# Fuck you, Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 3, 2001, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758 "2001-08-03T12:03:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/1 "2001-08-03T12:03:01Z")
[Senator wants ‘God’ in Oaths](http://www.accessatlanta.com/ajc/epaper/editions/today/news_b3a654bca54391481052.html): > [@](#): > > Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) wants witnesses before Senate committees to say the whole oath — and don’t leave out God. > > Sessions scolded Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) on Thursday for leaving out “so help me God” when swearing in nominees and others who testify before his panel. “In conjunction with the seriousness of telling the truth, (it) has an importance beyond mere legal requirement.” Gee, you grandstanding, self-righteous, Bible-thumping, Constitution-trashing, oath-breaking demagogue, I’d like more Senators who maintain the oath they took to uphold the Constitution–you remember the oath you took to uphold the Constitution, don’t you Senator? The requirement that you take it is in Article VI, right before the “no religious test” clause. The oath you took to uphold the Constitution, including the part about Congress not making laws regarding an establishment of religion; and including the part about me being a citizen of the United States, with all the privileges and immunities thereof, and having the equal protection of the laws therein; and including the part about not being a two-bit God-bothering smarmy little peddler of religious snake oil on my dime–oh, wait, I guess that last part is a “penumbra”. But of course browbeating people who have business before the United States Senate into kowtowing to the tribal idol of Jeff Sessions has an “importance beyond mere legal requirement”. After all, what is mere legality, mere constitutionality, compared to Jeff Sessions being publicly seen as a right and proper pious bigot for the benefit of the folks back home? ---
**Author:** ![Sauron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce7236/32.png) [@Sauron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sauron)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/2 "2001-08-03T12:42:06Z")
Ol’ Jeffy was the attorney general for Alabama when Howell Heflin stepped down as Senator. After saying for months that he wasn’t interested in the job, he suddenly announced his candidacy. Not sure moral fortitude has always been his strong suit. At least Heflin is gone. God, that man was an embarassment. ---
**Author:** ![super\_head](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d6d6ee/32.png) [@super\_head](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/super_head)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/3 "2001-08-03T14:16:06Z")
That’s it, I’m fucking moving. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/4 "2001-08-03T14:26:19Z")
…and we were talking about Sessions this morning. As a friend of mine put it, I’d love to know when local and state politicians intend to stop aggressively trying to make this state look bad. We are already viewed as a total backwater, and stunts like this and Judge Roy Moore’s Andrew Jackson-esque defiance of court order (“To hell with the higher court, I’m a-keepin’ the Ten Commandments up in my courtroom.”) Guess what happened then? The Alabama Supreme Court upheld his right to keep the Decalogue up, 4-0, with 5 judges recusing. Un-fucking-believable. The tide of religious fundamentalism will make this country a theocracy before it’s all done, I swear. ---
**Author:** ![SpaceGhostofArrakis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc348/32.png) [@SpaceGhostofArrakis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpaceGhostofArrakis)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/5 "2001-08-03T15:02:24Z")
But, according to [http://www.foxnews.com](http://www.foxnews.com) Sessions is upset that “So Help me God” was \* Removed \* from the oath, so it isn’t as if he wants to add it to something that has ever had the phrase. Personaly, IMHO, using that phrase, if nothing else, adds a sense of…majestic to the Oath. But that’s just my opinion. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/6 "2001-08-03T15:08:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SpaceGhostofArrakis \* > **But, according to [http://www.foxnews.com](http://www.foxnews.com) Sessions is upset that “So Help me God” was \* Removed \* from the oath, so it isn’t as if he wants to add it to something that has ever had the phrase.** Yeah, it’s a crying shame when we start to recognize pluralism. :rolleyes > [@](#): > > \*\*Personaly, IMHO, using that phrase, if nothing else, adds a sense of…majestic to the Oath. But that’s just my opinion. \*\* Those of us who don’t believe in any God view it as dishonest to say such a thing. In addition, many of us see this as the majority attempting to trample on our first amendment rights. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/7 "2001-08-03T15:11:56Z")
SpaceGhost, MEBuckner addressed your point of removal in the OP, when he referred to the “no religious test” clause. It was removed because it was unconstitutional. It was proper that it be removed. The last thing I care about is giving a sense of the majestic to something that doesn’t deserve it. The oath is a legal vehicle to bind a person to a set of standards while in office. It doesn’t need to be majestic. It needs to be constitutional. ---
**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/8 "2001-08-03T15:46:10Z")
Next to Moore, our Chief Justice, I can’t even be angry with Sessions. Moore is the famous 10-commandments judge. Well, night before last he _snuck in_ a one-ton marble monument convered with the ten commndments right into the center of the Supreme Court Rotunda! His fellow justices came to work yesterday to find it sitting there. And apparently, this is completley legitimate–it’ll take a law suit to get rid of it. The worst part is that the monument is covered with quotations by various founding fathers that seem to support the idea of having the commandments there–never mind that 1) There are plenty of founding-father quotes that disagree and 2) It’s all irrelevant anyway as the Word of The Founding Fathers is hardly a political gospel. ---
