Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore said he would like to see the U.S. Congress take his monument of the Ten Commandments and place it in the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol.
The monument is now hidden away in a back room at the Alabama Supreme Court building because a federal appeals court has ruled it may not be publicly displayed in that facility-a decision Moore has appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.
HUMAN EVENTS Assistant Editor David Freddoso asked Members of the House of Representatives whether they would vote to accept the monument and display it in the Capitol rotunda.
Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore says he has offered Congress the Ten Commandments monument recently removed from the Alabama Supreme Court. He wants to give it to Congress so you can display it in the rotunda. Should Congress take the monument and display it, and would you vote in support of a resolution for such thing?
REP. BENNIE THOMPSON (D.-MISS.): No, I wouldn't do it.
What would be the argument that you would give?
THOMPSON: I am not interested in fighting Roy Moore about it. The courts have already ruled that he can't do it in Alabama. Just gives him another platform to push his agenda, whatever that is.
Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore has offered Congress the Ten Commandments recently taken out of the Alabama Supreme Court and he would like you guys to take it and put it in the rotunda. Should Congress take him up on his offer and, given the opportunity, would you vote in support of taking the monument and putting it in the rotunda?
REP. CHRIS CHOCOLA (R.-IND.): Whether Congress should or not, if I was given the opportunity to vote to accept it I would. I'd support it. That issue has been very prevalent in my district-over in Elkhart (Ind.). And I do think it's freedom of, not from, religion and I think there is an overreaction against public displays of religion. So if I had the opportunity to vote for it, I would vote for it.
Justice Moore has offered Congress the Ten Commandments monument taken out of the [Alabama Supreme Court], and he says he wants you to put it in the rotunda. Given the chance would you vote in favor of taking him up on it?
REP. ARTUR DAVIS (D.-ALA.): I think that is something the House Administration Committee has to consider. I think it is something the House leadership has to consider. Hopefully, it will be a bipartisan decision. I think that Justice Moore has certainly gained a fair amount of political capital back home on this issue, but I think I'm sure there will be a reasoned analysis of the issue here in the House.
But Congressman, put yourself on that committee. What argument are you going to make and how are you going to vote?
DAVIS: I would have to hear from the lawyers. There are serious legal issues that have been raised around the display of the Commandments and obviously I am waiting as other members would to see if the same analysis would apply and the context of display in the Capitol as well as in a judicial building. And until I hear a legal analysis I wouldn't be prepared to give him a penny.
You don't have a strong opinion personally one way or the other, it would be just a-
DAVIS: No, because I don't think you can separate. We are elected. We took an oath to the Constitution. So our personal opinions, whatever they may be, are subordinate to the oath that we took. And if the establishment clause or the First Amendment is inconsistent with display of the Commandments, then our personal feelings have to give way.
Do you feel the display of the Ten Commandments monument establishes a religion?
DAVIS: I think that I am not prepared to delve into the legal issues. I am certainly comfortable that displaying it in a courthouse raises a serious establishment clause question and I suspect that lawyers (unintelligible) of the same issues would exist in the context of the display in the rotunda or the Capitol. But I will wait for the opinion of the people who get paid to research these issues.
Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore has offered Congress the Ten Commandments monument taken out of the Alabama Supreme Court. Wants you guys to put it in the rotunda. Should Congress take him up on that and if given the opportunity would you vote in favor of taking it up?
REP. DAVE WELDON (R.-FLA.): Of course. If we can have a ten-foot portrait of Pocahantas being baptized as a Christian, why can't we have the Ten Commandments on display in the Capitol?
People worry about the establishment clause. You wouldn't agree with that argument?
WELDON: How is that a violation of the establishment clause? The foundation of all law in Western society is the Ten Commandments. I think it is reasonable to put it on display as a symbol of law to the world.
Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore offered Congress the Ten Commandments monument that was taken out of the Alabama Supreme Court. He wants you to put it in the rotunda there with the other monuments. Do you think Congress should take him up on the offer and if given the opportunity-which probably won't happen-would you vote in favor of accepting the offer?
REP. DANNY DAVIS (D.-ILL.): No, I think we are putting too much of religion into the whole business of governance. I think our country has survived and has done extremely well with the concept of church and state. I mean we are a religious nation, a Christian nation, basically and primarily, and people have functioned well. I mean we can make decisions without going to war. We can make without a lot of acrimony and I think we do well to maintain those concepts that have emerged and we continue to separate church and state and leave people free to worship as they see fit.
Do you think that it will be an establishment of religion if somebody put the Ten Commandments there?
DAVIS: Well, I think it would be the projection of it. You don't get anymore Christian than I am. I mean, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, Ecclesiastes, Job, Psalms, Mathew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts-this is going, treading on water that creates divisiveness and controversy, rather than unification. I mean, there are lots of different religions in our country. There are people that don't subscribe necessarily to what we call some Christian doctrines and principles. But yet they are religious and so I think it just opens up a can of worms that will keep us debating and fractionalizing and schismatized, and I think it is unnecessary and I don't think it serves any particular purpose.
Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore has offered the Congress his Ten Commandments monument that was taken out of the Alabama Supreme Court? Should Congress take him up on that?
REP. BOB NEY (R.-OHIO): Be OK with me.
Thank you very much.
NEY: Do we have to buy it?
I think he was giving it for free. You would vote to support that? You would be OK with that?
NEY: Yeah, Sure
Alabama Supreme Court Justice Roy Moore has offered Congress the Ten Commandments monument. Wants to give it to you guys to put in the rotunda with all the other monuments-
REP. TOM FEENEY (R.-FLA.): I would vote for it in a heart beat. It's absolutely the heartbed of the Judeo-Christian civilization that America was founded on and I would vote to accept it in a heartbeat and we would take good care of it.
Your more liberal colleagues have been saying that this is like establishing a religion or that it would create acrimony. What is your response to that?
FEENEY: I am opposed to the establishment of any religion because the Constitution forbids it and if we deny the Ten Commandments and the historical precedence that established Western Civilization and Judeo-Christian values then our country is in sad shape. Those two things are not incongruous in any way, shape or form. They are not mutually exclusive. As a matter of fact, they compliment one another.
