wednesday effectively killed the first attempt at an amendment by rejecting a move by Majority Leader Bill Frist of Tennesee to end debate and vote...

Return of the Maverick 2004-06-02 By Robert Novak WASHINGTON -- Dr. Tom Coburn, the plainspoken obstetrician from Muskogee, was back in Washington briefly last month. Republican senators greeted him with mixed emotions. He is their best hope for keeping an Oklahoma seat Republican in the closely divided Senate. The bad news is, he would be as prickly in the Senate as he was during his six years in the House (1995-2000). Coburn's problem is that he takes seriously the professed Republican agenda: limited government, entitlement reform and anti-abortion advocacy. He was a rare sincere GOP supporter of term limits, leaving...

<p>WASHINGTON, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- An Oklahoma congressman is so upset over a subway ad for legalized marijuana he wants to cut the federal government's annual payment to the Metro system.</p> <p>Change the Climate Inc. has been using public service advertising space on the Metro since 2001, the Washington Post reported Wednesday, but it was the latest round of advertising, this fall that drew the ire of Rep. Ernest J. Istook Jr., R-Okla.</p>

Rep. Brad Carson (D-Okla.) will enter the race to succeed senior Republican Sen. Don Nickles, who announced Tuesday that he won’t seek a fifth term. Carson plans to announce his exploratory committee next week, according to a Democratic source. Rep. Ernest Istook (R-Okla.) is also expected to run for Nickles’ seat, while Oklahoma City Mayor Kirk Humphreys (R) and Attorney General Drew Edmondson (D) are possible contenders. Nickles, 54, chairman of the Budget Committee and the former GOP whip, decided not to seek reelection even though his GOP colleagues and the White House wanted him to stay, and he was...

U.S. Senate '04: Four Down, Two More to Go? by John Gizzi Posted Sep 23, 2003 Four of the 34 U.S. Senators up for election next year have announced their exiting--Zell Miller (Ga.), John Edwards (N.C.), and Ernest Hollings (S.C.), Democrats all, and Republican Peter Fitzgerald (Ill.) Now, signs are ominous that the next two senatorial shoes to drop will be those of Republican Don Nickles (Okla.) and Democrat John Breaux (La.). Word on the D.C. cocktail circuit over the weekend was that four-termer and Senate Budget Committee Chairman Nickles was anxious to make more money in the private sector,...

Poll Shows Oklahoma Rep. Istook Winner of GOP Senatorial Primary Rep. Ernest Istook (R-Okla) will be a sure winner in a contest with Oklahoma City Mayor Kirk Humphreys if he enters the Republican primary for the senatorial nomination in the 2004 primaries. A confidential poll by Wilson Research Strategies done for the Friends of Ernest Istook group concludes that based on an exhaustive samplings "the Republican nomination is Istook's should he decide to seek it and that Congressman Istook is the Republican's best candidate to hold any open Senate seat in 2004." The possibility that a Senate seat will be...