United States v Roy Moore: The Most Important States' Rights Case in Decades

PatriotPetitions.US/Federalist.com ^ | 8-15-03

[cpforlife.org]

An Open Letter in Support of Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore's Defense of the Most Important Religious Liberty and States' Rights Test Case in Decades

(Please forward this important message to friends, family members, and fellow American Patriots)

A monument of the Ten Commandments placed in the rotunda of Alabama's Supreme Court building by Chief Justice Roy Moore, is the front line of the war over the First, Ninth and Tenth Amendment restrictions on the central government by our Constitution's Bill of Rights. Ordered by a federal court to remove the monument by August 20, Justice Moore has been warned by U.S. District and Appellate Courts that his states' rights argument will not be tolerated.

Judge Moore, of course, is rightly defending the original intent of the Founders, who drafted and approved the Bill of Rights, against erroneous interpretation by an activist Leftjudiciary, even as he prepares his appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. This case is a major test case for states' rights and the so-called church-state "separation clause," and ultimately will determine the fundamental nature of government and the Constitution. To assess the importance of this case, consider this evaluation from 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Ed Carnes, who ruled against Chief Justice Moore: "If Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore's Ten Commandments monument were allowed to stand, it would mean a massive revision of how the courts have interpreted the First Amendment for years." Indeed, it would.

Join fellow Patriots signing this Open Letter in support of Justice Moore, First Amendment rights, limited government and the sovereignty of the several states as guaranteed by our Constitution.

Link to -- http://patriotpetitions.us/openletter

If you don't have Web access, please send a blank e-mail to: Each e-mail sent to this address will be counted as one signature for the petition.

(Circulation of this petition is being sponsored by The Federalist, the most widely read conservative e-journal on the Internet. If you have not already joined the ranks of Patriots receiving The Federalist, we encourage you to do so. This highly acclaimed conservative digest of news, policy and opinion will be delivered FREE by e-mail to your inbox each week. Simply link to --http://www.federalist.com/subscribe/patriots.asp If you don't have Web access, send a blank e-mail to and you will be subscribed automatically.)

Founder's Quote:

"The States supposed that by their tenth amendment, they had secured themselves against constructive powers." --Thomas Jefferson

[cpforlife.org]

PING,

Please consider taking 2 minutes and signing this very important petition. This is a critical point in time for our Constitution. Also forward to contacts.

[The UnVeiled Lady]

1st A:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, OR PROHIBITING THE FREE EXERCISE THEREOF;

Or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Please sign the petition.

[cpforlife.org]

Thanks and God bless!

[Lurking Libertarian]

Moore's allies may be bailing on him.

[cpforlife.org]

PRAYER AT VALLEY FORGE

I consider it an indispensable duty to close this last solemn act of my official life by commending the interests of our dearest country to the protection of the Almighty God and those who have the superintendence of them into His holy keeping.
- George Washington

[cpforlife.org]

PING

[.30Carbine]

Thank you for pinging me. Just found the petition in my email, too. Already signed and forwarded. The Federalist Digest chose the following for their "Quote of the Week":

"The battle is not to the strong alone,
it is to the vigilant and the active and the brave.
So said Patrick Henry in 1775.
It was true then, and it's true today."
Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore, American Patriot

[yankeedame]

Perhaps the wish is father to the thought.

[Chancellor Palpatine]

What part of "establish" don't you understand?

$125,000,000.00 of Alabama taxpayer money went to pay for legal expenses and "consultants", all so Roy Moore could do a fundraising stunt for his televangelist buddies at Coral Ridge (affiliated with Paul and Jan Crouch). Who did it go to? On what? Who was controlling the invoices? Are a bunch of cracker lawyers and preacher types living an extravagant lifestyle courtesy of the taxpayers of Alabama?

[cpforlife.org]

LAW OF THE LAND
Judge Moore will appeal to Supreme Court
10 commandments chief justice won't back down on monument

---

Posted: July 22, 2003
5:00 p.m. Eastern

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=33695

© 2003 WorldNetDaily.com

Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore announced today he will attempt to take his controversial Ten Commandments-monument case directly to the U.S. Supreme Court.


Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore

Moore said he will not seek further hearings from the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, which ruled unanimously earlier this month a 2½ ton granite monument he placed in the rotunda of the judiciary building in Montgomery must be removed.

The court said it represented a government promotion of a particular religion, in violation of the First Amendment.

"I will personally petition the United States Supreme Court as chief justice of this state to hear me on this matter," Moore said in a statement.


Monument of Ten Commandments

John Giles, president of the Christian Coalition of Alabama said his group "will not rest until the preservation of this monument bearing the moral foundation of our law is safely secured."

"The language in the 11th Circuit's order is a radical and historic departure from the bench," Giles said in a statement. "Is the monument, the Ten Commandments or Chief Justice Moore on trial? This must be challenged to the fullest extent."

Despite the appeals' court's order, July 1, Moore vowed to keep the monument in place, telling reporters, "We must defend our rights and preserve our constitution."

"For the federal courts to adopt the agenda of the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) and to remove the knowledge of God and morality from our lives is wrong," he said.

Moore wrote a treatise on his battle to retain the monument in this month's Whistleblower magazine, WND's monthly print publication.

In its decision, the appeals court panel compared Moore to Southern officials and governors of the past who refused to integrate schools after being ordered to do so by federal courts. The court also predicted Moore would lose if he appealed the decision to the Supreme Court.

The chief justice, who has become known as the "Ten Commandments judge," was sued by the ACLU after placing the monument in the courthouse in the middle of the night in July 2001.

The four-foot tall monument features the Commandments inscribed on two tablets along with historical quotations.

Editor's note: Chief Justice Roy Moore is one of the key writers in the July issue of WND's acclaimed Whistleblower magazine. Titled "THE CONSTITUTION: America's ultimate battleground," this special issue explores whether the Constitution is still America's "supreme law of the land." In his article, "Putting God back in the public square," Justice Moore explains to Whistleblower's readers what the 1st Amendment is really all about.

[cake_crumb]

I've got news for you, even some Muslim groups in this country think this wacko interpretation of the establishment clause is ludicrous.

Congress has passed no law ESTABLISHING a religion. We're tired of having our history stripped from us. As goes our common history and culture are destroyed, so are we. If this evil lawsuit had never been filed, the taxpayers of the state of Alabama wouldn't be paying to defend against it.

The same thing is happening in front of a courthouse in Chester County PA. In fact, similar suits are being fought all over this country. This is NOT a "fundraising stunt" for Moore and his "televangelist buddies at Coral Ridge". This is national.

[Chancellor Palpatine]

Show me how many involve defiant fight picking by Chief Justices of state supreme courts who were as closely tied with ministries as this one is, and show me how many involved defense costs that amounted to even a significant fraction of what Moore claims.

And you have no fundamental "freedom" to use my tax money, my tax paid public offices or my tax paid public property to ram your sect of Christianity down my throat.

[cake_crumb]

Petition signed.

[At _War_With_Liberals]

Why argue with leftists?

The ACLU's arguments are always disingenuous.

We all know what these cases are about, especially JCLU supporters.

[joesnuffy]

Unprecedented...who would have ever imagined in the USA that Americans would find the ten commandments in a court house offensive.....
Dont know which is worse the enemy within or without

[Tom Bombadil]

We're tired of having our history stripped from us

bullseye......

[cake_crumb]

"And you have no fundamental 'freedom' to use my tax money, my tax paid public offices or my tax paid public property to ram your sect of Christianity down my throat."

Nor do you have the right to use my tax money to ram your radical sect of anti-religion down mine. You got a complaint about people fighting back against the ACLU, then take it to the ACLU. They started this.

You don't know WHAT "my sect of Christianity is, or even if I'm a member of one. Your assumption is based on prejudice because you ASSume that to fight for the Ten Commandments, the Pledge of Alleigance or any matter of state's rights versus federal mandates I must be a member of some Christian sect.

