Yesterday, 29 state attorneys general joined together in filing an amicus brief (full text) with the 7th Circuit urging it to find that the National Day of Prayer does not violate the Establishment Clause. In a press release, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott who led the effort said that the district court decision striking down the Day of Prayer statute (see prior posting) also threatens Memorial Day because federal law requests the President to issue a proclamation each year calling on people to use the day to pray for peace. The brief argues that private prayer contemplated by the National Day of Prayer statute is less intrusive than public prayers routinely offered by each branch of the federal government and that there is a long history of prayer proclamations in this country, both at the federal and state levels.
UPDATE: On July 8, sixty-seven members of the US House of Representatives also filed an amicus brief (full text) seeking reversal of the trial court's decision. (ACLJ Release.)
