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Separation of Church & State group has questions for Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor
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On July 13th when the Senate Judiciary Committee begins its hearings on the confirmation of Sonia Sotomayor as a justice of the Supreme Court, Americans United for Separation of Church and State have a few questions they'd like to hear them ask. In advance of the hearing, Americans United has released a report listing Judge Sotomayor's rulings on church/state issues while serving on the US 2nd Court of Appeals and on the US District Court for the Southern District of New York.“Sotomayor’s church-state rulings are few in number,” said the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United. “We need more information, and we’re relying on the Judiciary Committee to get it.”
Here are some of the questions Americans United would like to hear the Judiciary Committee ask:
- Does she think the First Amendment builds a “wall of separation between church and state,” as proclaimed by Thomas Jefferson and recognized by the Supreme Court?
- What is the nominee’s view of the leading legal tests for determining church-state violations?
- Does Sotomayor believe that government can extend tax funding to religious entities and, if so, under what conditions?
"If confirmed," the Rev. Lynn said, "Sotomayor will take the place of Justice David Souter, one of the strongest defenders of church-state separation ever to sit on the high court. It is imperative that Souter’s replacement adopt the same robust defense of the church-state wall.”
Americans United is a religious liberty watchdog group based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1947, the organization educates Americans about the importance of church-state separation in safeguarding religious freedom. It has taken no position on the Sotomayor nomination.
Photo credit: AP photo of Sonia Sotomayor, July 9, 2009
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