For immediate release - June 28th, 2005:

CONSTITUTION PARTY DENOUNCES SUPREME COURT'S

TEN COMMANDMENTS DECISION

LANCASTER , PA : “Decisions of the Supreme Court regarding public display of the Ten Commandments reflect a continuing disregard of the moral and legal principles upon which our nation was established,” observes William K. Shearer, spokesperson for, and past chairman of, the Constitution Party.

“To deny recognition of the Ten Commandments is to reject a fundamental cornerstone of America ’s legal and cultural heritage,” he says.

“The First Amendment states that Congress shall not interfere with the free exercise of religion, and Congress shall not establish a religion. Recognition of the country’s Biblical heritage is not the establishment of a religion, but is the recognition of historic fact.”

“While the Supreme Court correctly upheld the constitutionality of displaying the Ten Commandments on government land,” Shearer says, “it rejected certain renderings inside courthouses, arguing that they violate the separation of church and state. This sets the stage for a new wave of lawsuits to apply on a case by case basis the Court’s conflicted and confusing decisions, while we are treated to the spectacle of federal judges acting as the legal equivalent of interior decorators trying to decide which version of a Ten Commandments display conforms to whatever doctrine of `separation of church and state’ happens to be in fashion. All of this ignores the historical fact of the influence of the Ten Commandments on America ’s constitutional government and judicial system.

“ America needs political leaders that will stand up for our Biblical heritage,” Shearer says. “Article III, section 2 of the Constitution empowers Congress to remove issues such as the Ten Commandments controversy from the appellate jurisdiction of Federal courts, including the Supreme Court. With a modest amount of leadership, Congress could turn back the trend toward judicial dictatorship as evidenced in its decisions.”

Shearer asserts that “the Supreme Court has repeatedly revealed itself to be at odds with the Constitution as understood by the founders, thus threatening the rights to life, liberty, and property. "For instance” he says, “there is no moral or historic basis for use of the power of eminent domain to take private property from one individual for the benefit of another private party.

“To restore the just government which our founding fathers bequeathed to us, voters are going to have to reach beyond the so-called two-party system,” Shearer says. “The Constitution Party, through its state affiliates, offers uncompromising principled leadership to Americans eager to reclaim our heritage of religious, economic, and political liberty under our Constitution. Unlike the Democrat and Republican parties, the Constitution Party is working to restore government to its vital, yet limited, constitutionally defined role. We are committed to the protection of life, liberty, and property, as were the founding fathers.”

For more information contact former Constitution Party Chairman William Shearer at 619-460-4484.