Our Assistant Editor David Freddoso went to Capitol Hill and interviewed Rep. Jim McDermott (D.-Wash.) about the Pledge of Allegiance case which the Supreme Court has agreed to hear and whether God is on our side in the War on Terror.
Once again, Mr. McDermott revealed a lot about himself.
Congressman, this Pledge of Allegiance case is coming up. In your opinion, should the Supreme Court order the word "God" be removed from the Pledge of Allegiance?
MCDERMOTT: I personally don't think it adds anything to the Pledge of Allegiance, and I personally don't say, "under God."
You just sort of pause there and let other people say it.
MCDERMOTT: Yeah. I consider it an infringement I don't like. I don't like infringements of Church and State. And so I don't know that I'm rigid, but I try to be consistent.
When other people say it, couldn't that be offensive to some people? Maybe personally you don't find it really offensive, but couldn't that be offensive to people? Shouldn't it be stopped from being said in public if that's the-
MCDERMOTT: I think if people want to say it, that's their belief. But unfortunately in many wars, people always say, "God's on our side."
Actually, I wanted to ask you specifically about that, because John Kerry was asked that, and he didn't quite want to say, "God's on our side." What do you think about that? Is God on our side in the war on terrorism?
MCDERMOTT: No, I don't think God's on anyone's side. These are human events. He's quite often appalled at what we call on Him to do. He's given us the rules about social justice and the way we should treat one another. And if we're doing that, I guess He's on our side, but-
If we're trying to stop people who want to, you know, blow us up, don't you think He might be on our side for that?
MCDERMOTT: Well, you can look at some things that people have done, whether to other Americans or to other people in the world, and in the name of Christ, which I think might be questionable. So I think it's tough to decide when God is on our side.
Thank you Congressman, I appreciate your time.
