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Just heard on top of the hour on Fox News Radio

SAN FRANCISCO — Reciting the Pledge of Allegiance (search) in public schools was ruled unconstitutional Wednesday by a federal judge who granted legal standing to two families represented by an atheist who lost his previous battle before the U.S. Supreme Court.

SAN FRANCISCO -- A federal judge in San Francisco ruled Wednesday it is unconstitutional for public school children to recite the Pledge of Allegiance. U.S. District Judge Lawrence Karlton ruled that the pledge's reference to one nation "under God" violates school children's right to be "free from a coercive requirement to affirm God." Karlton said he's bound by precedent set by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which ruled in 2002 that it was unconstitutional for the Pledge to be recited in public schools. The Supreme Court threw out that case, ruling that Sacramento atheist Michael Newdow had no standing...

Dr. Michael Newdow is at it again. The California physician and atheist whose first successful challenge against the phrase "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance was vacated by the U.S. Supreme Court, has filed a new lawsuit to achieve the same end. He called the high court's intervention a "vile abrogation of my civil rights." Continuing his eight-year battle, Dr. Newdow argues that, "No one should be made to feel like an outsider because of their religious beliefs." He may not realize it, but that's an argument those with religious beliefs would salute. Atheists don't profess religious beliefs. He...

To avoid "potential harm" to eight people who have joined avowed atheist Michael Newdow in a quest to strike "under God" from the Pledge of Allegiance, a federal judge agreed Tuesday to allow them to remain anonymous during what is sure to be a closely-watched legal fight over highly-charged issue. Newdow, who filed the lawsuit using pseudonyms for all the plaintiffs except himself, proposed in a motion to keep anonymous the names of the parents and students in Sacramento County and San Joaquin County school districts. Attorneys for the defendants - Congress, the federal government, California, and five school districts...

In God We Trust Patriotic Flash Movie Finished and posted just in time for Washington's Birthday! (BTW, it's hard to swallow polls that find Washington ranked as America's 7th greatest president.) The presentation features quotes from Washington, Jefferson, Adams, Henry, Lincoln, Reagan, and more on the subject of God and morality in government. Many of these quotes were taken from their own speeches to the American people as elected officials (sorry ye Newdows and ACLUers of the world)! Enjoy and spread freely! I created two versions--one for high bandwidth (T1, DSL, Cable), and another for those trapped in dialupland....

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - The federal appeals court that ruled the Pledge of Allegiance was an unconstitutional endorsement of religion is being sued for allegedly displaying the Ten Commandments on its seal and courthouses. The case was brought by Pleasanton attorney Ryan Donlon, who was admitted to practice before the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in June. In his lawsuit against the San Francisco-based court, he said the certificate admitting him contains the court's seal which unlawfully contains what he believes is a tablet object that "represents the Judeo-Christian Decalogue commonly referred to as the Ten Commandments." Cathy Catterson,...

“…so help me God.” Such are the final words of the Oath of Office as recited by second term president George W. Bush on Inauguration Day 2005. They concluded the oath that saw the president reaffirm the duties he faithfully executed during his first term in office and that he swore to perform again in his second. To President Bush these words mean something. They are the ultimate expression of his commitment to fulfill the promise that he has made to the American people, himself and, so help him, to his God. Most people, whether religious or not, recognize that...

I have seen (received) complaints here because we talk at each other but don't do anything. Well, here's your chance everybody. Mr. Newdow states his case and INVITES COMMENTS. Be respectful, informed and literate....Let's keep the high ground, Just because he is a horse's rear doesn't mean we have to tell him so.

WASHINGTON - The atheist who tried to remove "under God" from the Pledge of Allegiance asked the Supreme Court on Tuesday to bar the saying of a prayer at President Bush's inauguration. In an emergency filing, Michael Newdow argued that a prayer at Thursday's ceremony would violate the Constitution by forcing him to accept unwanted religious beliefs. His request has been rejected by two lower courts. Newdow also asked that Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, who is designated as the justice to hear emergency appeals for the D.C. Circuit, recuse himself because he is scheduled to swear in Bush and...

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 17, 2005--The American Center for Law and Justice, specializing in constitutional law, said today it is pleased that a federal appeals court has rejected a request by Michael Newdow to prohibit prayer at this Thursday's Presidential inauguration. A federal district court on Friday rejected Newdow's request for an injunction to stop the clergy prayers and late Sunday the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rejected his appeal. Newdow is now expected to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to step in and stop the prayers. "We're delighted to see the courts continue to uphold a...

