http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/03/north-carolina-religion-bill_n_3003401.html?utm_hp_ref=politics

North Carolina May Declare Official State Religion Under New Bill

Republican North Carolina state legislators have proposed allowing an official state religion in a measure that would declare the state exempt from the Constitution and court rulings.

The bill, filed Monday by two GOP lawmakers from Rowan County and backed by nine other Republicans, says each state "is sovereign" and courts cannot block a state "from making laws respecting an establishment of religion." The legislation was filed in response to a lawsuit to stop county commissioners in Rowan County from opening meetings with a Christian prayer, wral.com reported.

The religion bill comes as some Republican-led states seek to separate themselves from the federal government, primarily on the issues of guns and Obamacare. This includes a proposal in Mississippi to establish a state board with the power to nullify federal laws.

The North Carolina bill's main sponsors, state Reps. Carl Ford (R-China Grove) and Harry Warren (R-Salisbury), could not be reached for comment on Tuesday, The Salisbury Post reported. Co-sponsors include House Majority Leader Edgar Starnes (R-Hickory). Another is state Rep. Larry Pittman (R-Concord), who in February introduced a state constitutional amendment that would allow for carrying concealed weapons to fight federal "tyranny."

The bill says the First Amendment only applies to the federal government and does not stop state governments, local governments and school districts from adopting measures that defy the Constitution. The legislation also says that the Tenth Amendment, which says powers not reserved for the federal government belong to the states, prohibits court rulings that would seek to apply the First Amendment to state and local officials.

The bill reads:

SECTION 1. The North Carolina General Assembly asserts that the Constitution of the United States of America does not prohibit states or their subsidiaries from making laws respecting an establishment of religion.

SECTION 2. The North Carolina General Assembly does not recognize federal court rulings which prohibit and otherwise regulate the State of North Carolina, its public schools, or any political subdivisions of the State from making laws respecting an establishment of religion.

The North Carolina state constitution disqualifies those who do not believe in God from public office. The provision has been unenforcible since the 1961 Supreme Court decision in Torcaso v. Watkins, which prohibited such bans.

what is going for them:

constitution says CONGRESS may pass no law, it doesnt specifically reference the states


what is going against them:

states need fed as much as fed needs states, exempting from rules also means potentially being exempted from privileges,,,,



,,,,we will see what time brings,,,

True only Congress cannot establish a religion. Now States don’t need federal dollars if they don’t give the fed dollars from the state. After all, why does the states send money to Washington only have it return for school with a million strings attached and after Washington dipped their hands into the pot?

Here we go again, North Carolina leading the way as they are still smarting over the fact that South Carolina beat them to opening fire first on the US Federal Govt. symbolized by Fort Sumter...perhaps South Carolina can do something about what many see as a 'Taliban flag'; because of the half moon and palm tree motifs and get a new one; perhaps of a Klansman, oops, I mean a Klansperson!
Yes, A Klansperson hitting Obama on the head with a burning cross...many would love that...

Problem is that most of the KKK are democrats. Historically they Lynched black Americans that where republicans. Still today many of the Dems do verbal lynching on black Republicans.

I'm big on State's rights, personal freedom and smaller federal government. It will be interesting to see where this goes.

If I recall correctly, it was the Republicans that supported the 'carpetbaggers' sent to the South and the 'scallywags' were the southern whites that joined them in supporting the new political rights of the former slaves, so those democrats launched the klans, wouldn't you as a means to fight back a hated enemy coming in to occupy your land and disrupt your culture...I think most anyone would would, by any means needed.

i'm guessing nowhere... liberals can't handle it when people aren't doing what the libs tell them to do...

And of course, the parties switched. What was then a democrat is now considered republican.

Yet, it's the GOP trying to force religion on an entire state.

The Feds need the states more than we need fat Feds.

They could stand to cut back on what they steal.

i love it when liberals are just soooo wrong... if you READ the OP, it says they just want to pray before their meetings... and who is it that's telling them they cannot pray?... are you ready? THE LIBERALS

There are 49 other states they can live in if they don't like N. Carolina's take on life. Gotta have some place for the radicals...

I would like to know when that happens? Even Bill Clinton defends Robert Byrd’s time as a KKK member. Even in the county I live in is primary Democrats and KKK. Many KKK member are still registered Democrats.

Now I am not saying there is not racist people in the Republican Party, but the Democrats have a longer history of it. Today many Democrats are not in favor of things that really help minorities, even though they say they are.

Although we in the south often get the bad rap of racial hatred and yet South Carolina elected Joseph Rainy a former slave to the House of Representative making him the first black to be elected to that office. He also had held office in the state senate. It was thanks to the Democrats and their little army of the Red Shirts that kept Rainy from going back into office. Then the Dems passed laws making it harder for blacks to vote in South Carolina. They want you to think of the “good old boys” of that day as “conservative” not democrats that way when someone says they are or are called “conservative” they want you to think they are racist.

They love to misuse words. Much like the Progressives took the term liberal for the time being. Liberal came from liberate which meant freedom yet the liberals tend to bind and oppress with more rules. You can’t say this or that. You can’t eat what you want. You have to buy this from the government.

Republicans have done little to combat these things but then again the Republican Party is somewhat the child of the Democrat Party. After all the Republicans do have the idiot that said it was a woman’s fault if she was raped. This is why I always voted person and not party. Just because a person in a member of that party doesn’t mean that person has the same values of that party. It is like sticking your head in the oven and saying you are a biscuit, does not make it true.

In the end, both parties have tried and used Federal to imposes and usurps the power of the states and people's freedom.

people are often trying to use the dem/repub history without accounting for the northerner/southerner history

dems have a poor history of civil and equal rights WHEN THEY WERE MOSTLY SOUTHERN,

but times changed long ago, in terms of the southern and northern political affiliations,,,

there is no absolute correlation between racism and political affiliatin

the democrats of the past were MORE LIKELY to vote against anything but the interest of white males though

and the current democrats are much LESS LIKELY to be voting that way,,,

Oh how we agree on so much. BTW I got a new job. More money, better benefits, man times are tough.

Apparently, one does not have to have a correct knowledge of the U.S. Constitution or SCOTUS rulings in order to be elected to the North Carolina Legislature.

Do you honestly think that the democratic party of back then is the exact same now? That the people who hate Obama because he's black are the democrats? Really?

So. You are against them praying before their meetings?