From the CATO Institute Daily Dispatch (Sep. 15, 2005):

Pledge of Allegiance Declared Unconstitutional
“A federal judge declared Wednesday that the reciting of the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools is unconstitutional, a decision that could put the divisive issue on track for another round of Supreme Court arguments,” The Associated Press reports.

“U.S. District Judge Lawrence Karlton ruled that the pledge’s reference to one nation ‘under God’ violates schoolchildren’s right to be ‘free from a coercive requirement to affirm God.’”

In “What’s Conservative about the Pledge of Allegiance?,” Cato senior editor, Gene Healy, observes: “Hands on their hearts, more than 100 Republican members of Congress gathered on the steps of the Capitol to recite the pledge shortly after the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled for Newdow in June 2002. It was an effective photo-op, allowing the G.O.P. to cast itself as the defender of tradition. But not every tradition deserves defending. Though no one can be legally compelled to salute the flag, encouraging the ritual smacks of promoting a quasi-religious genuflection to the state. That’s not surprising, given that the Pledge was designed by an avowed socialist to encourage greater regimentation of society.”