28 June 2006

Ken Salazar Disses First Amendment

Ken Salazar and Wayne Allard, Colorado's U.S. Senators care more about the flag than the political freedoms it represents. This is predictable in the case of Wayne Allard, who has a long record of standing up for torture and all things un-American. We could have hoped for better from Democrat Ken Salazar, whose Democrat party was able to prevent a constitutional amendment to ban flag burning from passing in the Senate by one vote, with the help of three Republicans with some sort of conscience, and one former Republican who is now an independent.

Base appeals to knee jerk reactions from faux patriots are apparently more important to Ken Salazar than the principal of protecting the freedoms established in the Bill of Rights. Ironically, under prior flag care laws, most of those punished were people who were trying to be patriotic and were ignorant of the established rules for doing so, the same sort of people who want this amendment now. Senators should lead, not just cave to our baser impulses. But, Ken Salazar has again failed that test.

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