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I wanted to take this opportunity to thank everyone here for your help in producing this new ad opposing the nomination of John Roberts. The script was developed off suggestions and ideas from feedback from bloggers and netroots activists. We wanted to produce an ad that could be shown in red and blue states and put pressure on Senators around the country to oppose Roberts’s confirmation. For those of you who have not yet seen the ad, please feel free to view it at www.StopJohnRoberts.com
Many of you all expressed the need to change the way we talk about issues, and heed the advice of those such as George Lakoff and Thomas Frank. We think this ad does exactly that, with the issue of school prayer.
This ad explains that we are all religious minorities in different parts of the country, and we must all act to stop John Roberts and others from allowing the government to meddle in religion. A recent poll done for People for the American Way showed that 73 percent of Americans believe that a strict interpretation of separation of church and state helps to guarantee the freedom of religion among all Americans. Among those believing in a strict interpretation are 79 percent of independents and 62 percent of people who attend church regularly.
If everyone makes a small donation of $10 we could run this ad in Montana and Ohio during the opening weeks of the confirmation hearings. With donations of $25, we may be able to target Rhode Island and Maine. In Montana and Ohio, progressive leaders such as Brian Schweitzer and Paul Hackett have showed us that we can successfully change the way we frame debates on issues in red states. This is what we hope this ad does with school prayer. Conrad Burns and Mike DeWine are already feeling the heat on their reelection campaigns.
Do Burns and DeWine agree with Roberts’s desire to enable the government to meddle with religion? In the Supreme Court case of Lee v. Weisman, Roberts argued school-sponsored prayer at public school graduations, claiming the ceremonies shouldn’t be considered mandatory. How radical are Roberts’s other views? We might know more if we had the same access as the administration to the documents Roberts wrote as a public servant under President George H.W. Bush.
John Roberts demonstrate his disregard for our rights to religious liberty and privacy, and I hope all of you join us in this campaign to urge our Senators to oppose his confirmation!
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