President Bush Supports Protection of Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial
The President announced yesterday that the Administration strongly supports passage of H.R. 5683, which was introduced by Duncan Hunter before the United States Congress. We represent Congressman Hunter and others before the Supreme Court of the United States in the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial case. This bill is designed to protect the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial, including the cross, on a long-term basis. The White House said that [i]n the face of legal action threatening the continued existence of the current memorial, the people of San Diego have clearly expressed their desire to keep the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial in its present form. The President went on to say that [j]udicial activism should not stand in the way of the people, and the Administration commends Rep. Hunter for his efforts in introducing this bill. H.R. 5683 would preserve the Mt. Soledad Memorial by vesting title to the memorial in the federal government and providing that the memorial be administered by the Secretary of Defense. The Administration has been unequivocal in its support of this important goal of preserving the integrity of national war memorials.
The ACLUs attempt to have this war memorial removed ran into a significant roadblock two weeks ago at the Supreme Court of the United States. Justice Anthony Kennedy issued a Stay that we supported while the case goes through the court of appeals. Justice Kennedy noted that it was likely that four Justices of the Supreme Court would agree to hear the Mt. Soledad case and that at least five would vote to overturn the Ninth Circuit. On that basis, Justice Kennedy issued a Stay which preserves the memorial.
We are very pleased that our client, Congressman Duncan Hunter, has introduced this important legislation. The ACLUs attempt to eradicate every vestige of religious heritage from Americas public life is not succeeding. The Supreme Court of the United States rebuffed 15 years worth of decisions which threatened the existence of this war memorial. We are also preparing briefs to be filed in the state court actions that are currently pending.
Last night and this morning, I continued to work on behalf of the State of Israel concerning the ongoing crisis in the Middle East. Yesterday in our offices in Strasbourg, France, I met with lawyers who work with the European Commission on Human Rights, as well as the former Minister of Justice/Attorney General for Slovakia, Dan Lipsic, who expressed his support for the nation of Israel on our radio broadcast, Jay Sekulow Live! One of the most encouraging aspects of this current conflict is the fact that the Arab world, for the first time in modern history, has not been united in its support of Hamas. Specifically, Egypt, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia have not supported the efforts of Hamas or Hezbollah. Also, we are beginning to see a turnaround within the European community as well. Our meetings and work over this last week have already borne a positive impact in the defense of the nation of Israel. I am happy to report that we now have well over 50,000 signatures in support of the nation of Israel. If you have not yet joined with us, I encourage you to do so today by clicking here.
Today on our radio broadcast, we will have live reports from Israel with Barry Segal, so be sure to tune into Jay Sekulow Live!