Our culture was here before you or I were, and it is our culture I'm fighting for. NATIONALLY, the cost of this fight far outweighs the single fight of Judge Moore, both monetarily and as a matter of preserving our own Constitution. It's not a single fight. It's a war. His is just the highest profile case.

Don't worry. No doubt the SCOTUS will preach from the pulpit of Political Correctness and no dooubt give you your wish. Another little piece of what makes us Americans will be gone.

[.30Carbine]

It Christianity that brought you the freedom to say what you just did. Thought you should know that.

[Chancellor Palpatine]

Good - it makes my day when would be theocrats are forced to worship in their homes and churches on their own dime, as opposed to making noisome pharisaic displays that are meaningless in terms of personal devotion and sacrifice.

[Chancellor Palpatine]

Whats a "JCLU supporter"? Be specific, please.

[.30Carbine]

"It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For this very reason peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here."
Patrick Henry

[cake_crumb]

"Why argue with leftists?"

Because I find their hatred and divisiveness offensive. In fact, their intolorance of anyone who is different from them shocks, deeply saddens and disturbs me. ;- )

Seriously, because they've set themselves up as the American version of the hizbah, the Muslim morality police who are responsible for enforcing the rules laid down by the mullahs mandating how and what we are allowed to think, feel and do 24/7.

[.30Carbine]

"The only foundation for useful education in a republic is to be laid in religion."
Thomas Jefferson

[microgood]

Of course the next step is to remove all the crosses from Arlington National Cemetary and all other military cemetaries.

[Catspaw]

We all know what these cases are about, especially JCLU supporters.

What's the "JCLU?"

[goldstategop]

Bumped and Freeped! Liberal Federal Judges are the greatest threat to the rule of law in America today. It takes a rare man like Chief Justice Roy Moore to stand up to them.

[cake_crumb]

"Good - it makes my day when would be theocrats are forced to worship in their homes and churches on their own dime, as opposed to making noisome pharisaic displays that are meaningless in terms of personal devotion and sacrifice"

Yes, far better that we should be forced against our will to rub our noses in the alter of socialist totalitarianism. By stripping the right of Christians to practice the Christian religion, you step on their Constitutional right to freedom of religion. No one is forcing you to worship anything but the anarchy you appear to hold dear.

By taking away our right to honor our history and the founding principles of this country you take away our First Amendment right. As you know, you're using our Constitution to destroy our Consitutional rights. This, of course, is what you and your ilk want.

[Robert_Paulson2]

Actually, history records it was rebellion against high taxes and no representation against a non responsive Theocracy in England, that drove us to purchase this freedom with our own blood. England at the time was a Christian nation, so in that sense, Christianity in Government, WAS responsible for the rebellion of our founding fathers.

If Christianity were responsible for the world's liberties, and freedoms, you would expect to have an entirely different kind of Europe than we saw during the dark ages, pogroms and inquisitions of 1500 years duration.

Less than eight percent of Americans even attended Church during the revolution. As many as sixty percent of them sided with England.

They believed they were commanded in the epistle of peter to the Church: "obey the king and governors" (the apostle peter, told them to do this, despite the fact that the roman governors happened to be using Christians for lion food at the time).

ON the other hand, I have zero doubt that freedom for our nation was God's idea. Freedom of religion and freedom FROM religion, instituted by the state (the bloodbath of Europe).

I also have zero doubt that setting up statues will fail to maintain our freedom. But then again, I never believed in statues and monuments... some people do.

I think this judge is grandstanding for publicity sake. IT is working.

[cavtrooper21]

Hey, many of us here see your point, but could you be a tad bit less abrasive about making it.
The government wasted 40 million on the Starr investigation of Billy-boy. At least this fight is for (in my book) a better cause than trying to "incriminate" Billy-boy when we knew he was guilty anyway. Look what happened there... Nothing!
At least here the ACLU is facing a stiff fight by a group they would nomally shun. White Christian conservitave Americans.

[gdani]

"The only foundation for useful education in a republic is to be laid in religion."
Thomas Jefferson

Jefferson probably isn't the best person to quote.

