Published: May 29, 2009 10:15 pm      

Monument(al) waste of time

EDMOND — Gov. Brad Henry signed House Bill 1330 into law last week, which will allow a state legislator to privately pay for the placement of a Ten Commandments monument on state Capitol grounds. The legislation also stipulates that a law firm has offered to represent the state pro bono in case it is sued. The state Legislature approved the bill by Rep. Mike Ritze and state Sen. Randy Brogdon on May 11.

According to a press release from the Capitol, House Bill 1330 notes that the Ten Commandments are “an important component of the moral foundation of the laws and legal system of the United States of America and of the State of Oklahoma” but also states that the monument “shall not be construed to mean that the State of Oklahoma favors any particular religion or denomination … .”

There was a lot of debate about the bill, including a sideline brouhaha about a supporting legislator using a quote from Founding Father James Madison that apparently has been inaccurately attributed to him throughout history.

All of this aside, we would ask simply this: Why does the state need specific legislation authorizing one statue on the state Capitol grounds when the U.S. Supreme Court already has ruled, not once but twice, and laid out the ground rules? Why is government spending its time on the issue of a monument when Oklahomans statewide are facing economic pain and suffering?

Ritze was quoted by the Associated Press as saying he wanted to acknowledge the role played by the Ten Commandments in the nation’s heritage. He also was quoted as saying he wants to be part of the preservation of that heritage. This board is unclear as to who exactly might be threatening the state’s heritage.

This board has stated before, and it needs saying again, that the Legislature needs to focus on the issues that matter most to taxpayers and residents of Oklahoma. Our state has numerous difficult issues waiting for solutions. Erecting a monument stating the Ten Commandments likely will have little effect on legislative behavior or impact Oklahomans’ daily lives.

We would like to remind the Republican Party that it is the party of less government, not more government. It’s issues like this that make the party look like it’s becoming the party of big government, just with different issues than the Democrats. It’s not the way to go.