ICLU says it may sue over Ten Commandments in statehouse

The leader of the Iowa Civil Liberties Union says U.S. Supreme Court rulings on two Ten Commandments displays may prompt his group to file suit to get a similar display removed from the Iowa statehouse. But the statehouse leader who put up the commandments says he’s not backing down. I-C-L-U executive director Ben Stone applauds rulings handed down Monday by the U.S. Supreme Court on displays of the commandments in Kentucky courthouses and the Texas statehouse. He says, “The court in both cases affirmed the principle that the government should not be promoting religious messages. And also affirmed the principle that the Ten Commandments as a document is an inherently religious document. And that the government can’t used it to promote a religious message. So, it’s a real victory for religious liberty. It’s a victory for government to stay our of religion, and it’s a good victory for religion itself because it keeps the government from getting mixed up in promoting one view over another in the religious realm.” The I-C-L-U did not challenged the placement of the Ten Commandments in the Iowa statehouse, and Stone explains why.He says back when the Ten Commandments display was placed in January of 2004 he says they felt the location was very remote and he says they knew there were cases in the Supreme Court pipeline and no reason to issue a challenge. Stone says the I-C-L-U’s stand may change with Monday’s high court ruling. “We’re looking at the decision which deals with the display which is virtually identical with the display at the Iowa capitol, ” Stone says, “and we’ll be making a decision in the weeks ahead how we might wish to proceed.” The issue could come down to a legal fight as House Speaker Christopher Rants says he will not remove the Ten Commandments that he posted in a state capitol hallway. “There are only two scenarios under which the Ten Commandments are coming off the wall at the capitol,” Rants says. “One: they’re going to elect a new (House) Speaker or two: the Supreme Court’s going to come in and tell me that they’re going to have to come down.” The Ten Commandments on display are located on the wall of a stairway hallway leading to a balcony that overlooks the chamber where the Iowa House of Representatives meets. Rants says there are a number of documents included in the display, such as the Magna Carta, the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. “A lot of them mention God,” Rants says. “It’s sort of the history of lawmaking in our society as a whole.” Rants was a bit tongue-in-cheek when he spoke with reporters Monday afternoon. “We’re exposing children to this every time they come to the capitol,” Rants said of the display. “It’s shocking.”