He made a decision to keep the theology school separate from the rest of the state-funded University of Virginia because he felt it would be an establishment of religion.

[.30Carbine]

"To the kindly influence of Christianity, we owe that degree of civil freedom, and political and social happiness which mankind now enjoy. In proportion, as the genuine effects of Christianity are diminished in any nation, either through unbelief, or the corruption of its doctrines, or the neglect of its institutions; in the same proportion will the people of the nation recede from the blessings of genuine freedom and approximate the miseries of complete despotism."
Dr. Jedidah Morse

[tet68]

Another little piece of what makes us Americans will be gone.

Well, it won't be gone, but it will have been driven underground. It's up to us to keep the continuity of America
going. As more and more of it is made illegal, as more little chips are hacked away, WE have to be the ones to pick up those pieces of our heritage and treasure them.
Hey, I remember America, before it was PC.

[.30Carbine]

"God who gave us life gave us liberty. And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are of the Gift of God? That they are not to be violated but with His wrath? Indeed, I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just, that His justice cannot sleep forever."
Thomas Jefferson

[AZLiberty]

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, OR PROHIBITING THE FREE EXERCISE THEREOF;

The Constitution needs a new amendment:

The Judiciary shall make no law. Period.

[.30Carbine]

"If thou wouldst rule well, thou must rule for God, and to do that, thou must be ruled by him....Those who will not be governed by God will be ruled by tyrants."
William Penn

[cake_crumb]

"Hey, I remember America, before it was PC."

Sigh...me too.

It's interesting that the PC crowd forces us to follow their own commandments. We're way into he hundreds now. Every day it seems that more and more edicts are issued, more of our history and more of our freedom is taken away in the name of protecting someone's freedom.

[fr_freak]

Jefferson probably isn't the best person to quote.

He made a decision to keep the theology school separate from the rest of the state-funded University of Virginia because he felt it would be an establishment of religion.

There is a big difference between having a theology school, which is an organization designed to teach and promote specific religious beliefs, in a state-run school and simply having Christian references incorporated into school teachings. While I can see Jefferson recognizing that a state-run theology school would be a de facto establishment of religion, I am certain he did not object, but in fact even encouraged, incorporations of Christianity in the school, little things such as starting the day with a prayer or having the Ten Commandments displayed on the wall.

[gdani]

Ya know, it doesn't take a whole lot of skill or reasoning to cut & paste quotes.

The reality is that, at that time -- just like now -- there were politicians on all sides:

1) who were either strict separationists, were lukewarm either way or who feared that religious liberty would not be adequately protected.

2) who delighted in saying what their constituents wanted to hear because their primary focus was on retaining power.

3) who said one thing but did quite another with respect to their public policies and/or their private lives.

Sorry -- but cutting & pasting quotes doesn't quite grasp any of those gray areas. But I'm sure someone will come along soon who's interested in getting into a cut & paste quote war.

[bereanway]

That exactly the point, this legislating by judicial fiat has to stop. At some point congress and the states are going to have to slap down this out of control federal judiciary. I don't know if Alabama has spent anything close to the $125 mil that's being quoted, but even if they have it would be the deal of the century if it resultd in these black robed tyrants being reeled in. Let it all begin now.

[gdani]

I am certain he did not object, but in fact even encouraged, incorporations of Christianity in the school, little things such as starting the day with a prayer or having the Ten Commandments displayed on the wall.

Maybe, maybe not. He often said one thing & did another.

What is fact is that he personally did not believe in the divinity of Christ & did not believe in the Virgin Birth. He went so far as to write his own Bible removing all references to miracles, etc that he considered supernatural. He was also apparently a big fan of Unitarianism, although he wasn't one himself (contrary to what some claim).

[.30Carbine]

"We...took our horses to the meeting in the afternoon and heard the minister again upon "Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you." There is great pleasure in hearing sermons so serious, so clear, so sensible and instructive as these ...."
John Adams

[habs4ever]

Not dem Joooooooooooos agin'....city slicker, Jew loving supportin' ACLU atheists who hate baby Jesus, or something along those pithy lines.Tell me it isn't that predictable ;-)

[.30Carbine]

"A more beautiful or precious morsel of ethics I have never seen; it is a document in proof that I am a real Christian; that is to say, a disciple of the doctrines of Jesus."

