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COURT REPORTER
Grants for Doing Good [By James Kilpatrick] George W. Bush took the presidential oath on that January day in 2001, came home from the Hill, and promptly issued Executive Order No. 13,199. Thus he created, overnight, the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives.
Created the what? I’m not making this up.
foundation and members Anne, Annie and Dan
earmarked money for the program or activity
Among the president’s first official acts was to
brought their suit against the White House
that is challenged.”
set up a program “to expand the work of faith-
and a dozen Cabinet members in U.S. District
based and other community organizations
Court. They lost there, but won on appeal
The legal requirements for “standing” in
...” Two federal judges put the program on
to the 7th Circuit. There, Judge Richard
cases such as this one range from faint
hold last January, but now it’s in the Supreme
Posner, writing for a divided panel, termed
to fuzzy to firm. The District Court cited
Court on the government’s petition for review.
the foundation’s complaint “wordy, vague,
one faith-based grant three years ago that
If the court takes the case, a major ruling in
and in places frivolous.” However, he thought
may have been over the line. It went to
the law of church and state could be expected
that in portraying the White House-sponsored
MentorKids USA to conduct programs for
next year.
conferences as “propaganda vehicles for
the children of state prisoners in Phoenix,
religion,” the plaintiffs may have raised a fair
Ariz. The programs, intended “to introduce
question for trial.
children to the gospel of Jesus Christ,” had
The First Amendment says, among other things, “Congress shall make no law
to be conducted “only by Christians.” After
respecting an establishment of religion,” but
The questions offered to the high court in
objections were raised to their sectarian
“no law” hasn’t meant literally “no law” since
the government’s appeal are dull on the
flavor, the grant was suspended.
the first Congress provided chaplains for the
surface and duller down below — but they’re
Army. This particular program of grants-in-
important. What is the foundation’s “standing”
Few areas of constitutional law are fuzzier
aid works in large part through conferences,
to pursue the case? Has it suffered any
than the law on establishments of religion.
seminars and training sessions. It does not
significant damage? What are the limits on
Over the past 50 or 60 years, since the First
provide grants directly to religious entities,
presidential spending by executive order?
Amendment mysteriously was extended to the
but it does provide grants intended to educate
states, the country has witnessed a muddy
local groups in how to file for grants. It has
In cases of this nature, “standing” is
stream of high court opinions attempting to
been expanded repeatedly.
everything. The foundation, which pays no
educate us in its meaning. Thus a municipality
federal taxes, has no standing to sue as a
may sponsor a Christmas display that
Now the program is under challenge from the
taxpayer. Here it sues through taxpayers
contains not more than one Santa Claus, two
Freedom From Religion Foundation. Created
Anne, Annie and Dan. Their pain and suffering
clowns, one virgin, one baby, two angels and
in 1978, the foundation today numbers
stem from this assumption, that somewhere
a stuffed camel. Or some such. Constitutions
7,500 free-thinkers, atheists and agnostics,
some subsidized members of a ladies’
are hard to construe. This case isn’t likely to
scattered over every state and several foreign
sodality are being taught to run a soup line.
make the task one bit easier.
countries. Its home office is, naturally, in
Is this the sort of awful injury the high court
Madison, Wis. Its principal purpose is to
should enjoin? What concrete injury have the
pursue lawsuits aimed at keeping church and
plaintiffs suffered?
state apart. Currently the foundation is giving
(Letters to Mr. Kilpatrick should be sent by e-mail to kilpatjj@aol.com.) COPYRIGHT 2005 UNIVERSAL PRESS
the Bush administration a hard time, not
Judge Posner, usually a very loquacious
only for its faith-based initiatives but also for
fellow, was having a bad hair day when he
maintaining chaplains in veterans hospitals
wrote this opinion in the 7th Circuit eight
This feature may not be reproduced or
and for promoting a women’s Sunday school
months ago. He defined the question clumsily
distributed electronically, in print or otherwise
in a New Mexico prison.
as “whether a taxpayer can ever have standing
without the written permission of uclick and
under Article III of the Constitution to litigate
Universal Press Syndicate.
Regrettably, but understandably, this
an alleged violation of the First Amendment’s
important case is gummy going. The
establishment clause unless Congress has
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