Free Republic

I came to the courtroom early, before the proceedings began. The podium was adjustable, right? I lowered it. I'm five feet, seven and a half inches tall and the last thing I needed was to be standing up on the tips of my toes to reach the podium! When I came back later, for the proceedings, I looked in the back row and there, sitting all together, were my good friends, Moishe Rosen (founder of Jews for Jesus, and at the time, executive director), Tuvya Zaretsky, Susan Perlman and Russ Reed (three of Jews for Jesus' board members), plus my...

The latest rejection of the Terri Schiavo case by a federal court was accompanied by a stinging rebuke of Congress and President Bush from a seemingly unlikely source: Judge Stanley F. Birch Jr., one of the most conservative jurists on the federal bench. Birch authored opinions upholding Alabama's right to ban the sale of sex toys and Florida's ability to prohibit adoptions by gay couples. Both rulings drew the ire of liberal activists and the elation of traditional and social conservatives. Yet, in Wednesday's 11th Circuit Court of Appeals decision to deny a rehearing to Schiavo's parents, Birch went out...

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 21, 2005--The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), which specializes in constitutional law, today filed an amicus brief with the U.S. District Court in Tampa which is hearing the Terri Schiavo case. The ACLJ supports the Department of Justice and Terri's parents in defending Terri's Law, which was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Bush. The ACLJ argues that Terri's feeding tube, which was removed on Friday, be restored without delay. "It is imperative that this court act to save the life of Terri Schiavo," said Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel of the ACLJ, which...

Time Magazine February 7, 2005 If God is heading to an appeals court, Jay Sekulow is likely to be sitting at the counsel table. His Washington-based American Center for Law & Justice has argued and won several high-profile religious-freedom cases, including Supreme Court decisions that allowed Bible-study clubs on public-school campuses and that protected the right of antiabortion demonstrators to rally outside abortion clinics. Sekulow, 48, who was raised Jewish but converted to Christianity in college and now considers himself a "Messianic Jew," formed the law center with a group of other conservative litigators in 1990. Today the 700,000-member center...

JAY SEKULOW The Almighty's Attorney-at-Law Time Magazine February 7, 2005 If God is heading to an appeals court, Jay Sekulow is likely to be sitting at the counsel table. His Washington-based American Center for Law & Justice has argued and won several high-profile religious-freedom cases, including Supreme Court decisions that allowed Bible-study clubs on public-school campuses and that protected the right of antiabortion demonstrators to rally outside abortion clinics. Sekulow, 48, who was raised Jewish but converted to Christianity in college and now considers himself a "Messianic Jew," formed the law center with a group of other conservative litigators in...

There is a continuing controversy erupting throughout the United States regarding the teaching of evolution as fact in public schools around the country. During the original Scopes “Monkey Trial” in 1925, famed lawyer Clarence Darrow argued that denying the right to teach Darwinian evolution violated fundamental academic freedom. Now, some 80 years later, evolutionists argue that their theory should be the only one taught in schools. This issue of the origins of mankind is being decided by the courts. We have developed a comprehensive strategy to address this issue. In the coming weeks, I will be preparing a major editorial...

... Liberals have delighted in referring to "The Redneck Vote" and making fun of us. They seem to think, in their distorted progressive and elitist thought processes, that being a "Redneck" is a bad thing. Maybe it's time we looked at the core values and beliefs of this culture that believes in home, family, God and country. There may be more of you who think like us rednecks than you might believe. How do you know if you are a Redneck? You might be a Redneck if; * It never occurred to you to be offended by the phrase, "One...

(Washington, DC) – The American Center for Law and Justice, specializing in constitutional law, said today the Supreme Court’s rejection of Michael Newdow’s challenge to bar clergy prayer at tomorrow’s inauguration sends an important message about the time-honored traditions that are a part of the nation’s history and heritage. The Supreme Court rejected Newdow’s appeal – turning away his request for an injunction to stop the prayer. The decision was made by Chief Justice William Rehnquist who will administer the oath of office to President Bush tomorrow. Newdow wanted the Chief Justice to remove himself from consideration of the case...

