Alliance Defense Fund Celebrates Win On "Keeping God" In Pledge Of Allegiance

NEW HAMPSHIRE: Federal Court Rules Students Must Hear Pledge Of Allegiance

A federal appeals court has ruled that a New Hampshire Patriot Act requiring the "voluntary" recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance does not force religion on students. The Freedom From Religion Foundation had argued that even a so-called voluntary recitation of the words "under God" violated the Constitution and made outcasts of students unwilling to participate.

The panel of judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on Friday rejected the claim that exposing children to group recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance violated their constitutional rights. The judges, a Clinton nominee, a George W. Bush nominee and an Obama nominee, agreed the pledge references religion, but they said its purpose is to encourage patriotism. The ruling affirms a 2009 ruling by U.S. District Judge Steven McAuliffe at the federal court in Concord. "In reciting the Pledge, students promise fidelity to our flag and our nation, not to any particular God, faith or church," wrote Chief Judge Sandra Lynch. "The New Hampshire School Patriot Act's primary effect is not the advancement of religion, but the advancement of patriotism through a pledge to the flag as a symbol of the nation."

Christianist website World Net Daily hailed the decision with this headline: "Court: Constitution 'does not require complete separation of church and state'." In 1954 the words "under God" were added to the Pledge after the Knights Of Columbus pressured members of Congress to make the change.

Liberty Counsel's Matt Barber Accuses Courts Of "Kidnapping" Isabella Miller

How's THIS for chutzpah? Matt Barber says it's the COURTS that have "kidnapped" Isabella Miller. And not Lisa Miller, her whackadoodle "ex-gay" biological mother whom many suspect was spirited out of the country by the Liberty Counsel themselves when custody of Isabella was awarded to Miller's former partner, Janet Jenkins. The Liberty Counsel claims not to have seen or heard from Lisa Miller in over a year, yet they continue to represent her in court. Matt Barber, where are YOU hiding Isabella Miller?

Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN) Wins Values Voters Summit Presidential Straw Poll

Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN) has won the Family Research Council's presidential straw poll at the Values Voters Summit in Washington, DC. Yesterday Pence told convention attendees that God will smite the United States if the GOP doesn't win control of Congress in November.

Pence, chair of the House Republican conference, received 24% of the vote, edging the winner of the 2009 straw poll, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who received 22%. Each addressed the gathering on Friday, as did third-place finisher Mitt Romney, who won 13% of the vote. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who spoke Saturday, received 10%. Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who did not attend, finished a distant fifth with 7%. Of the nearly 2,000 people who registered for the conference, 723 voted in the straw poll.

Family Research Council President Tony Perkins, whose group organized the event, said the results were "descriptive of the type of candidate value voters would be looking for." "We're a long ways from the election," he said. But Pence "represents the qualities and the character that many voters in America are looking for." Perkins attributed Palin's underwhelming performance to the fact that she did not speak to the group in person. But he also said it could show that voters see her more as a "cheerleader who rallies conservatives together" than as a potential elected leader. "She is a great spokesman," he said. "She says what a lot of people think. But a lot of people sometimes realize we shouldn't say everything we think." Palin did, however, place just behind Pence in a second poll for vice presidential preference. Perkins called a potential Pence-Palin pairing a "dream ticket."

Attendees were also asked to rank which social issues most drove their interest in a candidate. Abortion ranked at #1. Gay-related issues did not appear in the reported top five.

ATLANTA: Atheist Group Posts Fifty Billboards, Christians Outraged

(Tipped by JMG reader Andy)

Archbishop Joseph Kurtz: Walker Has Defined All Marriages As Unconstitutional

"In a sense, he has declared marriage to be unconstitutional, because there is no such thing as ‘gay marriage’,” since true marriage requires a man and a woman."