"I have always said, I always will say, that the studious perusal of the sacred volume will make better citizens, better fathers, and better husbands."

Thomas Jefferson

[Catspaw]

Not dem Joooooooooooos agin'....city slicker, Jew loving supportin' ACLU atheists who hate baby Jesus, or something along those pithy lines.Tell me it isn't that predictable ;-)

That kinda knocks the "Judeo" out of "Judeo-Christian," doesn't it?

[gdani]

"If thou wouldst rule well, thou must rule for God, and to do that, thou must be ruled by him....Those who will not be governed by God will be ruled by tyrants."
William Penn

Quoting William Penn too? He set up Pennsylvania as a haven for Quakers who were being oppressed by other denominations of Christianity. He was even imprisoned for writing pamphlets advocating religious freedom (there were those who thought he was violating the Scriptures).

On the flip side, Penn's "The Charter of Privileges of 1701" mandated a belief in Christ to hold office & outlawed swearing, drinking, playing cards & dice, stage plays, the wearing of masks & other practices -- apparently to show that he certainly didn't believe in a smaller, less intrusive government.

[.30Carbine]

"I never ... believed there was one code of morality for a public and another for a private man."
Thomas Jefferson,letter to Don Valentine de Feronda, 1809

[fr_freak]

What part of "establish" don't you understand?

$125,000,000.00 of Alabama taxpayer money went to pay for legal expenses and "consultants", all so Roy Moore could do a fundraising stunt for his televangelist buddies at Coral Ridge (affiliated with Paul and Jan Crouch). Who did it go to? On what? Who was controlling the invoices? Are a bunch of cracker lawyers and preacher types living an extravagant lifestyle courtesy of the taxpayers of Alabama?

First of all: cracker lawyers? WTF?

Second, your argument here is not actually against the display of the Ten Commandments, but against any public monuments in general, to include statues, memorials, or any works of "art" displayed on public grounds. Money is spent on those things routinely, so you cannot object to the Ten Commandments monument without objecting to all of them, unless you admit that you object to this specific monument only becuase it has religious implications, in which case you're just using the pretense of taxpayer outrage to promote your bias against religious belief.

Yes, much money has been spent on this legal battle, but before you go criticizing these "crackers" for that expenditure, you should remember that this money would not have had to be spent if the federal judiciary did not insist on overstepping its boundaries and infringing on the rights of the state of Alabama to decide its own affairs. There is nothing in the First Amendment that forbids this display. The First Amendment is about freedom, not about restriction. It means that if a local community wants to display religious symbols, it can and the federal government is forbidden to stop them. Remember:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.

People always want to see the first part but not the second. Since the money spent by Alabama in this case was for the purpose of defending our constitutional rights and the rights of states, I consider it money well spent. If Moore is grandstanding just to make this a public fight, then more power to him; it's about time we had it out. God bless Judge Moore.

[.30Carbine]

"Man, considered as a creature, must necessarily be subject to the laws of his Creator, for he is entirely a dependent being....And, consequently, as man depends absolutely upon his Maker for everything, it is necessary that he should in all points conform to his Maker's will...this will of his Maker is called the law of nature. These laws laid down by God are the eternal immutable laws of good and evil...This law of nature dictated by God himself, is of course superior in obligation to any other. It is binding over all the globe, in all countries, and at all times: no human laws are of any validity if contrary to this...."

Sir William Blackstone
(Blackstone's Commentaries on the Law was the recognized authority on the law for well over a century after 1776)

[hocndoc]

From the Jefferson Memorial walls:
God who gave us life gave us liberty. Can the liberties of a nation be secure when we have removed a conviction that these liberties ar the gift of God?

Whatever Jefferson may have believed about who should pay for education, he most certainly was in favor of remembering and honoring God in the public sphere, as the source of our rights.