THE MARCH TO THEOCRACY CONTINUES ...

Unbelievable. A bill has been introduced in Congress that would have a daunting effect on lawsuits involving the separation of church and state.

The measure, known as the “Public Expression of Religion Act” (H.R. 2679), would deny attorneys who get involved in church-state cases the ability to recover any of the legal fees and out-of-pocket expenses incurred in such litigation.

“This bill is a punitive measure clearly designed to scare Americans from participating in church-state cases,” said Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United. “It would have a chilling effect on every citizen’s right to access our courts and would be particularly harmful to religious minorities.”

The bill was introduced by Rep. John Hostettler [R-IN] and co-sponsored by 45 other Republicans and one Democrat, Rep. Nick Rahall [D-WV]. Its official title is "To amend the Revised Statutes of the United States to eliminate the chilling effect on the constitutionally protected expression of religion by State and local officials that results from the threat that potential litigants may seek damages and attorney's fees."

More BushSpeak here. It's clearly not the protection of expression of religion that the bill intends, but rather challenges to state-sponsored religious expression.

Hat tip to Dr. Bruce.

Tags: separation of church and state, H.R. 2679