(CNN) — President-elect Barack Obama has requested that the words “so help me God” be added to the end of the oath of office to be administered by Chief Justice John Roberts on Inauguration Day.
That confirmation came in an affidavit filed today by Roberts' court counselor in a pending lawsuit by an atheist opposed to any mention of God in the inaugural ceremonies. Roberts said he would abide by Obama’s wishes.
The Constitution has specific language on what has to be said when swearing in the president, but the “so help me God” phrase has traditionally been added at the end of the required oath, starting with George Washington in 1789.
Nah. I can let things like this go. I only make a fuss about something like this if there's a high-strung fundie within earshot.
ReplyDeleteI've been reading various places that the Washington story is as much of a myth as the cherry tree one, if you care. Certainly wouldn't be the first time the Christianists tried to rewrite American history to make the Founders seem more religious than they were.