Washington, DC) – The American Center for Law and Justice, specializing in constitutional law, said today that Michael Newdow’s appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court to bar clergy prayer at Thursday’s inauguration is a legally flawed strategy destined to fail. The ACLJ said it is preparing an amicus brief for the Supreme Court urging the high court to reject Newdow’s challenge. Newdow’s appeal to the Supreme Court comes after two courts – a federal district court and a federal appeals court – rejected Newdow’s challenge. In addition to asking the high court for an injunction to stop the prayer, Newdow...

We worked late into the evening last night and early this morning preparing our brief to the Supreme Court of the United States in the Inaugural Prayer case. Dr. Michael Newdow will be filing his petition this morning with the Supreme Court, asking them to stay any Inaugural Prayer activities that would take place. We have filed our brief relying on the historical argument that prayer has been included in every Inaugural since President Washington. We have also utilized the language from Justice O’Connor’s concurring opinion in the Pledge of Allegiance case. Dr. Newdow was the plaintiff in that case...

Why do so many sit aside, holding their anger inside, as activist secular organizations such as the ACLU assault our religious expression? Why do so many do nothing, as activist secular judges rule in favor of these anti-Christian organizations? Why do we stay uninvolved? We have a constitutional right to express our religion. Don't allow these groups to take that right away under the disguise of a fictional "Seperation of Church and State" clause, that does not even exist. The answer to the question posed above may lie in the fact that many people don't know what they can do...

(Washington, DC) – The American Center for Law and Justice, specializing in constitutional law, said today it is pleased a federal district court upheld prayer at the Presidential inauguration and rejected a request from Michael Newdow for a preliminary injunction that would have barred prayer from the January 20th event. Newdow is expected to file an emergency appeal with a federal appeals court and the ACLJ is preparing legal briefs to file at the appellate level....

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...

Last week, a new federal lawsuit was filed challenging the words “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance. Michael Newdow, who brought the original suit in California, has filed brand-new litigation. This time, Dr. Newdow represents several families who are complaining about the phrase “under God” as contained in the Pledge. At the same time, Dr. Newdow has filed suit against the Inaugural Prayer. Our briefs have been filed in the Inaugural Prayer case, and argument in court is scheduled for Thursday....

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...

Ralph from Indiana asks: I’ve heard that the American taxpayer finances the ACLU. Is that true? And if not, who does? Jay answers: There’s a provision of the civil rights code called Section 1988, the Attorney Fee Awards provision. When the ACLU -- or for that matter the ACLJ -- succeeds in a case involving a state or local government, that group has the right to get attorney fee awards. I think this is a little bit misunderstood in one context. It’s not as if you’re paying for it directly. If a city loses a case to the ACLU, there...

(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...

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- While Terri Schiavo's parents are battling to have courts acknowledge that killing her would violate her religious liberties, Governor Jeb Bush is fighting to uphold a law passed by the state legislature allowing him to prevent her starvation death. On Wednesday, a pro-life law firm submitted a brief to the Supreme Court defending Terri's Law and saying Bob and Mary Schindler want the court to hear Governor Bush's appeal. The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), which represents the parents of Terri Schiavo in a legal battle to keep their daughter alive, asked the U.S....

San Francisco, CA (LifeNews.com) -- A leading pro-life law firm has filed a legal brief in another of three lawsuits abortion advocates put forward challenging the federal ban on partial-birth abortions. The brief, submitted by the American Center for Law and Justice, represents the views of thirty-one pro-life members of Congress. The brief asks a federal appeals court in San Francisco to overturn a decision issued by U.S. District Court Judge Phyllis Hamilton declaring the ban unconstitutional because it lacks a health exception. "The ban is needed to put an end to one of the most barbaric and medically useless...

The assault on America's religious beliefs is based on a distorted interpretation of the establishment and free-exercise clauses of the First Amendment. Those clauses are " Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." Everyone should understand the plain meaning of those words -- that is everyone who is not burdened by a post-graduate education from an Ivy League college. It means that the government is prohibited from setting up a state religion and that no barriers will be erected against the practice of any religion. Despite its plain meaning, the First...