While we were distracted about torture and habeas corpus

[nancylebov]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/29/AR2006092901055.html

With little public attention or even notice, the House of Representatives has passed a bill that undermines enforcement of the First Amendment's separation of church and state. The Public Expression of Religion Act - H.R. 2679 - provides that attorneys who successfully challenge government actions as violating the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment shall not be entitled to recover attorneys fees. The bill has only one purpose: to prevent suits challenging unconstitutional government actions advancing religion.

Link thanks to fixx.

Comments

[pecunium.livejournal.com]

Has this passed the senate?

If it hasn't, that gives time to petition.

If we get a change in the senate...

TK

[womzilla.livejournal.com]

I actually had heard about this, presumably on a blog.

The House passes all sorts of crazed things; this is a frightening one, though.

[cellio]

I want to sue the entire government for malpractice on behalf of the Constitution. Gah!

[fixx.livejournal.com]

Now, supposed this bill goes into law, and is then challenged and found unconstitutional. I wonder if someone would then challenge the rights of the attorney's to recover fees on the basis that this law was in effect when the attorneys in question involved themselves in going up against the law?

[shagbark.livejournal.com]

Wow, that's incredible...

Here's another one: The recently-passed law absolving the Bush administration, after the fact, of war crimes. Some details at http://effwit.blogspot.com/2006/09/bush-attempting-ex-post-facto.html . I can't find much about this by googling, though.