I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.
There it is, big as life and twice as mean. The oath of office that the new President of the United States recites at his/her inauguration. The exact text is specified in Article Two of The Constitution of the United States of America!
Over the past several weeks there has been considerable discussion across the world wide web: if elected would Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney take this oath with his hand on a Bible or a Book of Mormon. BTW: not every president has used a bible in the past, Teddy Roosevelt being a prime example!
But this shouldn’t even be a question…THROW OUT THE BIBLE! The oath of office for the President and every other federal official should be administered with the office holders hand planted firmly on a copy of THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!
The Constitution of the United States of America…the very document that they are swearing to protect and defend. Why would we ever consider anything else?
George Washington, despite being a deist, used a Bible for his inauguration. Point being, it seems that religion is a necessary requisite, in the minds of the people, at least, for being the president. And that’s a sad fact, if you ask me.
The intrusion of religion into our government goes on and on– just recently our Congress voted for inclusion of the “FDR Prayer” onto the World War II War Memorial. The vote was 386 FOR and 26 AGAINST, with our entire Wisconsin Congressional delegation voting FOR. Earlier on November 1, 2011, Congress voted 396 to 9 in favor of reaffirming “In God We Trust” as our national motto. Again, our entire Wisconsin Congressional delegation voted for government support of religion. Apparently, our Congress can act in a bipartisan way to pander to the religious interests, but nothing else. E Pluribus Unam
I agree, Edward. Each incoming president should swear an oath on a copy of the Constitution. Makes better sense.