Political Quotes

“I rise today to request the support of this body for the passage of H.J. Res. 36--the Flag Protection Amendment. This legislation will clarify once and for all that the language of Title 4 United States Code, section 8, ``No disrespect should be shown to the flag of the United States of America; the flag should not be dipped to any person or thing'' is the law of the land, as well as the sentiment of most Americans. Some opponents of this legislation say that we cannot infringe on the First Amendment and the right to free speech. Others argue that the wording of the First Amendment is sacred, and we must not adjust the Bill of Rights to include this protection. But, I ask you to take a moment and think about the Founding Fathers. How could they have known that one day this would be in question? How could they have imagined that the flag of the country they pledged their lives, fortunes and sacred honor to bring into being would be burned as an act of ``speech'' by people who enjoy the protections of the Nation they sacrificed so much to build? There is no evidence they thought desecrating the flag would be speech, protected by the First Amendment. They would have known, and we must recognize, that destroying the flag is an action, not speech.”