Pledge Dad sues to ban ministers at oath Published 1/14/2005 2:07 PM WASHINGTON, Jan. 14 (UPI) -- Atheist Michael Newdow wants a U.S. district judge to ban prayers by clergy at the president's inauguration ceremony, the Washington Post said Friday. Newdow, a California doctor and lawyer who sued to have the words "under God" stricken from the Pledge of Allegiance in 2003, told the court that prayers offered by two Protestant ministers during the Jan. 20 ceremony when the president takes his oath of office would violate his constitutional rights. "This is like the Super Bowl, the Olympics. It's a...

Judge rejects Michael Newdow's challenge to invocation prayer at presidential inauguration

The idiot Mike Newdow that tried to get Bush not to use a bible to get sworn in, or use a prayer during is inauguration has been thrown out, as Fox news reports. Basically, the justices said that Bush would not be able to control his own inauguration and its not up to censor his speech. They also said (which i love) - if you don’t want to hear it - don’t watch it.

Atheist Challenges Inaugural Prayers By Carol D. Leonnig Washington Post Staff Writer Friday, January 14, 2005; Page B01 A California atheist asked a federal judge yesterday to stop President Bush from having two Protestant ministers say prayers at the inauguration, arguing that it would violate his constitutional rights to the separation of church and state. Michael Newdow, a lawyer and doctor who has fought to keep his daughter from being exposed to the Pledge of Allegiance in her public school, said the inauguration is perhaps the most public of all government-sponsored national ceremonies. It should not provide the president with...

WASHINGTON -- A federal judge heard arguments Thursday in the case of an atheist who wants to prevent a Christian minister from reciting a prayer at President Bush's inauguration. Michael Newdow -- best known for trying to remove "under God" from the Pledge of Allegiance -- told U.S. District Judge John Bates that allowing an overtly Christian prayer at the Jan. 20 ceremony violates the Constitution by forcing him to accept unwanted religious beliefs. Attorneys representing Bush and his inaugural committee argued that prayers have been widely accepted at inaugurals for more than 200 years and that Bush's decision to...

This afternoon at 3:30 at the U.S. District Court in Washington, DC, oral arguments will take place in the Inauguration Prayer case. Dr. Michael Newdow has brought a challenge against President Bush in order to stop ministers from giving an invocation and benediction at the Inaugural swearing-in ceremony which will take place on Thursday, January 20th. All briefs in the case were filed on Friday. Senior Counsel Jim Henderson from our Washington, DC office will be in court on Thursday, and we will have frequent updates on our website starting this evening. We anticipate a very quick decision in the...

Add your name to the group of 9,996 people who have already signed using the Internet! The Rev. Dr. Michael A. Newdow is threatening to rob this nation of one of the most critical traditions of Presidential Inauguration ... prayer. Please read the petition carefully and declare your membership with the ACLJ by filling out the form and demanding our Senators stand firm in our historical heritage and allow the expression of prayer during this important event for America. Petition to Preserve the Inaugural Prayer Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid All members of the United...

(Washington, DC) – The American Center for Law and Justice, specializing in constitutional law, is opposing a legal challenge brought by California atheist Michael Newdow challenging the constitutionality of prayer at the Presidential inauguration. The ACLJ has filed an amicus brief in support of the Department of Justice’s position defending the constitutionality of inaugural prayer. “This challenge is legally flawed and represents nothing more than an attempt to remove a time-honored tradition going back to the nation’s first President,” said Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel of the ACLJ, which has challenged Newdow’s lawsuits in the past. “The expression of prayer at...

A California atheist's lawsuit to prevent Christian clergy from praying in the presidential inauguration should be dismissed because it is a recycled case about an issue that does not violate the U.S. Constitution, attorneys for President Bush said.     "There is no reason to 'reverse course' and abandon a widely accepted, noncontroversial aspect of the inaugural ceremony after over 200 years of this proper solemnization of a national event," the president's attorneys said in a 65-page response to the suit. Assistant Attorney General Peter D. Keisler, who filed the response Friday, wrote that atheist Michael Newdow, a Sacramento, Calif., doctor...