**Author:** ![Tars\_Tarkas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Tars\_Tarkas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tars_Tarkas)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/9 "2001-08-03T15:59:31Z")
> [@](#): > > Those of us who don’t believe in any God view it as dishonest to say such a thing. In addition, many of us see this as the majority attempting to trample on our first amendment rights. Of course, those of us who DO believe in God view it as dishonest to consiously not say such a thing. In addition, many of us see this as the minority attempting to trample on our first amendment rights. ---
**Author:** ![Myrr21](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e495f1/32.png) [@Myrr21](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myrr21)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/10 "2001-08-03T16:02:11Z")
> [@](#): > > Of course, those of us who DO believe in God view it as dishonest to consiously not say such a thing. In addition, many of us see this as the minority attempting to trample on our first amendment rights. ::snicker:: ::chortle:: Err, you were joking, right? ---
**Author:** ![pldennison](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9fc29f/32.png) [@pldennison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pldennison)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/11 "2001-08-03T16:07:47Z")
MEBuckner, maybe Sen. Sessions had recently spent some time at [this site](http://www.americandestiny.com). Make sure you don’t skip the Flash intro; it’s precious. ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/12 "2001-08-03T16:24:12Z")
Great. Like we really need a new Cotton Mather. ---
**Author:** ![Maeglin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8baadc/32.png) [@Maeglin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maeglin)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/13 "2001-08-03T16:25:49Z")
**pld** , you made my day. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/14 "2001-08-03T16:29:28Z")
I just had an aneurysm, watching that American Destiny intro. I hate people. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/15 "2001-08-03T17:39:38Z")
> [@](#): > > Of course, those of us who DO believe in God view it as dishonest to consiously not say such a thing. In addition, many of us see this as the minority attempting to trample on our first amendment rights. **James 5:12** > [@](#): > > But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation. On the other hand, nothing prevents you from violating the Word of God and including His Name in your testimony, it is simply no longer demanded of those who do not share your beliefs that they pay lip service to your idea of God. I rather doubt that anyone being sworn in who added “so help me God” to the end of their affirmation would be chucked out of the committee hearing room. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/16 "2001-08-03T17:59:05Z")
\*Originally posted by Tars Tarkas \* \*\* > [@](#): > > Of course, those of us who DO believe in God view it as dishonest to consiously not say such a thing. In addition, many of us see this as the minority attempting to trample on our first amendment rights. \*\* How about I make it so **you** have to say “so help me Chthulu” or “so help me Odin”. Any problem with that? Hey, don’t trample my first amendment rights! ---
**Author:** ![Tranquilis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tranquilis/32/3639_2.png) [@Tranquilis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tranquilis)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/17 "2001-08-03T18:22:24Z")
I like the way the military changed the Oath of Enlistment: > [@](#): > > I (state your name) do solemnly swear (or Affirm)… It allows you to Swear by God -or- Affirm, according to your beliefs. Either way, it’s binding. ---
**Author:** ![Tars\_Tarkas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Tars\_Tarkas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tars_Tarkas)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/18 "2001-08-03T18:37:34Z")
> [@](#): > > How about I make it so you have to say “so help me Chthulu” or “so help me Odin”. Any problem with that? Hey, don’t trample my first amendment rights! I’m not saying that people whould be forced to say “so help me God,” I’m saying people shouldn’t be forced **NOT** to say it. Try using your brain, son, it may help you someday. Duh, don’t trample on my first amendment rights! ---
**Author:** ![Myrr21](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e495f1/32.png) [@Myrr21](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myrr21)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/19 "2001-08-03T18:43:38Z")
This: > [@](#): > > Of course, those of us who DO believe in God view it as dishonest to consiously not say such a thing is what you said. This says nothing about forcing people not to say it, only that you think it is dishonest not to say it. This > [@](#): > > Sessions scolded Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) on Thursday for leaving out “so help me God” when swearing in nominees and others who testify before his panel is the quoted bit from the actual article that indicates that a certain congressman “scolded” another for _not forcing people to say it._ Note that it does _not_ say that he prevented people from saying it. Twit. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2001, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758/20 "2001-08-03T18:44:32Z")
Well Tars, when I used my brain to read this thread, I didn’t see anyone proposing that people be forced not to say “so help me God.” How about you use your brain and show where this came up, and as you put it, “the minority attempting to trample on [your] first amendment rights”? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuck-you-sen-jeff-sessions-r-al/74758.md?page=2)